STEM PLANTS BUNDLE SALE - Over 75 plants - 15 Species for $59! Limited Time OFFER so HURRY! father-fish-aquarium.myshopify.com/ For Special Soil Supplements, Plants, FIsh & Merch in your country: fatherfish.fish/
Father fish is a biologist/ Ichthyologist not necessarily a hobbyist! Major difference he teaches correct fish care unlike a hobbyist who sometimes are arrogant and force feed you BS! Thanks Fsther Fish you rock! 🐠✌💓
I have been in almost every fish, pet store in Tucson. None of the workers in the stores ever heard of a natural aquarium or Father Fish. When I tell them about putting soil in the bottom they think I am nuts. After accidentally watching your video 3 months ago, I became interested in aquariums again and will be starting up a tank in the next few days!!
@@fredrikniemeyeror maybe he understands this particular person better than what browsing forums and reading literature offers. He's slow paced and easy going. Speaks in clear and easily understood terminology. Some people just absorb information differently brother!
I kept fish since I was 12 years old. Fish stores kept advising to buy more and more expensive equipement and products in addition to telling me to use RO water and have consistent water changes. Fish kept dying, plants rotted away and thus I ended up leaving the hobby for over 18 years. I found your videos 6 months ago and wow....I havent lost 1 fish or plant since I followed your natural method of the hobby. Thank you so much! I have fallen inlove with the hobby again.
I wish I had known about Father Fish when I started my aquariums. It would have saved me so much money on all expensive filters, co2 systems and other tech I thought I needed because of the bigger aquarium youtubers. Back to basics and keeping the tank as close to nature as possible was always the answer! Thank you for all your videos! Please keep doing them.
1) organic potting soil Make 1-2 Inch of mud. NOT soup. 2) cap it with sand. Make it double the dirt amount. I like black diamond blasting sand. Don’t get the fine grit. 3) fill with some water 4) place decorations and plant plants 1 Inch deep in sand. 5) put a few fish in there. 6) don’t feed them for 1-2 week. If you do just a small bit. 7) medium light for 2 weeks 24/7. 8) allow some algae and limit feeding 9) get some snails or shrimp
@@raphael9749 you can definitely house both together in the same tank. However to answer the other half of your question I don’t really see them as tools or a cure to anything. But I will say, I do allow certain algae to grow in my tank. I only clean the front glass. Anyway at the top of my tank grows a hair algae patch and I’ve never removed it. The snails really like to graze on it here and there. They only fully removed it once but I checked today and i see some growing back.
Side note on the above list. I let my mud air out and just basically gas off before I continued the process. Step two you really need to clean your sand very very thoroughly. And step three I never allowed chlorine into my tank.
My lid has an LED light. I've set up a 5 gal tank with the FF method. I have 4 tiny fish in it and kept the LED on 24/7 for 4 days now. I used 1 inch of dirt/mud from an old flower pot and 2inches of fine black diamond blasting sand. I have about 8 planted aquatic plants I got from Petco and put in the tank so far and it looks pretty full of plants. seeded with some leafs from a local pond. i'm thinking about adding some red root floaters to the tank in a few days. are floating plant good or bad for the father fish method and you think i'm doing well keeping the light on 24/7? thanks for the tips. so far the fish seem happy and active.
My soon to be 11 year old son is SO excited to be starting his own aquarium (its a 67L tank) He got a bit freaked out at first when you spoke about taking mud and sand from outside, haha. I know nothing about fish yet, but as a mother of 5 who kept everything as natural as I could in labour and in feeding my children, I can tell you have the same intention of keeping things as natural as possible for your fish. This can only be a good thing, so we look forward to absorbing your wisdom. Thank you sincerely from wet and windy Scotland. Xx
I've been creating or maintaining home aquariums for 50 years and I can tell you from my hard-earned experience, this man's advice is worth its weight in gold. If you are a beginner, you will be light years ahead of everyone else if you simply follow the advice presented in this single video. And I mean every step, exactly the way he describes it. And understand, you will NEVER hear this quality advice from a standard pet store or a big box store. The advice on starting off your new aquarium with actual outdoor mud (preferably from a lake) is brilliant and will put you months ahead of lowly hobbyists who are simply watching YT videos and wondering why they can't keep anything alive. Starting the life cycle strongly is crucial in keeping your precious fish alive and well. My #1 advice is that if you want lots of fish, you are going to have to invest in LARGE tanks. The bigger the tank, the easier it is to maintain and for the fish to thrive. Overcrowding is the fastest way to kill your fish and it happens very easily. You would think that beginners should keep to small tanks as their experience is small, but the opposite is true. It takes more talent/experience to maintain small aquariums than it does large ones. Also, the more surface your aquarium has the better. Stay away from tall aquariums with small water surface. They are more trouble than they are worth, unless you have experience in the hobby.
I’m a new fish keeper I have a new tank it’s 54 litres I have mainly tetras in there I’ve not over stocked only got 17 and 4 guppies also 15 shrimp there is also quite a lot of snails that have come on the plants I bought I was not advised to put of soil in first before my sand. Will this system still work without soil ? The plants are growing and so far everything looks good if not wot do I do ?
Because of you i saved my tank with ick and if I would have caught it earlier I probably wouldn't have lost any fish. Thank you so much for the knowledge
I was hesitant about an aquarium, as I k ow from the past it’s like taking care of a Pool. I stumbled across your videos, and set up a 10 gallon tank for my daughter. Dirt, sand, plants, river rocks from outdoors, and drift wood. Feed the fish bloodworms. 1 month later water is crystal clear, plants and fish are thriving. Foundational principles are always supreme. Thank you
Father Fish, I'm almost seventy years of age and have tried so many times to keep and enjoy watching them but each time they have all died. It really is heart-breaking to watch. I can't stand or walk, so I've always relied on a my wife or kids for the 'tedious maintenance' associated (until now) with fishkeeping. Thankyou so much!!!
I am so excited to have found you Father Fish!! I currently have an empty 90 gallon and have always wanted to do a natural substrate tank but haven't found any good videos. Then today your Loach video showed up on my shorts and I've been glued to your channel all morning!! I am so excited to try this! 🐟
just started myself last November, and it's a godsent that father fish is here to guide us unlike people in my recent fish group , they always recommend water changes water changes.and also add chemicals or starter in whicj I dont like
Hello.i m italian and i live in UK.i want to Say to you that are about 3 months that i ve start with this hobby.i ve watched many many video about It. I can Say you re the best teacher. You explain easly anything.thank you very much for your help.❤
I've only been keeping fish for just over a year . So glad I found father fish early on that journey.just setting up a third deep substrate planted tank.Everything father fish says goes against everything they told me at the fish store but I'm glad I listened to the Father. Healthy happy tank . Thankyou Father Fish😁
I just found you, and I’m so glad I did ❤ One thing to bear in mind! Some of the employees in major retail pet stores love animals, too, and some of us become very disappointed, like I was, when we find out how much information needs updating or is just plain wrong. Some of these employees are kids; please bear in mind they don’t know better but are trying their best. The company has lied to them about what a given animal needs. Eventually, when I realized the company only cared for money, I would regularly redirect customers to local fish/reptile/bird expert stores I knew of until I found a better job elsewhere. Now I just try to avoid those major retailers if I can. Their info is majorly outdated, at best.
Interesting, I am a farmer/ market gardener now retreated, that love plants to the point to try aquatic ones 😂 I started in the beginning of january, in a 20 gal long, with 2" of aquasoil at the lowest, topped with 1" of black sand and sprinkled some small lava rocks to add surfaces ( and a little " river/road" of pool sand sprinkled with smashed coral). I add wood pieces I collected during last decades, river rocks, and a lot of plants ( 27 species) after I let it run, with fertilizer( florin multi) and trace minerals. I use tap water, conditionned, and grow lights for gardeners. I have a sponge filter too. I put a piece of crude shrimp from my fridge in. After about 3 weeks, parameters seem kind of good, so I add 3 rabbits snails, they gave me 2 babies that same week. And after 2 other weeks I add 20 shrimps, and I got babies, again, in less than 2 days. I dont feed them. In fact, I try, but they prefer grazing in my tank. I remove the food everytime, after some hours. Even Repashy or fine cuisine is not touch 😂😂 Now, I add yesterday my first fish, a group of 6 oto. They got ich !😅 So I have to deal with it. At least they poop like crazy. I didnt knew you when I begun, but indeed, a backgroud in gardening may help. And an approach base on observation. I still have so much to learn, and I am stress as f* sometimes, because my lack of knowledge. I still check all my parameters, everyday, so worried for my little environment and inhabitants.
I discovered Father Fish on TH-cam last night. I subscribed immediately. I have been doing fish tanks for around 30 years but am still very open too listening to others. Mostly I will say thank you and walk away. Occasionally, very occasionally I will hear advice from someone like Father Fish and find myself fascinated in what is being said due to the wealth of information and knowledge. This is a fantastic video for beginners and TH-cam channel for anyone who enjoys aquariums.I wish I had this kind of information when I was starting out as it would have saved me so much time, money and grief when loosing fish and plants. I love listening to someone who knows what they are talking about. It confirms what I already know but also teaches me new tricks. Many thanks Father Fish from Australia 😊👍🙏
I could have used your advice 15 years ago when I tried the hobby and after a year gave up. Ick was my major trouble back then and the pet store advice was useless. You have inspired me to try again, thank you.
Allot of what you find on Google is not great advice anyway. I've been using Google, tik tok, and Facebook and lost my fish while trying to do things the "right" way as I got back into the hobby. Google and people promote ways that incorporate the products they sell. You can't tell which ways are correct until you try and probably lose fish. This is much closer to what I did years ago and had my fish thrive for years. I'm learning new stuff from him now and I'm so excited. I'm getting another tank too, so I'll have two. 😂 ❤
i have to say, everyone knows you're the go to guy for this, but as someone whos trying to make a platned tank for the first time and theres so much info availble about the walstad method and everything, the simplicity of this video is amazing, all im missing is a sponge filter! i feel alot more confident
Ive been fish keeping for nearly 10 years and can always seem to watch your videos and learn new things. i have a spare little 30 gallon tank that i think im going to throw some mud and sand in, and try growing some plants before populating it
I’m so grateful I found you! Bought a tank and have been researching like crazy for the past weeks . I want lots of plants and I remember seeing someone 20 yrs ago who had an amazing tank with lots of plants and no filters. I recently took a trip up the west coast and found a moss ball. Brought home sand, some sand dollars, water and the ball and created a little eco system and have been so excited to create the same thing in my new tank. Thank you sooo much for sir for sharing all of your knowledge!
Father Fish is a warm, caring gentleman here to help because he wants you to succeed, and for you to be happy and contented. Listen to him, cross check what he says with a microbiologist like Diana Walstad. You will not fail. 😊🍀
I have watched many videos from Father Fish but this is the one I was looking for and is the one that every single watcher should have watched at least once. I do believe your more recent videos are more professionally produced and have a reduced time to 10 to 14 minutes but the information needed is much longer. This video hit the sweet spot in being not too long and containing information every fish owner needs to have.
Wow, I've been keeping fish for a little over 2 years now and I feel like I just opened the right door to actually understanding what I'm doing. Taking the advice of hobbyists, I've managed to keep fish alive (for the most part) and thought I was doing pretty well. I had been injecting CO2 for a while but was getting sick of the constant maintenance, so I started looking into "low-tech" as they call it and all I can say is wow. I feel like I've been lied to all this time, this is exactly the ecosystem based system I felt made the most sense but isn't being talked about by fishkeepers, even my local small fish store. I want to learn everything I can and form a game plan to covert my setup into a true ecosystem. I won't be able to move my entire community tank over all at once, but I thank you already for improving the lives of my fish! Edit: My only question after watching this back is that you don't mention adding any dechlorinator to the water that you add to your tank. I assume this was just an assumed step and that it is still needed, correct?
I'm obsessed with Father Fish! Lol. I just bought my membership 🤪 I love the way he explains the process without making you feel like you're listening to a science lecture.
I’m so glad I found Father Fish. I get my first tank tomorrow and I have learned more in this one video than I have in non stop videos over the last 2 months during my research.
Been dabbling in Aquariums since 1969. Much learned through abject failures. Father Fish, you are awesome. I love it that you are not at all condescending given your incredible experience and knowledge. Am about to embark on setting up 2 55's and am going to follow your advice and try to stay out of my own way. Mud in a fishtank? Who ever thought?
@Glenn De Vries Correct. You do not, however, want a tank that you cannot see into. So cap that dirt, clay, whatever, with sand sufficient to se[parate the soil from the water.
@Glenn De Vries The trick is getting the sand of top of the soil in the water. THAT is a game I have not figured out. the dirt swirls up when the sand in put on it. Best way is to drain the tank. That makes it easy.
I made my first dirted tank from your other videos and it's doing great. Thank you for making more videos like this. I setting up my second dirted tank tonight.👍
Personally If I'm worried about keeping up with the PH of the water I put snails in my tank. If the PH is too acidic then their shells will start to become thin and white, if that starts to happen I'll just plop a couple of small pieces of lime stone to help remove some of the acidity and if I put enough in then the snail's shells will start to thicken and darken in color.(the lime stone will reduce in size over time from acid erosion whenever the tank becomes acidic)
wish we had people like you 45 years ago when i started out. we learned the hard way, the new hobbyist starting out today have so much information, all they have to do is listen to the right people. thanks again father fish joe h navy seabee
So great thank you! I know you said never go below 80 degrees for the temperature of the aquarium, but due to strange circumstances, the tank of my mother (now deceased) contains tropical fishs, cichlids from Lake Tanganyika, which lives at only 71.6 degrees for at least 5 years, and they are doing wonderfully, they are even making babies :) Of course it was not entirely premeditated, but since they got used to it we did not put the water heater back on.
Father Fish I have recently discovered your channel and have been binge watching. You have a wealth of knowledge and I cannot thank you enough for sharing and teaching, you inspired me, and a week ago I started my dirted tank and its doing wonderfully thus far with about four small fish as well as plants. Will be gradually adding to it, thank you again Father Fish!
I would like to see a video on each different tank size, from 10 gallon up to and including the 100 gallon, where you describe which fish and how many of said fish would work best in each gallon size. Space very often comes at a premium and ppl could use such a video to create their unique aquatic gardens of Eden.😊
Hi father just came across this video ,I must say superb I've had a few tropical tanks in the past and as a novice I was quite successfull ,n then stupidly sold my setups ,but I miss the hobby n going to start again and after listening to your advice it makes better sense ,and the bug to get going again ,will check out other videos of yours defo thanks and great explanation cheers from Scotland
I’m glad to hear you say this. I rarely feed my fish and everyone gives me grief about it… however my fish are happy and very active. I really only feed them as a snack for something different or some additional nutrition. But they get all they want from scavenging and snacking on daphnia or other edible critter.
I am just getting started. Channel is one yr old this month. Trying to figure out the algorythm. I think turning 80 this month will put me in a class by myself. Maybe that will work.
Ironically, I had some goldfish live for 12 years before being killed by the cat after moving the plant that stopped the cat from getting on the side table. We didn't have any fancy equipment. Just some plants and good substrate. Only fed them once or twice a week. They were very happy and healthy. Our secret was having very good well water.
No lies told good sir. I lost my dog in March this year and it kinda depressed me along with other factors in life. When I used to care for my 3 yr old planted tank my girl would get so jealous and do everything to get my attention, so when she passed I did not take care of my tank. I left the lighting on long, didnt feed, left the curtain open, and algae went wild. All then till just this week in August, just did a clean out and most of my fish survived naturally off the plants and waste(lost my few month old bush fish and a few cherry barbs). I pray I don't get to this state ever again, I recently started a resurrection jar too. Excited for my new found wind in the hobby. Thanks poppa fish
First time setup, I have followed your advice religiously. I currently have 5 longfin zebra danios in a 29 gallon planted tank. Currently on day 6 and they have been doing wonderful. Thank you for the information and encouragement.
Thank you so much, Father Fish! I was once 'playing God' with my tanks and never getting stability in them. You've opened my eyes to what's natural and doesn't require funneling tremendous amounts of money.. :D BIG fan; Much respect and love from Kerala, India.
Omg your just adorable! I've never tried your method with the substrate in a tank. I'm setting up a new very small community pool in my kitchen and I'm following your instructions to the note! Thank you! I'll also be getting my plants from you, can't beat your prices.😊
Ty so very much for your knowledge, experience, and enthusiasm!!! It's been more than 30 years since I have kept an aquarium! So happy to have found you!!! I am about to start a 60 gallon breeder tank & will do this for a peacock cichlid tank!!! ❤❤❤
Incredible information in such a peaceful delivery. I have some minor experience with planted tanks and watching your videos explains how the ecosystem works and things I could have done differently. But I was hoping to hear your thoughts on a hobby Aquaponics tank, and if it could work with one of your low maintenance ecosystems. How would having a garden bed above the tank effect the feeding frequency needs to produce enough waste for both the tank plants and the bedded plants? Would more fish be required instead of more food? Thank you in advanced for any tips or advice you have!(:
I have said in t he past that the two systems are not compatible. Then a viewer asked me to develop a means of making them compatible. Join me in the Shoal for a deeper look at this: discord.gg/father-fish-shoal
Excellent advice! Subscribed and added you to my collection of Aquarium channels! Going to start working on my 3rd tank soon, and will be coming back to this. Also, LOVE YOUR BEARD! :) ✨🐟✨
New subscriber here. Thank you for the video. I have been out of the hobby for several years now, but hope to get another tank or two going in the future. I really appreciate this kind of refresher course, and for teaching the benefits of dirted tanks. I'd not ever done that before! I was also happy to learn that the blasting sand and pool filter sand of my last tanks, was perfectly ok! I wasn't sure if using it was a good thing, for sure. I wish I'd known I should have had dirt under it. I feel more confident now, to set up tanks again. TY again, looking forward to watching more of your content.
@@FatherFish Thank you for your reply! I had 3 in a small 2 gal tank, and the tank did fill up with hair algea! No fish in there, just the 3 balls. I wondered where it came from! I never suspected it was from the balls! Good to know, thank you so much!
@@lizzyanthus1 I made a video a few years ago about the little Japanese men who roll the algae into balls.... Funny stuff. Yep. Selling trash as treasures.
Thank you father fish for all of this valuable information!! From personal experience, this couldn’t be more accurate. I’m so glad I found your channel ❤❤
I had a mishap last night. As I lay there in bed trying to fall asleep, I heard a noise coming from my 10 gallon aquarium. Normally I'd just go to sleep, but last night I turned on the light and noticed water dripping. Upon closer inspection I noticed a crack on the bottom pane in the corner. Luckily I didn't fall asleep and wake up to a soggy carpet. I had to break it down quickly and I was considering not replacing it. I don't know why it broke like that. This morning I went out and bought a Rimless 10 Gallon Aqueon to replace it. I am putting it on the same wrought iron stand with a 1/2" plywood top, and a leveling mat. I didn't have the latter two items when I set it up two months ago. So I am going to get a second chance to do this, but I learned a couple things when breaking it down and examining it. One thing being that the plants had developed a good root system in spite of not seeming to grow. Another is that I need more plants to start the tank. I have learned a lot from listening and watching Father Fish and I thank you for that; it's been a fascinating journey so far. One thing that has me worried is leaking aquariums. What causes it? I am very careful in handling my tanks, but this makes me rethink setting up my 55 gallon. It's 20+ years old. Should I buy a new one? Sorry for the lengthy post.
Serious fish keepers create fish rooms in part to keep the water off their living room floor. Yes, an old tank is dangerous. Reseal it or buy a new one. ALWAYS test your tank before putting it in place in a normal room. Glad the substrate was working for you. Use the old substrate and cap it with 2" of new sand.
I’ve heard of wrong ugh iron stands causing that more than once... any irregularities in pressure points on the bottom of the glass causes a lot of stress on an aquarium... even moreso on a rimless aquarium... I’ve seen it happen when the wood it’s mounted on has a tiny split as well... rimmed aquariums are much more forgiving, but the type of wrought iron stands I remember from childhood (rectangle of angle iron with space in the middle) is a risky maneuver imo.
Father Fish ... I will (hopefully) be having several racks in the future, the foam mats aren’t an option for me but standard 1” styrofoam is... all of my tanks will be rimless... do you suggest that the foam be under the plywood or above it (under the glass)? The internet seems to be in disagreement and there’s no way I want to make this decision without your years of accumulated knowledge (if you’re gracious enough to give it)... thanks in advance Father Fish.
FatherFish, I am glad to have found your channel. I love that you are definitely a Fish Guy that does TH-cam videos to help hobbyists and be friendly in general and share your wonderful knowledge. SO many others are TH-camrs rather, that do Fish videos, which I dont like if that makes any sense. So thank you.
Found this useful, like i did? I'd suggest three things in addition to enhance the usefulness. Turn on subtitles (especially for those not in America or not used to the accent) and set playback speed to 1.5. Repeat listen a couple of times making notes as you go along. Btw, the main content starts at 05:06. Thanks for the useful info, Father fish! :)
STEM PLANTS BUNDLE SALE - Over 75 plants - 15 Species for $59! Limited Time OFFER so HURRY!
father-fish-aquarium.myshopify.com/
For Special Soil Supplements, Plants, FIsh & Merch in your country:
fatherfish.fish/
@@FatherFish been thinking of something to do at my age but after your show got a idea T. Y
Father fish is a biologist/ Ichthyologist not necessarily a hobbyist! Major difference he teaches correct fish care unlike a hobbyist who sometimes are arrogant and force feed you BS! Thanks Fsther Fish you rock! 🐠✌💓
Thank you Hotman Chicken
What is ich thy logist
@@Rtr.AmanJha Scientist who studies fish and their Biology. Also there habitat. Could even branch into aquatic plants and inverts.
@@hotmanchicken4209 oh so thats why bony fish are called osteichthyes
@@Rtr.AmanJha yep! Oste- prefix meaning bone, ichthyes meanig fish.
I have been in almost every fish, pet store in Tucson. None of the workers in the stores ever heard of a natural aquarium or Father Fish. When I tell them about putting soil in the bottom they think I am nuts. After accidentally watching your video 3 months ago, I became interested in aquariums again and will be starting up a tank in the next few days!!
Exact same experience. What store told me left discouraged. No one mentioned about natural tank. Everything in the store was artificial and chemical
This is a godsend for a new hobbyist
That is the best accolade I have ever received. TYSVM!
This is a godsend for an experienced hobbyist.
He really is
@@FatherFish what about using river mud for substrate. Would that be OK.. I'm in Australia
This is the best advice I’ve ever received. Just had a slow motion disaster of a first tank, this addresses nearly everything! Thank you so much.
I've learned more from you in 2 videos ,then I've learned in the last year since I started the hobby thank you Father Fish
Thank you Rick
then you really have a bad search mec on the interwebs :D
@@fredrikniemeyeror maybe he understands this particular person better than what browsing forums and reading literature offers. He's slow paced and easy going. Speaks in clear and easily understood terminology. Some people just absorb information differently brother!
I kept fish since I was 12 years old. Fish stores kept advising to buy more and more expensive equipement and products in addition to telling me to use RO water and have consistent water changes. Fish kept dying, plants rotted away and thus I ended up leaving the hobby for over 18 years. I found your videos 6 months ago and wow....I havent lost 1 fish or plant since I followed your natural method of the hobby. Thank you so much! I have fallen inlove with the hobby again.
That’s great! I wish I can resolve my glass problem with my 2 aquariums
I wish I had known about Father Fish when I started my aquariums. It would have saved me so much money on all expensive filters, co2 systems and other tech I thought I needed because of the bigger aquarium youtubers. Back to basics and keeping the tank as close to nature as possible was always the answer!
Thank you for all your videos! Please keep doing them.
Thank you Johannes
😢 yes just killed 4 fish
I watch the commercial to thank you for these videos.
Thank you Lee. Very kind of you
1) organic potting soil Make 1-2 Inch of mud. NOT soup.
2) cap it with sand. Make it double the dirt amount. I like black diamond blasting sand. Don’t get the fine grit.
3) fill with some water
4) place decorations and plant plants 1 Inch deep in sand.
5) put a few fish in there.
6) don’t feed them for 1-2 week. If you do just a small bit.
7) medium light for 2 weeks 24/7.
8) allow some algae and limit feeding
9) get some snails or shrimp
You go Devin!
Can you do snails AND shrimp? Is there an advantage of one versus the other?
@@raphael9749 you can definitely house both together in the same tank. However to answer the other half of your question I don’t really see them as tools or a cure to anything. But I will say, I do allow certain algae to grow in my tank. I only clean the front glass. Anyway at the top of my tank grows a hair algae patch and I’ve never removed it. The snails really like to graze on it here and there. They only fully removed it once but I checked today and i see some growing back.
Side note on the above list.
I let my mud air out and just basically gas off before I continued the process. Step two you really need to clean your sand very very thoroughly. And step three I never allowed chlorine into my tank.
My lid has an LED light. I've set up a 5 gal tank with the FF method. I have 4 tiny fish in it and kept the LED on 24/7 for 4 days now. I used 1 inch of dirt/mud from an old flower pot and 2inches of fine black diamond blasting sand. I have about 8 planted aquatic plants I got from Petco and put in the tank so far and it looks pretty full of plants. seeded with some leafs from a local pond. i'm thinking about adding some red root floaters to the tank in a few days. are floating plant good or bad for the father fish method and you think i'm doing well keeping the light on 24/7? thanks for the tips. so far the fish seem happy and active.
My soon to be 11 year old son is SO excited to be starting his own aquarium (its a 67L tank) He got a bit freaked out at first when you spoke about taking mud and sand from outside, haha. I know nothing about fish yet, but as a mother of 5 who kept everything as natural as I could in labour and in feeding my children, I can tell you have the same intention of keeping things as natural as possible for your fish. This can only be a good thing, so we look forward to absorbing your wisdom. Thank you sincerely from wet and windy Scotland. Xx
Delighted to have you with us.
Update us! :D
I've been creating or maintaining home aquariums for 50 years and I can tell you from my hard-earned experience, this man's advice is worth its weight in gold. If you are a beginner, you will be light years ahead of everyone else if you simply follow the advice presented in this single video. And I mean every step, exactly the way he describes it.
And understand, you will NEVER hear this quality advice from a standard pet store or a big box store. The advice on starting off your new aquarium with actual outdoor mud (preferably from a lake) is brilliant and will put you months ahead of lowly hobbyists who are simply watching YT videos and wondering why they can't keep anything alive. Starting the life cycle strongly is crucial in keeping your precious fish alive and well. My #1 advice is that if you want lots of fish, you are going to have to invest in LARGE tanks. The bigger the tank, the easier it is to maintain and for the fish to thrive. Overcrowding is the fastest way to kill your fish and it happens very easily. You would think that beginners should keep to small tanks as their experience is small, but the opposite is true. It takes more talent/experience to maintain small aquariums than it does large ones. Also, the more surface your aquarium has the better. Stay away from tall aquariums with small water surface. They are more trouble than they are worth, unless you have experience in the hobby.
Nice to hear from you palmbeachcitizen. Words of wisdom based on experience.
I’m a new fish keeper I have a new tank it’s 54 litres I have mainly tetras in there I’ve not over stocked only got 17 and 4 guppies also 15 shrimp there is also quite a lot of snails that have come on the plants I bought I was not advised to put of soil in first before my sand. Will this system still work without soil ? The plants are growing and so far everything looks good if not wot do I do ?
Protect this Man at all cost!!!
Because of you i saved my tank with ick and if I would have caught it earlier I probably wouldn't have lost any fish. Thank you so much for the knowledge
I was hesitant about an aquarium, as I k ow from the past it’s like taking care of a Pool. I stumbled across your videos, and set up a 10 gallon tank for my daughter. Dirt, sand, plants, river rocks from outdoors, and drift wood. Feed the fish bloodworms. 1 month later water is crystal clear, plants and fish are thriving. Foundational principles are always supreme. Thank you
Father Fish, I'm almost seventy years of age and have tried so many times to keep and enjoy watching them but each time they have all died. It really is heart-breaking to watch. I can't stand or walk, so I've always relied on a my wife or kids for the 'tedious maintenance' associated (until now) with fishkeeping. Thankyou so much!!!
lovely
I am so excited to have found you Father Fish!! I currently have an empty 90 gallon and have always wanted to do a natural substrate tank but haven't found any good videos. Then today your Loach video showed up on my shorts and I've been glued to your channel all morning!! I am so excited to try this! 🐟
Father fish is the best makes every one else look like amateurs
Father Fish is a blessing to have you alive! That's all I will say, from a dude who got this hobby 3 months ago. Thanks a lot
Thanks Banu. Join us on Discord to share your journey.
just started myself last November, and it's a godsent that father fish is here to guide us unlike people in my recent fish group , they always recommend water changes water changes.and also add chemicals or starter in whicj I dont like
You guys are now my Netflix channel
Hello.i m italian and i live in UK.i want to Say to you that are about 3 months that i ve start with this hobby.i ve watched many many video about It. I can Say you re the best teacher. You explain easly anything.thank you very much for your help.❤
You don't need any other guy to teach you. This is the person you are really looking for to learns how to keep aquarium perfect
So glad I found you Father Fish!
I Found Yours channel today. So much knowlage. Now I know I Had done all wrong. Greetings from Poland.
I've only been keeping fish for just over a year . So glad I found father fish early on that journey.just setting up a third deep substrate planted tank.Everything father fish says goes against everything they told me at the fish store but I'm glad I listened to the Father. Healthy happy tank . Thankyou Father Fish😁
Your English pronunciation is simply excellent and clear.
I just found you, and I’m so glad I did ❤
One thing to bear in mind! Some of the employees in major retail pet stores love animals, too, and some of us become very disappointed, like I was, when we find out how much information needs updating or is just plain wrong. Some of these employees are kids; please bear in mind they don’t know better but are trying their best. The company has lied to them about what a given animal needs. Eventually, when I realized the company only cared for money, I would regularly redirect customers to local fish/reptile/bird expert stores I knew of until I found a better job elsewhere. Now I just try to avoid those major retailers if I can. Their info is majorly outdated, at best.
Hello.
I don't have fish, and i don't have time for this hobby.
But i like watching your videos.
Really nice content. Thank You.
Interesting, I am a farmer/ market gardener now retreated, that love plants to the point to try aquatic ones 😂 I started in the beginning of january, in a 20 gal long, with 2" of aquasoil at the lowest, topped with 1" of black sand and sprinkled some small lava rocks to add surfaces ( and a little " river/road" of pool sand sprinkled with smashed coral). I add wood pieces I collected during last decades, river rocks, and a lot of plants ( 27 species) after I let it run, with fertilizer( florin multi) and trace minerals. I use tap water, conditionned, and grow lights for gardeners. I have a sponge filter too. I put a piece of crude shrimp from my fridge in. After about 3 weeks, parameters seem kind of good, so I add 3 rabbits snails, they gave me 2 babies that same week. And after 2 other weeks I add 20 shrimps, and I got babies, again, in less than 2 days. I dont feed them. In fact, I try, but they prefer grazing in my tank. I remove the food everytime, after some hours. Even Repashy or fine cuisine is not touch 😂😂
Now, I add yesterday my first fish, a group of 6 oto. They got ich !😅 So I have to deal with it. At least they poop like crazy.
I didnt knew you when I begun, but indeed, a backgroud in gardening may help. And an approach base on observation.
I still have so much to learn, and I am stress as f* sometimes, because my lack of knowledge. I still check all my parameters, everyday, so worried for my little environment and inhabitants.
I discovered Father Fish on TH-cam last night. I subscribed immediately. I have been doing fish tanks for around 30 years but am still very open too listening to others. Mostly I will say thank you and walk away. Occasionally, very occasionally I will hear advice from someone like Father Fish and find myself fascinated in what is being said due to the wealth of information and knowledge. This is a fantastic video for beginners and TH-cam channel for anyone who enjoys aquariums.I wish I had this kind of information when I was starting out as it would have saved me so much time, money and grief when loosing fish and plants. I love listening to someone who knows what they are talking about. It confirms what I already know but also teaches me new tricks.
Many thanks Father Fish from Australia 😊👍🙏
Thank you David.
He also undersells his knowledge. Dr. fish is more like it.
@@pilotavery I second that!
I could have used your advice 15 years ago when I tried the hobby and after a year gave up. Ick was my major trouble back then and the pet store advice was useless. You have inspired me to try again, thank you.
Lol you didn't have Google?
@@bojohannesen4352...... No, and I still don't own a cell phone either.
@@grinchville1 Not searching for information while on the internet, that seems a little silly.
Allot of what you find on Google is not great advice anyway. I've been using Google, tik tok, and Facebook and lost my fish while trying to do things the "right" way as I got back into the hobby. Google and people promote ways that incorporate the products they sell. You can't tell which ways are correct until you try and probably lose fish.
This is much closer to what I did years ago and had my fish thrive for years. I'm learning new stuff from him now and I'm so excited. I'm getting another tank too, so I'll have two. 😂 ❤
i have to say, everyone knows you're the go to guy for this, but as someone whos trying to make a platned tank for the first time and theres so much info availble about the walstad method and everything, the simplicity of this video is amazing, all im missing is a sponge filter! i feel alot more confident
Ive been fish keeping for nearly 10 years and can always seem to watch your videos and learn new things.
i have a spare little 30 gallon tank that i think im going to throw some mud and sand in, and try growing some plants before populating it
fish will promote plant growth.
I’m so grateful I found you! Bought a tank and have been researching like crazy for the past weeks . I want lots of plants and I remember seeing someone 20 yrs ago who had an amazing tank with lots of plants and no filters. I recently took a trip up the west coast and found a moss ball. Brought home sand, some sand dollars, water and the ball and created a little eco system and have been so excited to create the same thing in my new tank. Thank you sooo much for sir for sharing all of your knowledge!
Father Fish is a warm, caring gentleman here to help because he wants you to succeed, and for you to be happy and contented. Listen to him, cross check what he says with a microbiologist like Diana Walstad. You will not fail. 😊🍀
Thank you Kevin. Diana is the high priestess of dirted tanks.
You said it Kevin!🙏🤗🌱🐟🌿
Just got to a place where I can dedicate my time to this again and I found this channel, love it
I have watched many videos from Father Fish but this is the one I was looking for and is the one that every single watcher should have watched at least once. I do believe your more recent videos are more professionally produced and have a reduced time to 10 to 14 minutes but the information needed is much longer. This video hit the sweet spot in being not too long and containing information every fish owner needs to have.
Thank you Anthony. I am reevaluating this vid. It is often referred to by dedicated shoalers.
This is THE most LEGIT 101 you can find literally anywhere
Best advice out there on hiw to start an aquarium!
Wow, I've been keeping fish for a little over 2 years now and I feel like I just opened the right door to actually understanding what I'm doing.
Taking the advice of hobbyists, I've managed to keep fish alive (for the most part) and thought I was doing pretty well.
I had been injecting CO2 for a while but was getting sick of the constant maintenance, so I started looking into "low-tech" as they call it and all I can say is wow.
I feel like I've been lied to all this time, this is exactly the ecosystem based system I felt made the most sense but isn't being talked about by fishkeepers, even my local small fish store.
I want to learn everything I can and form a game plan to covert my setup into a true ecosystem. I won't be able to move my entire community tank over all at once, but I thank you already for improving the lives of my fish!
Edit: My only question after watching this back is that you don't mention adding any dechlorinator to the water that you add to your tank. I assume this was just an assumed step and that it is still needed, correct?
chlorine gasses off instantly in moving water. Chloramine must be removed. 1 1000U vitamin C per gallon will deal with the problem/
I'm obsessed with Father Fish! Lol. I just bought my membership 🤪 I love the way he explains the process without making you feel like you're listening to a science lecture.
Awesome! Thank you Neal! That is delightful!
I’m so glad I found Father Fish. I get my first tank tomorrow and I have learned more in this one video than I have in non stop videos over the last 2 months during my research.
Been dabbling in Aquariums since 1969. Much learned through abject failures. Father Fish, you are awesome. I love it that you are not at all condescending given your incredible experience and knowledge. Am about to embark on setting up 2 55's and am going to follow your advice and try to stay out of my own way. Mud in a fishtank? Who ever thought?
You go Mark./ Join us on FATHER FISH SHOAL at Discord and share your progress. discord.gg/2PB236za
@@FatherFish 😁😁😎😎
@Glenn De Vries Correct. You do not, however, want a tank that you cannot see into. So cap that dirt, clay, whatever, with sand sufficient to se[parate the soil from the water.
@Glenn De Vries The trick is getting the sand of top of the soil in the water. THAT is a game I have not figured out. the dirt swirls up when the sand in put on it.
Best way is to drain the tank. That makes it easy.
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experience with the world! 💖
Thank you Ilyana. You are very thoughtful.
I made my first dirted tank from your other videos and it's doing great. Thank you for making more videos like this. I setting up my second dirted tank tonight.👍
Great to hear!
Woderful
Great clear narration. Can tell Fr knows his stuff 👊
So incredibly helpful for a new fish/plant parent. I have learnt a lot from you, Father Fish. Thank you from Australia.
he is right i purchased play sand it's horrible the beach sand i got was the best im going back to the beach
Personally If I'm worried about keeping up with the PH of the water I put snails in my tank.
If the PH is too acidic then their shells will start to become thin and white, if that starts to happen I'll just plop a couple of small pieces of lime stone to help remove some of the acidity and if I put enough in then the snail's shells will start to thicken and darken in color.(the lime stone will reduce in size over time from acid erosion whenever the tank becomes acidic)
Father fish is a Maverick!
Wow! If only I found you before I set up four aquariums. Such great information. Thanks so much, I can’t wait to give it a try!
Father fish, I’m excited to start a natural aquarium. I’m learning so much from you
wish we had people like you 45 years ago when i started out. we learned the hard way, the new hobbyist starting out today have so much information, all they have to do is listen to the right people. thanks again father fish joe h navy seabee
Thank you Joe. The right people is the key. You Tube has about the very best resources anywhere. The Fish Family is tried and true.
Amen Joe!!
@@FatherFish thank you Father fish!!
@dvp458 such a wonderful experience every hobbyist should have 🙏🤗🌿🐟🌿💚
I like this guy.
So great thank you! I know you said never go below 80 degrees for the temperature of the aquarium, but due to strange circumstances, the tank of my mother (now deceased) contains tropical fishs, cichlids from Lake Tanganyika, which lives at only 71.6 degrees for at least 5 years, and they are doing wonderfully, they are even making babies :) Of course it was not entirely premeditated, but since they got used to it we did not put the water heater back on.
Thosee are fish from very large, deep lakes where the water is naturally cooler. Perfect.
Im obsessed with you. Such a pure and wise man ❤
You are very kind.
Father Fish I have recently discovered your channel and have been binge watching. You have a wealth of knowledge and I cannot thank you enough for sharing and teaching, you inspired me, and a week ago I started my dirted tank and its doing wonderfully thus far with about four small fish as well as plants. Will be gradually adding to it, thank you again Father Fish!
Welcome aboard!
I would like to see a video on each different tank size, from 10 gallon up to and including the 100 gallon, where you describe which fish and how many of said fish would work best in each gallon size. Space very often comes at a premium and ppl could use such a video to create their unique aquatic gardens of Eden.😊
Great video! would be lovely to see you setup a tank in all those steps in a video.
Coming soon! watch 2 most current videos
This guy is amazing. I'm gonna watch all his videos and purchase his soil supplement.
Starting today, I'll only listen to Father Fish. I'll disregard all the information that I gathered from ytbers that contradicts your teachings.
Don't want worshippers. Listen to everyone who has something to say and learn to evaluate.
Awe.... he's so nice... Mr., you are especially a valued human being. I wish only good things for you @Fatherfish
Hi father just came across this video ,I must say superb I've had a few tropical tanks in the past and as a novice I was quite successfull ,n then stupidly sold my setups ,but I miss the hobby n going to start again and after listening to your advice it makes better sense ,and the bug to get going again ,will check out other videos of yours defo thanks and great explanation cheers from Scotland
I’m glad to hear you say this. I rarely feed my fish and everyone gives me grief about it… however my fish are happy and very active. I really only feed them as a snack for something different or some additional nutrition. But they get all they want from scavenging and snacking on daphnia or other edible critter.
Thats exactly what i need . A wise man who is teaching you how to fish .❤ bless you father fish
How do you only have 5k subscribers? Your channel is awesome!
I am just getting started. Channel is one yr old this month. Trying to figure out the algorythm.
I think turning 80 this month will put me in a class by myself. Maybe that will work.
Please share with your friends.
Ironically, I had some goldfish live for 12 years before being killed by the cat after moving the plant that stopped the cat from getting on the side table. We didn't have any fancy equipment. Just some plants and good substrate. Only fed them once or twice a week. They were very happy and healthy. Our secret was having very good well water.
My first dirted tank is doing great. Thanks FF
That is awesome!
Where do you get mud and Is it dried or wet? I have do many questions
No lies told good sir. I lost my dog in March this year and it kinda depressed me along with other factors in life. When I used to care for my 3 yr old planted tank my girl would get so jealous and do everything to get my attention, so when she passed I did not take care of my tank. I left the lighting on long, didnt feed, left the curtain open, and algae went wild. All then till just this week in August, just did a clean out and most of my fish survived naturally off the plants and waste(lost my few month old bush fish and a few cherry barbs). I pray I don't get to this state ever again, I recently started a resurrection jar too. Excited for my new found wind in the hobby. Thanks poppa fish
BMW adds on your channel!!! You’ve hit the big time. :)
YESS!
LOL :)
THANK GOD I FOUND YOU FATHER FISH, YOU ARE A GREAT MAN, YOUR VOICE IS SO SOOTHING ❤️ LOVE FROM LONDON ENGLAND 🏴
First time setup, I have followed your advice religiously. I currently have 5 longfin zebra danios in a 29 gallon planted tank. Currently on day 6 and they have been doing wonderful. Thank you for the information and encouragement.
what soil u used?
this is the best Chanel ever watched. so much knowledge.
I LOVE this guy!!!!
Thank you so much, Father Fish! I was once 'playing God' with my tanks and never getting stability in them. You've opened my eyes to what's natural and doesn't require funneling tremendous amounts of money.. :D
BIG fan;
Much respect and love from Kerala, India.
Wonderful! Greetings from Florida. It would be delightful to see a tank with your local fish.
your awesome father
Omg your just adorable! I've never tried your method with the substrate in a tank. I'm setting up a new very small community pool in my kitchen and I'm following your instructions to the note! Thank you! I'll also be getting my plants from you, can't beat your prices.😊
Be sure to join the FF Discord shoal. We would love to follow your adventure. discord.gg/GdakStEjAy
thank you , thank you, Thank You.
Thank you brother father fish that was exactly what I wanted to know because I'm really into plants in my aquarium ☝️
Glad I could help
at last someone whom talks sense thanking you x
Thank you Quiet Arts.
Love this all encompassing video
Glad you enjoyed it!
Amazing video father fish 🐠🐟
Ty so very much for your knowledge, experience, and enthusiasm!!! It's been more than 30 years since I have kept an aquarium! So happy to have found you!!! I am about to start a 60 gallon breeder tank & will do this for a peacock cichlid tank!!! ❤❤❤
You can do it!
He has Fathered a few of my fishes. These videos help them stay in touch. Thanks 👍
Incredible information in such a peaceful delivery. I have some minor experience with planted tanks and watching your videos explains how the ecosystem works and things I could have done differently. But I was hoping to hear your thoughts on a hobby Aquaponics tank, and if it could work with one of your low maintenance ecosystems. How would having a garden bed above the tank effect the feeding frequency needs to produce enough waste for both the tank plants and the bedded plants? Would more fish be required instead of more food? Thank you in advanced for any tips or advice you have!(:
I have said in t he past that the two systems are not compatible.
Then a viewer asked me to develop a means of making them compatible. Join me in the Shoal for a deeper look at this: discord.gg/father-fish-shoal
Thanks for this in-depth tutorial!
Excellent advice! Subscribed and added you to my collection of Aquarium channels! Going to start working on my 3rd tank soon, and will be coming back to this. Also, LOVE YOUR BEARD! :)
✨🐟✨
Awesome! Thank you! Check in in the morning EST, US. You will enjoy.
Thank you I and new at this. From New Zealand
Excellent presentation and advice
Thank you kindly!
Thanks God I discovered you soon enough. This is the method I definitly want!
New subscriber here. Thank you for the video. I have been out of the hobby for several years now, but hope to get another tank or two going in the future. I really appreciate this kind of refresher course, and for teaching the benefits of dirted tanks. I'd not ever done that before! I was also happy to learn that the blasting sand and pool filter sand of my last tanks, was perfectly ok! I wasn't sure if using it was a good thing, for sure. I wish I'd known I should have had dirt under it. I feel more confident now, to set up tanks again. TY again, looking forward to watching more of your content.
Happy to have you in the shoal lizzy. When you are ready contact me to help you get started..
@@FatherFish Thank you! Will do! One question, if I may? Will Marimo balls count as the only "plant", in a very small planted tank?
@@lizzyanthus1 Matimo is string algae. It counts as a plant but not an especially desirable one.
@@FatherFish Thank you for your reply! I had 3 in a small 2 gal tank, and the tank did fill up with hair algea! No fish in there, just the 3 balls. I wondered where it came from! I never suspected it was from the balls! Good to know, thank you so much!
@@lizzyanthus1 I made a video a few years ago about the little Japanese men who roll the algae into balls.... Funny stuff. Yep. Selling trash as treasures.
I learn so much from every single one of your videos!!! ❤
You are a legend!!! What an informative video
I appreciate that!
Thank you father fish for all of this valuable information!! From personal experience, this couldn’t be more accurate. I’m so glad I found your channel ❤❤
You are very welcome
I had a mishap last night. As I lay there in bed trying to fall asleep, I heard a noise coming from my 10 gallon aquarium. Normally I'd just go to sleep, but last night I turned on the light and noticed water dripping. Upon closer inspection I noticed a crack on the bottom pane in the corner. Luckily I didn't fall asleep and wake up to a soggy carpet. I had to break it down quickly and I was considering not replacing it. I don't know why it broke like that.
This morning I went out and bought a Rimless 10 Gallon Aqueon to replace it. I am putting it on the same wrought iron stand with a 1/2" plywood top, and a leveling mat. I didn't have the latter two items when I set it up two months ago. So I am going to get a second chance to do this, but I learned a couple things when breaking it down and examining it. One thing being that the plants had developed a good root system in spite of not seeming to grow. Another is that I need more plants to start the tank.
I have learned a lot from listening and watching Father Fish and I thank you for that; it's been a fascinating journey so far. One thing that has me worried is leaking aquariums. What causes it? I am very careful in handling my tanks, but this makes me rethink setting up my 55 gallon. It's 20+ years old. Should I buy a new one? Sorry for the lengthy post.
Serious fish keepers create fish rooms in part to keep the water off their living room floor.
Yes, an old tank is dangerous. Reseal it or buy a new one. ALWAYS test your tank before putting it in place in a normal room.
Glad the substrate was working for you. Use the old substrate and cap it with 2" of new sand.
I’ve heard of wrong ugh iron stands causing that more than once... any irregularities in pressure points on the bottom of the glass causes a lot of stress on an aquarium... even moreso on a rimless aquarium... I’ve seen it happen when the wood it’s mounted on has a tiny split as well... rimmed aquariums are much more forgiving, but the type of wrought iron stands I remember from childhood (rectangle of angle iron with space in the middle) is a risky maneuver imo.
@@spyrit35 Jay's plywood and leveling mat will solve those problems. I use a 1" sheet of styrofoam between the tank and stand.
Father Fish ... I will (hopefully) be having several racks in the future, the foam mats aren’t an option for me but standard 1” styrofoam is... all of my tanks will be rimless... do you suggest that the foam be under the plywood or above it (under the glass)? The internet seems to be in disagreement and there’s no way I want to make this decision without your years of accumulated knowledge (if you’re gracious enough to give it)... thanks in advance Father Fish.
@@spyrit35 plywood then foam then tank on top. thats how my 50gal is set up for the last 3 years on those old fashioned wrought iron stands.
Love the content you put out!! Very informative and helpful! Thank you
Thank you! Very helpful stuff
Glad it was helpful!
I love you ❤️ thank you for your service!
FatherFish, I am glad to have found your channel. I love that you are definitely a Fish Guy that does TH-cam videos to help hobbyists and be friendly in general and share your wonderful knowledge. SO many others are TH-camrs rather, that do Fish videos, which I dont like if that makes any sense. So thank you.
Found this useful, like i did? I'd suggest three things in addition to enhance the usefulness. Turn on subtitles (especially for those not in America or not used to the accent) and set playback speed to 1.5. Repeat listen a couple of times making notes as you go along.
Btw, the main content starts at 05:06. Thanks for the useful info, Father fish! :)
Great info!!
Glad it was helpful!
Cool