It's controversial, but a tempest in a teapot. We aren't changing the world here.
@PygmyPepperJulli - you're on the right track. This is what I am exploring as well. I'm about 25 years in with using terrestrial plants as a support (but not a solution). As I said up above, I still do water changes on a fair scale, usually 30%, but in those tanks, I'll go 10 days if I'm busy, and don't stress if I'm getting closer to 2 weeks when things are really busy. I prefer to keep the plant growth over no more than half the tank. Chinese evergreen, peace lilies (lots), pothos, monstera, vines and leaves - they look great and do good if well managed.
@10 Tanks - it's hard to have a discussion with someone who doesn't read other people's postings. It isn't a matter of pronouncing your 'to each his own' stuff. There's a give and go in discussion. You didn't notice that I run the same kinds of set ups as you do. You don't deal with the fact I have researched this, and we've probably been doing similar things with different conclusions for around the same time. I saw my first terrestrial plant filtration system around 1995, and the guy doing it was reading a pile of articles and basing his set up on research available that far back. He did water changes, btw, as he had problems with Oodinium parasites in his wild Betta tanks.
I recently spent 2 weeks in Central Africa looking at what plants grew where in relation to the water. So much of the small fish ecology ties into above the water - falling debris becoming food, falling insects, plant roots and flooded sections... It's interesting stuff, and I am on a plant hunt now to make some authentic as I can pull off moving water tanks.
I can't recall you ever responding to arguments when your peers disagree with you. I too have heard your opinions many many times, and I've thought about them. There have been uncountable discussions about this - some very productive. The aquarium is a box, and there are a lot of things outside it that feed into enjoying it.
@PygmyPepperJulli - you're on the right track. This is what I am exploring as well. I'm about 25 years in with using terrestrial plants as a support (but not a solution). As I said up above, I still do water changes on a fair scale, usually 30%, but in those tanks, I'll go 10 days if I'm busy, and don't stress if I'm getting closer to 2 weeks when things are really busy. I prefer to keep the plant growth over no more than half the tank. Chinese evergreen, peace lilies (lots), pothos, monstera, vines and leaves - they look great and do good if well managed.
@10 Tanks - it's hard to have a discussion with someone who doesn't read other people's postings. It isn't a matter of pronouncing your 'to each his own' stuff. There's a give and go in discussion. You didn't notice that I run the same kinds of set ups as you do. You don't deal with the fact I have researched this, and we've probably been doing similar things with different conclusions for around the same time. I saw my first terrestrial plant filtration system around 1995, and the guy doing it was reading a pile of articles and basing his set up on research available that far back. He did water changes, btw, as he had problems with Oodinium parasites in his wild Betta tanks.
I recently spent 2 weeks in Central Africa looking at what plants grew where in relation to the water. So much of the small fish ecology ties into above the water - falling debris becoming food, falling insects, plant roots and flooded sections... It's interesting stuff, and I am on a plant hunt now to make some authentic as I can pull off moving water tanks.
I can't recall you ever responding to arguments when your peers disagree with you. I too have heard your opinions many many times, and I've thought about them. There have been uncountable discussions about this - some very productive. The aquarium is a box, and there are a lot of things outside it that feed into enjoying it.
This was mostly more of a curiosity thread.
if you lived in the middle of no where away from traffic then I imagine it would be safe
if you're in the middle of nowhere and drink the rainwater yourself then go for it. Not everyone can do that is what I was saying, although I live rurally there is a major road not far from us and our air quality isn't the best...so using collected rainwater for fish isn't a good option for me
