Trying a Walstad Method Aquascape | No Filter. No Co2. No Ferts.

[@SarahMaeBea]

I'm about to set up my first walstad tank, a 10 gallon. So I'm super invested in how this little miniseries goes! Thanks for sharing.

[@ssaquascapes]

Thanks for watching. There are more videos on this aquarium in my channel’s video list 🤘

[@TropiscapeAquatics]

I believe another benefit of sifting dirt is to remove stuff like perlite (if the dirt has any), wood chips/sticks and any large objects in the dirt. Depending on the type of wood that's in the soil (hardwood vs softwood), there's a good chance it will rot and breakdown and release ammonia. Furthermore, wood will release tannins, which will darken the water.

[@ssaquascapes]

Excellent points. I just thought about floating debris. Though this tops soil didn’t have perlite, it did contain various wood/sticks. Thanks for commenting; I am sure this will help others too!

[@OVHabitats]

Nice start. Of course more plants are always better to start with however, you will be looking for a plae to put all your cutting in a few months. Good luck and good work I look forward to what's next.

[@ssaquascapes]

Thanks for the support. I appreciate it. An update vid on this tank is already on the channel and more coming soon! 🤘

[@draidt]

Enjoy your videos don't understand why you don't have many more subs!

[@ssaquascapes]

Thanks! The channel is still new. It’ll take a while to grow. But your likes and comments help the algorithm. So thank you for the support 🤘

[@johnjwedrall4290]

i found your channel today and subscribed to it today 👍

[@ssaquascapes]

Awesome! Thanks for the support 🤘

[@noelkinney]

Great job I have five planted tanks done with the soil at the bottom and then the sand with massive amount of plants that I have to send out and I just give away to the aquarium store. Once you add fish, just add an air sponge filter.

[@ssaquascapes]

Thank you. I am trying to run it zero tech. But we will see. So far, fish and shrimp are happy, but monitoring water parameters closely.

[@jenxu2]

I think it looks great! I have a walstad bowl. Yours looks so much better... LOL

[@ssaquascapes]

Thank you Fran! I appreciate it 🤘

[@ssandaf4564]

One inch soil capped with 2 inches sand. Total substrate thickness 3 inches else soil will get to the water when planting.

[@ssaquascapes]

Agreed. When I watched the vid after posting I realized that I should have more sand. I did move some plants around (update vid coming soon) and soil leached out. And, I have a clouding issue (soil?)😬 I vacuumed it out but lesson learned. Thanks for bringing it up for other viewers. Measure your sand from the TOP of the soil. NOT front the bottom glass as I did. 🤦🏼‍♂️

[@AkwarystykaKrystran]

Świetna aranżacja super wygląda pozdrawiam 👍

[@ssaquascapes]

Dziękuję, przyjacielu

[@tonyv1505]

you forgot a little bit of grable around the edges of the stones i'm also learning taking tips from MD fish tanks videos I like his method of being simple no co2 also in my opinion the sand doesn't look natural and too thick in the front did you put the root tabs decloronize the water and added beneficial bacteria

[@ssaquascapes]

I probably should have added decorative stones in front, but, I suspect that the glossostigma will carpet right to the stones and then some so I didn’t add them. No root tabs as this is Walstad method and I used 75% RO water and the rest dechlorinated tap water. Zero water changes and it is now a month since set up. Update vid this week.

[@LushSaltyAquariums]

I'm doing a pseudo walstad tank as well. I say pseudo because you and I are violating some of the Walstad "rules." lol.

[@ssaquascapes]

Rules were meant to be broken right? I can’t wait to see yours as you’re WAY better at this than me. 👍🏻 Thanks for checking out this vid and stay tuned for the update vid coming soon (already filmed).

[@tonyv1505]

I'm getting ready to upgrade my tank soon i also purchase some seiryu stones, plants, some aquarium soil can't remember the name a bag of small gravel lava rock that i'll be mixing with the soil, i'm trying to find my own driftwood as good driftwoods are expensive also still trying to find the right sant i want something like river mix sand probably will look for it in creeks near me if i can't find it in the stores i've seen many types of sand but can't find what i'm looking for oh yeah also bought more fishes today

[@ssaquascapes]

If you’re trying Walstad, remember that aquarium soil for scaping is not the same as just topsoil per the Walstad method. I am sure you know, just reiterating. River sand should be ok and I am doing a video soon on finding hard scape in nature for free so, I wish you luck finding some awesome stuff when you explore! 🤘

[@tonyv1505]

@@ssaquascapes I bought the Thriva natural aquarium soil, rain forest black m/3mm , two 5lbs bags I know there are better out there but more expensive for less soil

[@ssaquascapes]

@@tonyv1505 I am not familiar with that soil. I’ll look it up and educate myself. In my opinion though, use what you can afford, try new cheaper alternatives, experiment and have fun! That’s what this hobby is to me. 🤘

[@wakingforbacon6439]

I just bought like 50 beautiful pieces of driftwood for a buck a piece. Trying to sale some to. Most is around 10-12 inch range. Couldn’t pass up that deal.

[@derfrechedachs6617]

I like the hardscape and I´m very curious, how the plants will grow. Looks nice already

[@ssaquascapes]

Thank you. Update video coming soon but here’s a small preview: I had to transplant some plants to a larger tank. 😳

[@scotthopkins2235]

Looks nice I'm curious to see how the plants like the Soil under the sand.

[@ssaquascapes]

Thanks Scott. Update video coming soon. Spoiler, some liked it, some melted away instantly. 😬

[@scotthopkins2235]

@@ssaquascapes Man ohhh man, That is why I never got into live plants. I tried it early on in my entry to the hobby and it was nothing but issues. I just can't deal with live plants. I know fake plant don't look as nice but it beat looking at melting plants and not really knowing why they died. At least that was my experience with them.

[@ssaquascapes]

For me that’s the fun of it, not killing plants but, making an environment that they love and thrive in. Takes some trial and error in the beginning.

[@wakingforbacon6439]

@@ssaquascapeseven if some plants melt off this usually is not a problem. A lot of plants are not raised underwater so they do melt away at first but usually regrow afterwards. Hope that helps some.

[@ssaquascapes]

Yup. Expected that on some rotala sp. but some died off completely that are only grow submerged so I think they got root burn. Probably my fault like planting too deep as roots were in new soil.

[@christophergonzalez6290]

What RO unit do you have?

[@ssaquascapes]

This one from Amazon. Lasted over a year and I recommend it for the price. amzn.to/4gweqTG

[@fandy.shadenio]

Who's walstad?

[@ssaquascapes]

It’s a method named after a lady that is most commonly pronounced and spelled incorrectly as WALSTEAD. I’ll be honest, the hype isn’t worth the hassle. 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@MrMattemannen76]

The red ones should lose their colour without co2 and ferts, especially iron. But we will see :)

[@ssaquascapes]

I thought so too. But with very low water nitrates, and high lighting for 12 hours, they are actually the BEST looking plants in the tank! We both forgot (I think) that the “ferts” come from the soil via the roots. Traditionally this would be from the water column. I already filmed an update video that I’ll release this weekend so you can check back if you want to see the reds! 🤘 Thanks for watching and the support you give!

[@majestickingz5135]

I concur my red roof floaters with this same setup have not faded just dosing every week accordingly try planting some hair grass too