How do you keep a bare bottom tank cycled?

C

CichlidsYay

Active Member
Member
Messages
344
This question is directed towards the people with bare bottom tanks and of course, the people that have some input.


How do you keep a bare bottom tank cycled? I'm really considering taking out the sand I put in.. I just can't get it completely clean. Should I add more Terracotta pots?
 

Advertisement
Your aquarium info says that you have an eheim 2215 filter? If so it should contain easily enough benifical bacteria to keep the tank fully cycled. Substrate does hold a lot of bb, but the most important stuff is in your filter.
 

Advertisement
Hello CichlidsYay,

Have you seen this video on how to clean sand in a freshwater tank?



As for adding more terracotta pots, the more surface area you have in your tank and filter the more beneficial bacteria your tank will house. Too, with the terracotta being porous even better

Ken
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #4
Hello CichlidsYay,

Have you seen this video on how to clean sand in a freshwater tank?



As for adding more terracotta pots, the more surface area you have in your tank and filter the more beneficial bacteria your tank will house. Too, with the terracotta being porous even better

Ken
Click to expand...

Yes I have, I believe it was you who showed it to me. Very much appreciated but my fish creates too much waste that I can't even get all of it, and I do daily water changes.
 
Hello,

I understand how you feel. I don't know that I would like seeing detritus/waste on top of sand either. That's why I've never used it. Although it looks wonderful in a tank and many members do use it.

I've seen several other members with bare bottom tanks yet they have pots and other ornaments for fish to hide and get away from others. I don't see a problem if you want to go bare bottom. Just don't remove it all at one time.

Ken
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #6
Just don't remove it all at one time.

Ken
Click to expand...

Oh jeez.. Reading this line made my heart sink.. I just ran out of everything in my testing kits.. and I took out about.. 98% of the sand.. T__T
 

Advertisement
Don't panic! lol

If you're out of testing supplies, add a dose of Prime or Amquel + to be on the safe side. This should get you through to Monday and hopefully you can get another kit.

Ken
 
I have bare-bottom tanks for my axolotls (a type of salamander), and they haven't had problems keeping a cycle going once it is established. As Nick Goody and Aquarist 48 have said, the filter and decor, plants, etc. will hold beneficial bacteria.

If you're worried that you've removed a lot of beneficial bacteria at once by removing the sand, testing (once you get new test kits) and water changes are the way to go. Your tank might surprise you, though. As long as you haven't changed out the filter yet, you might actually have enough beneficial bacteria in there to keep up with the fish waste. Keep us posted.
 
Congratulations!

I was a little skeptical at first when I had to set up bare-bottomed tanks for my salamanders, but it has made me realize exactly how much beneficial bacteria can form outside of the substrate itself. It sounds like everything is working out just fine for you.
 
Throwing in an extra sponge filter may help. I have a BB with juvenile discus. Only been running a couple of months but I do daily to second daily water changes, most of which involves cleaning the bottom anyway. I don't think BB is lower maintentance or cleaner than sand because the BB shows all the bits up anyway.
 

Advertisement



I know this doesn't help you much while the tank is up and running, but I even painted the base of my second bare bottomed tank, so that it has a nice, mottled color to it. It might be fun to think over some elaborate painted designs to put on the base of a tank that will be bare-bottomed. I don't think I had realized how great bare-bottomed would be until I actually did it.
 
  • Thread Starter
  • #13
I know this doesn't help you much while the tank is up and running, but I even painted the base of my second bare bottomed tank, so that it has a nice, mottled color to it. It might be fun to think over some elaborate painted designs to put on the base of a tank that will be bare-bottomed. I don't think I had realized how great bare-bottomed would be until I actually did it.
Click to expand...

I was actually thinking of someway to cover the bottom. Its a bit odd when I can see through the bottom, and see the wiring.
 
I saw on another forum where someone took some colored paper, I think maybe gift wrap from christmas, and taped it to the bottom, looked great and easily interchangeable if you have access to the bottom of the tank
 
I paint my tanks personally, but paper and stuff can work too to cover the sides/bottom. I also use sponge filters to keep my tanks cycled.
 
Hello I just got my 10 gallon tank up an running I bought two fantail goldfish to go in it. Don't worry I am going to upgrade pretty soon in the future I just need to prove that I can take care of a ten gallon tank before my parents will let me get my dream 55 gallon for my goldies anyways I started out with gravel but after a week the gravel was filthy so I got rid of the gravel and went bare bottom instead. Is this a good idea or bad idea ? Whats your experience with bare bottom tanks ?
My fish seem to be fine they don't seem to notice a difference, I have a bunch of river rocks all over the bottom which they like. Haha

 

Attachments

  • 1400792041755.jpg
    1400792041755.jpg
    42.5 KB · Views: 3,932
The goldfish won't care one way or another. It also will stay cleaner for you. So, it's basically personal preference to have substrate or not unless you have fish that require a specific type of substrate, or obviously if you want to have live rooting plants.
 
The only down side is you don't get to enjoy the fun of vacuuming gravel every week! Lol, having nothing at the bottom definitely makes it easier to clean up all the mess. If you get a turkey baster you can easily suck up any nasty bits you see without removing much water. My fry tank has nothing at the bottom and when I clean it I can easily sit there for over 15 minutes making sure I get up every single poop!
 
Here's a link to my Ranchu goldfish tank thread. All my tanks are bare bottom with exception to my betta tanks as they are heavily planed.
 

Advertisement



It stresses fish out if you don't have substrate. You can experiment by filling up a small portion and sticking a fish in there. They will stay in the area that has substrate


 
It stresses fish out if you don't have substrate. You can experiment by filling up a small portion and sticking a fish in there. They will stay in the area that has substrate
Click to expand...

Goldfish don't seem to notice when they don't have substrate, they behave the same with or without substrate. Goldfish make a lot of poop that tends to get stuck in between rocks and it can make bad bacteria. So I think the risks out weigh the benefits

 
Whats your experience with bare bottom tanks ?
Click to expand...

It stresses fish out if you don't have substrate.
Click to expand...

With all the different fish I've had in a bottomless QT, none have ever seemed to care weather or not there was substrate on the bottom. Even when I've taken a fish out of a tank with substrate and placed them in the QT they don't seem to notice. A lot of people with substrateless tanks will either paint the outside bottom or put a black background on the bottom using ClearView or similar product, so that is always an option.
 
It stresses fish out if you don't have substrate. You can experiment by filling up a small portion and sticking a fish in there. They will stay in the area that has substrate
Click to expand...

Some perspective from my end...

As a breeder I have the advantage of having large numbers of tanks and fish of the same type to "experiment" with. Some have substrate, some are bare bottomed, and some are partially covered.

The fish behave and breed the same regardless of the substrate so I don't think it stresses them in any way. As far as the notion that fish will congregate over the areas with substrate, while I have seen this, I believe it to largely be an artifact of fish being attracted to structure of any sort. They congregate the same way around sponge filters, driftwood, large stones, etc and the lack of any of these does not equate to stressed out fish.

Also if you paint the bottom of a tank partially the fish will also spend more time over the darker areas but obviously substrate itself plays no role in such a set up.


In most instances (an exception being fish that spend most of their time searching through or on substrate for food) the choice to add substrate is purely a matter of aesthetics and convenience.
 
The only sad part about the bare bottom is that goldies love to forage. This is how mine spend most of their days, poking around in the substrate. I believe they get bored as they are very interactive fish, especially in a smaller tank. But you can mitigate these factors and, it looks like you have, by adding the extra river rocks and making the rest of their environment interactive. This is just my personal opinion, and the reason I prefer some kind of substrate in my goldie tank.

I have a gravel substrate in my 29 gallon but I've had a few scares with them picking up pieces of gravel I never thought they could. I've resolved this issue for when I transfer them to the 75 gallon with larger river rocks and only a very thin layer so they have something to poke around in that isn't dangerous or too hard to clean. Sand is beautiful and, while I've heard a few conflicting opinions on whether or not it's ideal for goldies, most people who use it seem to have had success. I, personally, would be afraid they'd swallow it, but that's just my personal fear and it may or may not be well founded haha.

If you decide you want live, rooting plants, you can use plastic planters and terracotta pots. Fill it with a planting substrate (or even just gravel) and cap it off with something larger so they don't go digging up the fine grains of whatever you use. Just make sure they are NEW and don't have any additional paints or glazes or anything added to them.
 
So I have been contemplating going bare bottom with all my betta tanks and just get plants like anubias that I can attach to wood and floating plants etc.. nothing that has to be planted basically. I have been breeding bettas and the main reason I want to do this is to make my cleaning day easier since I have a couple of tanks already set up (they are all planted)

So basically I just want to know the pros and cons of bare bottom tanks and your opinions?
 
Pros cleaner tank better filtration
Cons doesn’t look as nice
 

Advertisement



Meh, I have one bare bottom tank and it actually requires the most maintenance to keep the tank looking presentable since everything's just out in the open... Doesn't look that great either.

I guess if these are breeders instead of displays asthetics don't matter as much anyway, skipped over that bit.
 
Easier but more regular maintenance since the waste is more obvious. Algae will also grow on the bare bottom. A couple of snails will help with that.
 
Agree with mentioned Pros/Cons. Planted Tanks for me. But just started my "Discus" journey, Decided to go bare bottom since it's highly recommended and better for the growing fish.. Just not the same with "Potted Plants".
Been an "Underwater Gardener" as soon as I learned enough to not kill them. A few more months and I'll be setting up the New larger tank with a substrate and Plants.

Good Luck!
 
Since I don't care about appearances for my bare bottom tanks (which is just my single baby betta tub, my Molly grow out tub, and my quarantine tub), I don't mind seeing any waste. I like seeing the fish have been pooping and it's easy to siphon out. I find it really useful for fry and hospital or quarantine so I can monitor their bowel movements and thus partially health. I use a turkey baster to suck it out.

Besides looks, cons would be no substrate or gravel to grow beneficial bacteria or root plants, but that's to be expected.
 
Thanks everyone for your imput! I have done planted tanks for years and I will
Obviously keep my shrimp tank planted but I'm definitely going bare bottom for the bettas. At this point I'm looking more into making the cleaning easier as I have been very busy with my new job. Especially in my smallest tanks with the plants and the substrate have been difficult trying to scrape algae off glass without making a mess. I have eco-complete and it keeps breaking into dust
 
I’m thinking about changing my 75 gallon tank to bare bottom tank. I want to put small pots with plants in it and driftwood for decoration. I have had different types of substrate and I’m not a fan of any of them. I just don’t like it. Am I asking for trouble doing a bare bottom? Any way to go about it that I should know?
 
I’m thinking about changing my 75 gallon tank to bare bottom tank. I want to put small pots with plants in it and driftwood for decoration. I have had different types of substrate and I’m not a fan of any of them. I just don’t like it. Am I asking for trouble doing a bare bottom? Any way to go about it that I should know?
Click to expand...
Doing bare bottom is totally fine but your going to need a large filter. Since there will be very little in the tank to support beneficial bacteria, nearly all of it will live in the filter media. For my 72g bow front tank, I got a fluval fx5. It holds 6 liters of media. You defiantly don't NEED something that big but I would go on the higher end of filtration.
 

Advertisement



I dont see any problem at all. the majority of the nitrifying bacteria lives in the filter, stick some extra porous material in the filter if you are concerned. I have used chemical free sponges, but I currently have that kids craft foam as an additional bio material in my filter. and extra filter cartridges.
Plus you said you want to add potted plants. I did that in my tank in the past. with a glass bowl, it was actually probobly a very clean or never use ash tray, but I would rather have a flower pot .
Also consider anubias or moss tied to the driftwood.
 
Just do it you want regret a bare bottom tank. You can still have a ton of plants in pots on wood and floating. If you have corydoras a sandpit is still an option.

I suggest a dozen terracotta pots full of gravel is a potential home for bacteria? But would always recommend multiple filters in any tank.

Terracotta pots are just one option.image.jpgimage.jpgimage.jpg
 
My personal opinion is that the idea bare bottom tanks are easier / cleaner is a fairy tale.

Substrate and especially the microorganism living in it are a big part of the biological balance in a tank.
These microorganism are the actual the cleaningcrew of a tank. That's why especially botomdwellers often don't do well in a bare bottom.

Stated elsewhere that that's probably why there aren't any bare bottom rivers and lakes hahaha.
 
I'm with DoubleDutch for most of the way.

I personally would have concerns for the fish psychologically doing a bare bottom tank. Obviously it would be very hard to scientifically prove these concerns, but I have read some interesting studies on the effects of substrates (and no substrate) on fish/invertebrates. The specific one I remember was a study on a certain crayfish (I believe). The crayfish (or whatever it was) seemed to be significantly affected by no substrate. This is hardly 100% proof; but just thinking about it from a glance, having no substrate isn't at all natural. I would reasonably imagine that a fish being able to see through the tank/its reflection without having any kind of security under would affect it in some way. That is just my thoughts though.
Am I asking for trouble doing a bare bottom?
Click to expand...
I wouldn't say so. Many people have done bare bottom tanks.
 
I once had a 15 gallon tall with a 10"x20" bottom. I had a piece of stone tile cut to just slightly smaller than that and then a tiny bit of gravel all the way around the edges - like 1/4 inch or less of gravel around the edges. It cycled fine and the betta in it seemed pretty happy. So not bare bottom, but was super easy to vacuum up food and poop. As the stone was a bit porous and the gravel was around the edges, I think there was plenty of surface area outside the filter for nitrifying bacteria.
 
I’m thinking about changing my 75 gallon tank to bare bottom tank. I want to put small pots with plants in it and driftwood for decoration. I have had different types of substrate and I’m not a fan of any of them. I just don’t like it. Am I asking for trouble doing a bare bottom? Any way to go about it that I should know?
Click to expand...
My I ask why you're not a fan of.substrate ?
 
the majority of the nitrifying bacteria lives in the filter,
Click to expand...

You might be right but there are differing opinions, e.g.

"The greatest population of bacteria in a healthy balanced aquarium occurs in the substrate, not the filter. The floc or humic compost that collects in the substrate is the host for the biofilms; this is why the substrate in planted tanks should never be disturbed, and many aquarists apply this to non-planted tanks as well".

From:

Bacteria in the Freshwater Aquarium
 
Personally I wouldn't do bare bottom without a sump or canister. The resin alot of people do bare bottom is for high flow reef tanks that have wave makers turning 40x water volume an hour. So without a way to transport the detritus somewhere you will have fish food and waste all over the bottom. It's definitely possible and a 110 aquaclear could keep the bacteria to keep fish alive but the bottom will be full of stuff. Could put a small wave maker in the tank to give flow on the bottom so the waste is suspended and the aquaclear can get it.
 
Bare bottom is not my aesthetic, but almost every breeder video I've seen - and Especially the really big breeders - go bare bottom.
If the fish are comfortable enough and healthy enough to breed in bare bottom, I don't see why it wouldn't work for regular living.
I suspect it is a bit species dependent though.
 

Random Great Topic!

Growing Out The Juvenile Discus
Growing Out The Juvenile Discus

Today's Deals


Amazon Daily Aquatic Deals

Amazon Aquatic Coupons


Advertisement



Advertisement








Advertisement




Fish Lore's aquarium fish forum - aquarium hobbyists helping hobbyists since 2005!

Fish Lore is an amazon affiliate and some pages may contain links to aquarium related products on amazon: Affiliate Disclosure

Aquarium forum statistics

Threads
427,391
Messages
4,714,454
Members
127,557
Back
Top Bottom