I am a true novice at aquariums and I am just starting (or re-starting) on this journey. I feel so fortunate to have found Father Fish. The other UA-cam channels that teach about dirted tanks tend to make the process seem so complicated or add to many technical aspects that it seems daunting. In fact I wanted to start a planted or dirted aquarium several years back but was so intimidated by the methods expounded by the majority of "experts" on UA-cam and Facebook that I felt I would surely fail. However Father Fish is so down to earth and his focus on mimicking nature is so logical that I feel confident I can do this. Thank you Father Fish!
I've watched many of your videos in the beginning of finding you..i always try to make sure I comment and 👍 to support you. This is one of my favorite videos. I remember several months ago when I just found you. A saw a lot of the other UA-camrs having a lot of discussions about dirted tanks, the correct substrates, and the correct ways of doing this just because of this "mud' you were creating.. I appreciated you taking your time out to explain to us all the components and how they work together. I have a hard time sometimes overthinking things. The way to solve that is to study.. and I've studied your methods and techniques for several months. I've joined in with your group and discussions. Your methods are kind, caring and natural. My love for aquariums came from a young child learning how to fish with my grandfather. He always told me to notice what I saw in front of me whenever we were in nature and when we were in water. He allowed me to keep fish whether it was the bait we had leftover or something that we had caught that was small and survived... I'm just rambling but this is what you do for me. You've inspired me to find that same love I had when I was a little girl! It's just a beautiful thing and I really appreciate you! ♥️🙏🌿🐟🌱
@@vb2377 Mineralizing jump starts the plants ability to take up nutrients. Osmocote is an elegant solution to fertilizing. Takes very little and lasts many months.
Great info and patience in explaining the process in detail, kudos!!! Just did my planted tank last Sunday, Ammonia is around 4ppm when I tested today, heavily planted with ample light. Waiting to see how the parameters change over the next week; before introducing the fish.
Here from LRB Aquatics. Lucas has spoken highly of this mixture. I have an excellent source of worm casting in Ohio, Gardens Alive. Looking forward to the setup!
My love for gardening and stumbling across your videos has i spired me to get back into the hobby and do it better by working with nature. Im in Australia and am lucky to have palagonite available so i will add that when the time comes to mix my substrate.
palagonite consists of kaolinite, illite, mixed‐layer clay minerals, and zeolites. Mix with humic material and some pond mud or other composted material to release the minerals. EXCELLENT resource.
You have a very unique mix. I also mix my own dirt. I used worm castings mixed with peat, or organic humus compost. For amendments, I use some langbenite + red clay powder on the bottom. Diatomaceous earth, azomite, glacial rock dust, greensand. You should look into azomite and greensand if your already using ironite
Father Fish I’ll be doing a video sometime in the near future with Chris ‘The Mad Aquarist’ Biggs. We’ll be using my method to dirt one of his tanks. I was into organic gardening and using mineral soil amendments before I started doing planted tanks. So took what I already knew about various amendments and applied it to my aquariums.
Hi, that's a great comment. You have to love how knowledge of life and it's ingredients opens up building a tank the same way understanding ingredients in food or baking opens up that art. Is the azomite and what not worth the extra cost, or is it easier on the environment?
@@FatherFish i had some 2 inch big round snails... and my aquarium bed was of crushed shells (calcium carbonate i guess) and very soon they died.. i thought hard water woudl support them to grow bigger.
I'm also here thru LRB. I was able to understand and write all the ingredients except for "The Black Cal"? Black Calcium? I'd like to try this . You're channel is awesome! Thank you for sharing!
New sub. Lucas from LRB Aquatics mentioned you are doing old school natural tanks. I'm always interested in natural fish keeping and old school secrets. 👍💕👍
Excellent! Back to basics. Could you tell me which is the product that you mention after the iron oxide? The one that provides calcium. Thanks for the info!!
@@alfonsocevallos6679 TY Alfonso. The tank blew out over night. Am making a video showing my efforts to save the plants and the substrate. I will completely redo a new tank right away. It should be up by later this AM.
WOW... WE HAVE BEEN PLANNING TO DO SOME ORGANIC SOIL AND CAP IT WITH GRAVEL... I THOUGHT THAT WAS ALREADY GOING ALL OUT FOR THE PLANTS... THIS VIDEO SUGGESTS OTHERWISE LOL... WE STARTED WITH SAND AND ROOT TABS, SO BABY STEPS I GUESS
Amazing information. Is the black kow their manure or topsoil? Would you make any adjustments to the recipe for different types of water parameters, such as very hard or soft?
Both are good. I use the manure for organics and bacteria. Lime, diatoms, and bicarb are all base and work to keep the Ph up. Lime can drive it well above 8. I use these in small portions. The diatomaceous earth is most helpful by adding calcium.
Hi! Just found your channel, and I’m really enjoying your knowledge and experience. Thank you for sharing! Is epsom salt still okay to add with catfish in the tank? From what I’ve read they’re rather salt sensitive,
Hi Father fish, I’m looking to plant and sand my already established tank which has a medium sized river stone gravel substrate about 2 inches thick. Would it be okay to just sand on top of this sense the existing substrate already had a lot of nutrients? - thank you again and I love the videos!
Ok, so you'd prefer worm casings, but used... Blood meal? Snail food? What do I substitute for the snail food? Noticed it wasn't in the pond/sealed pot video. Trying to put this stuff together for this weekend. Have most ingredients already.
Hello father fish, can I buy a dirt mixture for a 10 gallon tank and the amount also needed of sand and also plants to start of my new 10 gallon tank. I currently have a gravel 20 gallon high tank and have never had a dirt sand tank
Wow so many ingredients! Will this work ok on smaller tanks as well? I tried a simpler version of this in a 5 Gallon and it was a disaster. Hey any chance you can make a shopping list for the description? I think that would be cool.
About to build a 350 gallon tank. I'm going to go with your advice and do the soil and sand on top Substrate like you suggest. I feel like it will be good for my fire eels since they like to dig and burrow. As far as the soil setup goes the osmacoat can't harm the fish? And what sand do you suggest would a pool sand work? You also mentioned not letting the soil get into the water column. If my eels dig and bury themselves I would be concerned that they could introduce the soil into the water once they come up Just subscribed to your channel thanks father fish!
Do you have a video on how to make root tabs? I have blasting sand in a tank. Completely inert. Is there a way to make this mixture into tabs I could put under my sand or add to the tank without it completely clouding the tank?
An excellent question. Let's work on this a bit. Obviously we can use gelcaps but they are too small to carry much product. Need to develop a device that will carry product under the substrate and release it there. A sringe or baster could work. Let's try a turkey baster filled with wetted but relatively solid ingredients such as Black Cow, slowly squirted under about 2" of sand It may require a fairly large opening in the baster. Try cutting the mouth up to the widest part of the tube. Some experimentation required but this technique should work.
That's a lot of ingredients to collect. Would just a commercially available substrate like Miracle Grow do the job or will it not work for the long term? Place two inches of sand over the MG.
Hi father fish! I wanted to ask, won't adding Epsom salt to the soil increase its salinity? I'm asking because alot of aquatic plants can't handle any salinity in the soil or the water column and was wondering if this could be a problem? Thanks for the great video!
I'm a bit curious about hte epsom salts and diatomaceous earth. Wouldn't salt in the water column be bad for freshwater? Im not sure what makes epsom salts different from other salts. As for diatomaceous earth, isn't that stuff meant to be sharp on a microscopic level to bust up small pest creatures? I know that its used in houseplant hobbies for controlling fungus gnats. Would that not be a worry for the small helpful creatures you want in your substrate? Things like blackworms and the like? You only mentioned it's calcium content, would it not be just as easy to use crushed coral or something similar? I guess that might be hard to get in larger volumes.
I was wrong about the calcium. It is a fossil material and is in the lowest level ofthe substrate where only the tiniest micro organisms wander. They find homes in the shell of the diatoms.
Can I just use black cow only. Let it sit in water bucket for two weeks. Then sand on top. I'm only doing alittle to the back of the tank.55 gallons. I have a tank already set up. I want to keep sand on 9ne side only and gravel on the other side.
@@FatherFish I put the 1 inch sand in the middle of my two 55gallon tanks.i used the gravel on the edges 4inches . I plan to add more sand slowly. I'm still working on more plants in pots with soil and gravel. This is fun. I put nice wood in the tank. Thank you againfor helping💜🙏⛵⚓🐟🐠🐟🐠🐟💙
Hello Father Fish , I have a question - If I have a 120 liters tank set up with a layer of 2cm of mud and a 2cm layer of fine gravel(2-4 mm grit) over it , is it ok to leave it like that or do I have to remove the gravel and add sand over the mud in order to obtain a stable tank ? thank you !
Could you be so kind as to tell us the purpose of diatomaceous earth..can it be substituted with anything else like very fine sand, or eliminated all together? Peat moss, will it not leech tannins?can i use cocopeat instead? If i do not have osmocote, can i use NPK granules instead used in gardening? Say 20-20-20 I am sorry about so many questions.. I'm intending to start a 100 gallon tall-ish (30 inch) tank..and trying to make do with what i got..
How messy will it be if we have 2 crawfish in the tank? Not worth it or it will clear and settle down? Its a 30 long and i want to go with a river/stream set-up for them. Any ideas on flow across the tank? Don't want to do a canister filter, really want to go as natural as possible. Love the information I've gottin from ya so far. Keep it comin!
MESSY! Crays eat plants down to the root. They will also catch and eat fish. The only redeeming feature is when they shed everything will try to eat them.
@@FatherFish they haven't caught any fish yet and they haven't really messed with any of the pants. Our plecos in the 55 have done more damage to plants.
Father Fish please tell me i have a dirted tank the bottom layer being mixed with Garden soil and Vermicompost, above that river sand and over that sand substrate(not very fine) now the thing is i want to change the position of the plants...how many times can i do so as it will pop out some of the bottom soil up...disturbing the substrate...of course there are 15-20 plants which i pluck slowly and gradually...how many times can i do this process twice or thrice so that substrate is not disturbed...
@@FatherFish Father Fish just one last thing should i cap it with more additional sand incase the bottom layer slightly pops out....Million thanks to you..
Dear Father Fish, thank you for taking time out of your day to provide this information for us new hobbyists! I am from Sweden, we do not have many of the exact things you use in the mixture unfortunately. I would like to ask you if one can use generally available “Aqua Soil” topped off with deep inert sand to achieve the same kind of effect we see in your aquariums? Or should I simply try to find substitutes for the ingredients as they are two completely different things?
Thank you very much FF! After extensive research I have come to the conclusion that I can find the base elements, the dirt and peatmoss but not many of the additives. But my conclusion is that the additives you use are to make the dirt last for up to 10 years! The tank I am setting up will only be in it’s current installation for 2 years, so I think I will skip many of the additives, add a little aqua soil in for nutrients and hope for the best! Thanks again for everything!
Dear Father fish i have another question, is it important not to have any borrowing snails? Like Malaysian Trumpet Snails? Or are they good for the deep substrate?
@@GtrPknMama OK. Since you both asked. Trumpet snails are not a problem in a deep substrate. They only burrow about an inch and help, like worms in earth, to till the soil.
I want to setup a 20g tank and buying all these seperate will give me a lot left over once I am done. Is there anything more commercial that can be bought? Like tetra active and tetra Complete substrate?
about 6 oz each of the supplements and about 1 gal each of the soils. You want one inch of mud and a covering of 2 inches of sand, 2 50lb bags of silica sand should be enough. Be sure the sand is 2" deep on top of the soil. You do not want the soil to leach into the water. When filling be very careful not to stir up the substrate.
Hi Father Fish. I would like to upgrade my 20g to a 40g. My substrate is gravel on the bottom, and fluval aqua soil on top-- I took over my boyfriend's kid's tank when he went off to college. I wanted a planted tank, and didn't want to cycle (I was also extra extra new to the hobby). Could you advise how I can take most of my current substrate and integrate it with your steps here? I am looking to transfer that good bacteria, but also have a more sustainable aquarium. Thanks!
mix the gravel and the soil. Put it in the bottom of your new empty tank. Cap with 2+ inches of sand. Cover the substrate with a towel or plate and fill with water.
new and trying to learn how to do a natural tank. so my question is if this is done right i wouldn't want to disturb this substrate by vacuuming it correct.
@@FatherFish So the water above the sand has ammonia. The ammonia is broken down by aerobic bacteria in the first few layers of sand and turned to nitrate. In the deeper layers of sand nitrate is broken down via anoxic bacteria. My question is what powers the circulation of ammonia from above the sand then to the the top layers of sand and then into the bottom layers of sand?
@@FatherFish since Oscars create a lot of solid waste, I may put tile above the sand so I can easily remove the Oscar waste with a gravel vac but I'm not sure if the tile would prevent proper circulation of ammonia to the the bottom of tank and then the circulation of nitrate gas out of the tank.
@@outsideingeorgia8963 Excellent question. The Miracle of Deep substrate explains this in some detail. The animals and bacteria living in the sand/soil create a very slow current that moves ammonia and other waste into the bottom layers.
Thank you very much for a reply is there any chance you explain what black cow is? I’m from England and I’m looking for an equivalent. Also was the worm casting a good replacement for the organic snail food struggling to find information on organic snail food. Much appreciate!
Black Cow is a brand name for farm mulch. It is thick and dense. Worm casings are a perfect sub for a nutritional product such as meal, fish food, shrimp chow, etc.
grandfather fish im not sure if i have asked you this (this is my 4th time watching the video) can this technique be applied in saltwater (MACROALGAES) planted tank?
Father Fish, I really cannot find many of the ingredients that you have mentioned. Especially now that we are under a lockdown here. Would it be just alright to use Epsom salt, Osmocote, Baking Soda, Diatomaceous Earth and Agricultural Lime?
diatomaceous earth, sold at pool stores and used in diatom filters. It is not a source of calcium. It is fossilized diatoms, comparable to very fine sand
Yes. I mix soil every day for customers. i am especially happy to mix soil for new hobbyists setting up their very first aquarium. I am able to ship the additives without soil for a very reasonable price.
What is the reason for letting the wetted dirt stay in the bucket overnight? Also, I setup my first dirted tank early this week too. It's a 29G and has 8 plants in it and I've been leaving the light on 24/hr day. I got a huge ammonia spike and with all the lighting I not have a lot of hair algae growing. Why is this happening to my tank but not yours? I only have one guppy in it and I barely feed it every other day so I know the ammonia spike must be from the Miracle Grow Potting Mix. I know you added a lot of fish right away. I confused about how they do fine if there's a spike. Summary: Why leave dirt overnight? Why did I get unexpected ammonia spike and how to avoid it and the algae while establishing the plants?
I do not use soil with ferts. I also cap the soil with 2" of sand and am careful not to let the dirt become exposed to the water. The only reason for leaving the dirt in water overnight is to insure it is thoroughly wet so it will not try to rise through the sand. Do a 25% water change and make sure the soil is well covered with sand.
Thank you sir! My mistake I didn’t pick up on it being fertilizer free. I went to Home Depot and Lowe’s and that was all they had. So what you buy is more like plain dirt? Don’t most ‘potting soils have ferts? What does the peat moss add? Will the tannins not leak since it’s covered with 2 inches of sand?
@@flyby183 you may have to look around a bit to find a potting soil with no ferts but they are out there so far as bleed through is concerned the 2in of sand is sufficient to prevent that the p e a t keeps the pH from becoming too hard and it's better for tetras the little bit of bleed through that occurs with sand is not significant
@@FatherFish Awesome! Unfortunately I am unable to get my hands on all of that stuff but I have a bare bottom tank with 2 internal pumps a external canister and a heater at 29 Celsius preparing for a discus tank currently 9 days into my cycle and just left everything, if u have any advice I epidk really appreciate it 120 litres, as I know discus wet very hard to keep and maintain. But I have faith in u and you're channel you're a LEGEND!! I'm in the uk and I love your videos have spreaded the news to like, comment and subscribe!!!
Im trying to gather up the ingredients but the organic snail food seems to be throwing me off. i get alot of snail killer stuff coming up... seems like the opposite of what im looking for! perhaps some brands your using would help us find the right stuff and have all the success you have had!
Sir, Hello from India,, I will be soon setting up a planted talk... and pls donot mind me asking so many questions in last few days.. The approach you taken is quite different than what others suggest or advice and I am really hooked to the idea, as you have aquariums that are even 10 years old.. I had set up an aquarium some months back with my own formulae.. nothing to boast about. had put up a CO2 cylinder too and plants grew like wild but after some months they started dieing at the same speed.... had a heart break coz i thought i found a way to do it right.. Sir, pls donot mind me asking so many questions and I am trying hard to get all the ingredients as per your suggestion. Right now I face the problem of POTTING SOIL. Sir, potting soil ingredients are manure, cocopeat, verrmiculite, perlite etc... But you already putting in manure and cocopeat in good quantity.. I guess its fine to use simple top garden soil taken from some place where no fertilizers had been used for a long time. The problem here is when i do the simple soil test (putting some in a jar with lots of water, shaking the solution and seeing the sedimenting time and thickness of layers) on top garden soil available near my place.. its mostly about 70% sand, some soil about (20%) and very little clay. I do find some 5kg bags available online that says black forrest soil.. but they donot mention the sand/soil/clay percentage.. I did get some clay from some place where bore was being dug... and it was 90% clay.. But after testing i found it increases the tds of water after some days.. In one of your videos I think i heard something about being high calcium content clay. Pls help... as you know its not easy to redo once i go wrong... Also Sir, pls comment on use of seaweed fertilizer which is gaining a lot of popularity.
Reading your posts, i have a feeling you do not like very long messages but I could not decrease the size. Infact, wished to write more and more. LOL. anyway,,pls accept my respect for YOUR vast knowledge,, experience and helpfull nature.
close but not quite. Chemicals that are intended to kill or restrict should be rejected. Chemicals that promote natural balance such as salt, iron, and magnesium are most desirable.
Thank you so much. I am so honored that you appreciate my work. I appreciate your work as well, without people like you, these truths would not be known.
I am taking my wife on our 10 year honeymoon/anniversary. I never took the time to take her anywhere yet but in the first part of 2025 we are coming to Florida. I am hoping I get to meet you then.
I am a true novice at aquariums and I am just starting (or re-starting) on this journey. I feel so fortunate to have found Father Fish. The other UA-cam channels that teach about dirted tanks tend to make the process seem so complicated or add to many technical aspects that it seems daunting. In fact I wanted to start a planted or dirted aquarium several years back but was so intimidated by the methods expounded by the majority of "experts" on UA-cam and Facebook that I felt I would surely fail. However Father Fish is so down to earth and his focus on mimicking nature is so logical that I feel confident I can do this. Thank you Father Fish!
Sent your way by LRB Aquatics. Subbed to your channel. Great info
I've watched many of your videos in the beginning of finding you..i always try to make sure I comment and 👍 to support you. This is one of my favorite videos. I remember several months ago when I just found you.
A saw a lot of the other UA-camrs having a lot of discussions about dirted tanks, the correct substrates, and the correct ways of doing this just because of this "mud' you were creating.. I appreciated you taking your time out to explain to us all the components and how they work together. I have a hard time sometimes overthinking things. The way to solve that is to study.. and I've studied your methods and techniques for several months. I've joined in with your group and discussions. Your methods are kind, caring and natural. My love for aquariums came from a young child learning how to fish with my grandfather. He always told me to notice what I saw in front of me whenever we were in nature and when we were in water. He allowed me to keep fish whether it was the bait we had leftover or something that we had caught that was small and survived... I'm just rambling but this is what you do for me. You've inspired me to find that same love I had when I was a little girl! It's just a beautiful thing and I really appreciate you! ♥️🙏🌿🐟🌱
Your posts are always a delightful additional to my channel. TY for appreciating my efforts.
Epsom salts provides magnesium, an essential macro-nutruient for plants. Thanks again Dad.
Love this! Dirted tanks are so underrated.
AND dirt is simple. I love getting newbies started on dirted tanks.
I mineralized my dirt. I love osmocote as well. I use it sparingly and get great results
@@vb2377 Mineralizing jump starts the plants ability to take up nutrients. Osmocote is an elegant solution to fertilizing. Takes very little and lasts many months.
Thank you so much for your videos Father Fish. You’re just the best.
Great info and patience in explaining the process in detail, kudos!!! Just did my planted tank last Sunday, Ammonia is around 4ppm when I tested today, heavily planted with ample light. Waiting to see how the parameters change over the next week; before introducing the fish.
Awesome! Thank you!
Let us know how it goes
Here from LRB Aquatics. Lucas has spoken highly of this mixture. I have an excellent source of worm casting in Ohio, Gardens Alive. Looking forward to the setup!
TY. When I run out of the snail food I will have to get worm castings. All of a sudden I am getting new subscribers. WOW!
Don't forget to add your worm castings to your soil.
Thanks for the informative content
YW Thanks for the appreciation.
My love for gardening and stumbling across your videos has i spired me to get back into the hobby and do it better by working with nature. Im in Australia and am lucky to have palagonite available so i will add that when the time comes to mix my substrate.
palagonite consists of kaolinite, illite, mixed‐layer clay minerals, and zeolites. Mix with humic material and some pond mud or other composted material to release the minerals. EXCELLENT resource.
@FatherFish thank you sir.
I just had an idea. How about fine crushed biochar thrown into the mix?
You have a very unique mix.
I also mix my own dirt.
I used worm castings mixed with peat, or organic humus compost.
For amendments, I use some langbenite + red clay powder on the bottom. Diatomaceous earth, azomite, glacial rock dust, greensand.
You should look into azomite and greensand if your already using ironite
Nice! Will do.
Father Fish I’ll be doing a video sometime in the near future with Chris ‘The Mad Aquarist’ Biggs. We’ll be using my method to dirt one of his tanks. I was into organic gardening and using mineral soil amendments before I started doing planted tanks. So took what I already knew about various amendments and applied it to my aquariums.
Hi, that's a great comment. You have to love how knowledge of life and it's ingredients opens up building a tank the same way understanding ingredients in food or baking opens up that art.
Is the azomite and what not worth the extra cost, or is it easier on the environment?
good, Saturday morning father fish hope, alls well. thank, you for you're video and info]👍
Sent by LRB Aquatics. Great Video, I love seeing when others mix and match to create their own substrate! You’ve got some awesome info here.
LOVE your shrimp vids. If you mix soil do not add carbon. Carbonates are not their friend.
Father Fish Thanks so much! When I do make the next batch I will definitely keep that in mind. Appreciate the warning ahead of time!
@@FatherFish i had some 2 inch big round snails... and my aquarium bed was of crushed shells (calcium carbonate i guess) and very soon they died.. i thought hard water woudl support them to grow bigger.
I'm also here thru LRB. I was able to understand and write all the ingredients except for "The Black Cal"? Black Calcium?
I'd like to try this . You're channel is awesome! Thank you for sharing!
Black COW. It's a compost brand name. TY for the kudos.
i love all of these stuff
New sub. Lucas from LRB Aquatics mentioned you are doing old school natural tanks. I'm always interested in natural fish keeping and old school secrets.
👍💕👍
My vids are chock full of old school techniques, comments, and attitudes. Happy to have you on board.
Just discovered your site and am well pleased. Might I ask how you maintain your snails or more to the point their shell integrity thanks
I have hard alkaline water. That seems to be sufficient.
Love this video man! Just more inspiration! ✌🙂
Thanks PT Love it when I inspire.
Awesome. This is what I was looking for.
Glad I could help bluewater.!
I would recommend mixing the dry ingredients before adding the water. Interesting video
Thanks for the tip!
Thank you!
Oh thank i for the reply i apppercate that
Great information
Ty so much for sharing your recipe Father Fish! Got my list of ingredients and waiting on payday 😂
Hope you enjoy. I can sewnd you a packet of supplements. Ck my web site fatherfishaquarium.net
Excellent! Back to basics. Could you tell me which is the product that you mention after the iron oxide?
The one that provides calcium. Thanks for the info!!
I use diatomaceous earth. It is the calcium skeletons of diatoms. Very tiny. Very pure.
Father Fish Thank you very much. Keep doing this, you’re teaching the greatest to this hobby
@@alfonsocevallos6679 TY Alfonso. The tank blew out over night. Am making a video showing my efforts to save the plants and the substrate. I will completely redo a new tank right away. It should be up by later this AM.
Father Fish i am sure they will be fine, plants are more resistant. These things happens commonly, at least it did not have fish in there.
@@alfonsocevallos6679 All done. Vid is uploading. Should be online in about an hour. TY for the condolences.
WOW... WE HAVE BEEN PLANNING TO DO SOME ORGANIC SOIL AND CAP IT WITH GRAVEL... I THOUGHT THAT WAS ALREADY GOING ALL OUT FOR THE PLANTS... THIS VIDEO SUGGESTS OTHERWISE LOL... WE STARTED WITH SAND AND ROOT TABS, SO BABY STEPS I GUESS
Amazing information. Is the black kow their manure or topsoil? Would you make any adjustments to the recipe for different types of water parameters, such as very hard or soft?
Both are good. I use the manure for organics and bacteria. Lime, diatoms, and bicarb are all base and work to keep the Ph up. Lime can drive it well above 8. I use these in small portions. The diatomaceous earth is most helpful by adding calcium.
@@FatherFish Thanks. Out of curiosity approximately what ph do your tanks run at with this mixture and what is the approx ph out of your tap?
@@FatherFish the problem with our water source is high ph.. i thought ph of 6.6 to 8 is good..
@@ezwaters5847 excellent question!
Thanks
Referred by LRB..interesting content.
TY Old Timers Rule!!
Hi! Just found your channel, and I’m really enjoying your knowledge and experience. Thank you for sharing! Is epsom salt still okay to add with catfish in the tank? From what I’ve read they’re rather salt sensitive,
Many cories are highly sensitive to salt. Use sparingly.
Very interesting.Amd Thank you!
Can you provide how many grams of each....that would be much easier.Thank You
have not done the conversion. Volume is a better standard, not weight.
Hi Father fish, I’m looking to plant and sand my already established tank which has a medium sized river stone gravel substrate about 2 inches thick. Would it be okay to just sand on top of this sense the existing substrate already had a lot of nutrients? - thank you again and I love the videos!
yes. 1/2" every 3 days for 2 weeks.
@@FatherFish okay great!, glad I asked I would have put it all in at once. May I ask what the importance of doing it gradually is?
Does anyone (A reseller or a hobbyist) sell the additives mix in Europe? Buying all the ingredients separately is too expensive
Ok, so you'd prefer worm casings, but used... Blood meal? Snail food? What do I substitute for the snail food? Noticed it wasn't in the pond/sealed pot video. Trying to put this stuff together for this weekend. Have most ingredients already.
worm casings provide the same nutrition as snail food, fish meal and blood meal. They are basiocval;l;y interchangeable.
Hello father fish, can I buy a dirt mixture for a 10 gallon tank and the amount also needed of sand and also plants to start of my new 10 gallon tank. I currently have a gravel 20 gallon high tank and have never had a dirt sand tank
Wow so many ingredients! Will this work ok on smaller tanks as well? I tried a simpler version of this in a 5 Gallon and it was a disaster. Hey any chance you can make a shopping list for the description? I think that would be cool.
Disaster is prevented with a sand bed deep enough to keep the soil in the substrate, not in the water.
About to build a 350 gallon tank. I'm going to go with your advice and do the soil and sand on top Substrate like you suggest. I feel like it will be good for my fire eels since they like to dig and burrow. As far as the soil setup goes the osmacoat can't harm the fish? And what sand do you suggest would a pool sand work? You also mentioned not letting the soil get into the water column. If my eels dig and bury themselves I would be concerned that they could introduce the soil into the water once they come up Just subscribed to your channel thanks father fish!
for a very large tank an extra ionch or two is good, especially with eels.
Do you have a video on how to make root tabs? I have blasting sand in a tank. Completely inert. Is there a way to make this mixture into tabs I could put under my sand or add to the tank without it completely clouding the tank?
An excellent question. Let's work on this a bit. Obviously we can use gelcaps but they are too small to carry much product. Need to develop a device that will carry product under the substrate and release it there. A sringe or baster could work. Let's try a turkey baster filled with wetted but relatively solid ingredients such as Black Cow, slowly squirted under about 2" of sand It may require a fairly large opening in the baster. Try cutting the mouth up to the widest part of the tube. Some experimentation required but this technique should work.
You have yourself a new sub sir 👍
Welcome aboard!
That's a lot of ingredients to collect. Would just a commercially available substrate like Miracle Grow do the job or will it not work for the long term? Place two inches of sand over the MG.
I sell the supplement on GetGills and on my web site father.fish.
Hi father fish! I wanted to ask, won't adding Epsom salt to the soil increase its salinity? I'm asking because alot of aquatic plants can't handle any salinity in the soil or the water column and was wondering if this could be a problem? Thanks for the great video!
Epsom salts contains other elements than sodium chloride. It contains magnesium and sulphates, both important for plant growth.
I'm a bit curious about hte epsom salts and diatomaceous earth. Wouldn't salt in the water column be bad for freshwater? Im not sure what makes epsom salts different from other salts. As for diatomaceous earth, isn't that stuff meant to be sharp on a microscopic level to bust up small pest creatures? I know that its used in houseplant hobbies for controlling fungus gnats. Would that not be a worry for the small helpful creatures you want in your substrate? Things like blackworms and the like? You only mentioned it's calcium content, would it not be just as easy to use crushed coral or something similar? I guess that might be hard to get in larger volumes.
I was wrong about the calcium. It is a fossil material and is in the lowest level ofthe substrate where only the tiniest micro organisms wander. They find homes in the shell of the diatoms.
Can I just use black cow only. Let it sit in water bucket for two weeks. Then sand on top. I'm only doing alittle to the back of the tank.55 gallons. I have a tank already set up. I want to keep sand on 9ne side only and gravel on the other side.
Don't know if that will work. No need to soak the black cow. Just put it in as is and cap adequately.
@@FatherFish thank you. I decided to put it in pots. I like to move things around sometimes. I love your teaching. Thank you🙏💜⛵⚓🐟💙
@@karencobleigh1164 Best wishes. Keep me posted Karen.
@@FatherFish I put the 1 inch sand in the middle of my two 55gallon tanks.i used the gravel on the edges 4inches . I plan to add more sand slowly. I'm still working on more plants in pots with soil and gravel. This is fun. I put nice wood in the tank. Thank you againfor helping💜🙏⛵⚓🐟🐠🐟🐠🐟💙
Here from LRB! ❤️🐠🐡
Welcome
Hello Father Fish , I have a question - If I have a 120 liters tank set up with a layer of 2cm of mud and a 2cm layer of fine gravel(2-4 mm grit) over it , is it ok to leave it like that or do I have to remove the gravel and add sand over the mud in order to obtain a stable tank ? thank you !
Do not remove gravel. Simply add about 4cm of sand on top of the gravel
What sand do you prefer to use as a cap for this?
any
Are all of these ingredients included in your diet supplement that you sell on your website?
Could you be so kind as to tell us the purpose of diatomaceous earth..can it be substituted with anything else like very fine sand, or eliminated all together?
Peat moss, will it not leech tannins?can i use cocopeat instead?
If i do not have osmocote, can i use NPK granules instead used in gardening? Say 20-20-20
I am sorry about so many questions.. I'm intending to start a 100 gallon tall-ish (30 inch) tank..and trying to make do with what i got..
D earth helps stabilize Ph and provides microscopic filtration.
If I can’t find black kow manure
What other stuff can replace black kow?
Any manure. Preferably not raw but well cultured is best.
How messy will it be if we have 2 crawfish in the tank? Not worth it or it will clear and settle down? Its a 30 long and i want to go with a river/stream set-up for them. Any ideas on flow across the tank? Don't want to do a canister filter, really want to go as natural as possible. Love the information I've gottin from ya so far. Keep it comin!
MESSY! Crays eat plants down to the root. They will also catch and eat fish. The only redeeming feature is when they shed everything will try to eat them.
@@FatherFish they haven't caught any fish yet and they haven't really messed with any of the pants. Our plecos in the 55 have done more damage to plants.
@@leehilton9932 Gotta agree. Plecos tear up my amazon swords.
Father Fish please tell me i have a dirted tank the bottom layer being mixed with Garden soil and Vermicompost, above that river sand and over that sand substrate(not very fine) now the thing is i want to change the position of the plants...how many times can i do so as it will pop out some of the bottom soil up...disturbing the substrate...of course there are 15-20 plants which i pluck slowly and gradually...how many times can i do this process twice or thrice so that substrate is not disturbed...
You are OK. Be careful and you can easily move plants. Sounds perfect.
@@FatherFish Father Fish just one last thing should i cap it with more additional sand incase the bottom layer slightly pops out....Million thanks to you..
@@fredrickfernandes8757 yes
Dear Father Fish, thank you for taking time out of your day to provide this information for us new hobbyists! I am from Sweden, we do not have many of the exact things you use in the mixture unfortunately. I would like to ask you if one can use generally available “Aqua Soil” topped off with deep inert sand to achieve the same kind of effect we see in your aquariums? Or should I simply try to find substitutes for the ingredients as they are two completely different things?
They are not so different. Aqua Soil capped with sand is fine.
Thank you very much FF! After extensive research I have come to the conclusion that I can find the base elements, the dirt and peatmoss but not many of the additives. But my conclusion is that the additives you use are to make the dirt last for up to 10 years! The tank I am setting up will only be in it’s current installation for 2 years, so I think I will skip many of the additives, add a little aqua soil in for nutrients and hope for the best! Thanks again for everything!
Dear Father fish i have another question, is it important not to have any borrowing snails? Like Malaysian Trumpet Snails? Or are they good for the deep substrate?
Ramy Mourad So glad you asked, I have this same question about the trumpet snails.😎👍
@@GtrPknMama OK. Since you both asked. Trumpet snails are not a problem in a deep substrate. They only burrow about an inch and help, like worms in earth, to till the soil.
I want to setup a 20g tank and buying all these seperate will give me a lot left over once I am done. Is there anything more commercial that can be bought? Like tetra active and tetra Complete substrate?
Yes. I sell the additives on GetGills.
@@FatherFish thanks for the fast response, any thing that ships to Europe? I live in the Netherlands :)
@@nicovanrooyen5064We can try.
Would it work if I used all sand and added root tabs every three months?
If your sand is 3" deep you will only need to add ferts for about 6 months./ After that the system will be renewing itself.
Is this all in the soil additive you sell on your website?
Yes, about 14 ingredients.
Do you think charcoal is a good idea to put in the mix ?
Yes. Its functi0n is limited. Basically it adds to humic levels.
@@FatherFish Thanks !!
Which iron oxide is this? Fe3O4 or Fe2O3 ? Black or Red? It looks like it is black but I can't tell colors apart all that well.
either is fine. We are also using liquid iron.
I have a 100 gallon how much should I use. I bought just about everything that you are showing now
about 6 oz each of the supplements and about 1 gal each of the soils. You want one inch of mud and a covering of 2 inches of sand, 2 50lb bags of silica sand should be enough. Be sure the sand is 2" deep on top of the soil. You do not want the soil to leach into the water. When filling be very careful not to stir up the substrate.
@@FatherFish thanks
Hi Father Fish. I would like to upgrade my 20g to a 40g. My substrate is gravel on the bottom, and fluval aqua soil on top-- I took over my boyfriend's kid's tank when he went off to college. I wanted a planted tank, and didn't want to cycle (I was also extra extra new to the hobby). Could you advise how I can take most of my current substrate and integrate it with your steps here? I am looking to transfer that good bacteria, but also have a more sustainable aquarium. Thanks!
mix the gravel and the soil. Put it in the bottom of your new empty tank. Cap with 2+ inches of sand. Cover the substrate with a towel or plate and fill with water.
@@FatherFish Thank you!
Do you mineralize the substrate?
Do not need to. I add supplemental minerals and bologicals. Avaiilable at www.father.fish
Again here from lrb
Welcome and TY
Hi Papy Fish, it's me ! Is lime citrate magnesium, another magnesium salt ? What's the difference between it and Epsom salt ?
YES and LIME
@@FatherFish Ty for quick answer !
Hello father Fish. Is it possible you can share the ingredients for your substrate in writen form. Thanks in advance.
The list is available on the Father Fish Shoal: discord.gg/G4fkAE6qNw
What is we can only find liquid iron... how much & will this work?
Will it work if I miss 2 ingredients like?
Yes it will
new and trying to learn how to do a natural tank. so my question is if this is done right i wouldn't want to disturb this substrate by vacuuming it correct.
That is absolutely correct. The substrate must never be disturbed. It is sacred ground.
@@FatherFish I truly appreciate all your help. Your videos are great and I enjoy watching them and learning. I could listen to you talk fish all day
hi buddy chewy sent me by
New subscriber ✌️🐟 ☮️🌿... Where is your store? Unless that's a awesome pet store garage you have, I can hear parakeets?
I am in Venice, FL Check out one of my walk through vids. New one tomorrow.
can we use coral sand ? Merci
Oui. MAIS, it will increase water hardness. Coral sand is not inert.
@@FatherFish gracias :)
Where can I find that organic snail food at ?
I have absolutely no idea.
I can't have l plants in my Oscar tank. What if I just put four inches of pure sand in the bottom of the tank?
Perfect.
@@FatherFish So the water above the sand has ammonia. The ammonia is broken down by aerobic bacteria in the first few layers of sand and turned to nitrate. In the deeper layers of sand nitrate is broken down via anoxic bacteria. My question is what powers the circulation of ammonia from above the sand then to the the top layers of sand and then into the bottom layers of sand?
@@FatherFish since Oscars create a lot of solid waste, I may put tile above the sand so I can easily remove the Oscar waste with a gravel vac but I'm not sure if the tile would prevent proper circulation of ammonia to the the bottom of tank and then the circulation of nitrate gas out of the tank.
@@outsideingeorgia8963 Excellent question. The Miracle of Deep substrate explains this in some detail. The animals and bacteria living in the sand/soil create a very slow current that moves ammonia and other waste into the bottom layers.
@@FatherFish I haven't added any invertabrates to my aquarium so would bacteria alone suffice?
Thanks for this video this was very informative. Looking forward to future videos! Would be interesting to see you thoughts on lighting for plants 🙂
I have had several requests for info on lighting. Will discuss it ASAP. TY for your interest.
Thank you very much for a reply is there any chance you explain what black cow is? I’m from England and I’m looking for an equivalent. Also was the worm casting a good replacement for the organic snail food struggling to find information on organic snail food. Much appreciate!
Black Cow is a brand name for farm mulch. It is thick and dense. Worm casings are a perfect sub for a nutritional product such as meal, fish food, shrimp chow, etc.
That has helped my understanding greatly. Thanks again!
@@FatherFish with the super iron plus what else do you recommend to replace that product. noone have it in stock
can we have the list of ingredients of aquatic soil please...thank you so much
I just pinned the list to the top of the comments section of the video. TY
grandfather fish im not sure if i have asked you this (this is my 4th time watching the video) can this technique be applied in saltwater (MACROALGAES) planted tank?
Yes it can. For mud try to get some miracle mud or dirty sand from the sea. If you cannot find mud add enough sand to have 4".
@@FatherFish 4 inches on top of the mud?
@@mujacko2002 Yes.
What isorganic male food and wher can i find it
Dunno but if you find it put me on to some
@@FatherFish what do i do too replace it
Im totally in on ur methodd ill just leave it out and try to find worm casino
Organic snail food. sub with any rich organic material
Father Fish, I really cannot find many of the ingredients that you have mentioned. Especially now that we are under a lockdown here. Would it be just alright to use Epsom salt, Osmocote, Baking Soda, Diatomaceous Earth and Agricultural Lime?
Yes. They are all fine. Try to find an iron top dressing for fruit trees or roses.
@@FatherFish Would it be alright to add ferrous sulfate tablet directly to the soil? Since, it's the only thing that I can think I can get iron from.
Were can i find dynammix earth
diatomaceous earth, sold at pool stores and used in diatom filters. It is not a source of calcium. It is fossilized diatoms, comparable to very fine sand
From Australia, what is Black Cow? Cow manure?
Yes, steralized.
@@FatherFish Father, would you recommend using Black Kow in an indoor tank? does it have a strong smell?
Do you sell this mix at the shop?
Yes. I mix soil every day for customers. i am especially happy to mix soil for new hobbyists setting up their very first aquarium. I am able to ship the additives without soil for a very reasonable price.
@@FatherFish do you have a website where I can order your mix
@@corynelson6392 No. Buy on
e is iin the works. I can take an order
by phone/ 941/266-9998 between 10 and 4 MTXTHFS.
If you would sell this, I would probably buy it.
sell the additives at GetGills.com/Father Fish store.
What is the reason for letting the wetted dirt stay in the bucket overnight? Also, I setup my first dirted tank early this week too. It's a 29G and has 8 plants in it and I've been leaving the light on 24/hr day. I got a huge ammonia spike and with all the lighting I not have a lot of hair algae growing. Why is this happening to my tank but not yours? I only have one guppy in it and I barely feed it every other day so I know the ammonia spike must be from the Miracle Grow Potting Mix. I know you added a lot of fish right away. I confused about how they do fine if there's a spike. Summary: Why leave dirt overnight? Why did I get unexpected ammonia spike and how to avoid it and the algae while establishing the plants?
I do not use soil with ferts. I also cap the soil with 2" of sand and am careful not to let the dirt become exposed to the water. The only reason for leaving the dirt in water overnight is to insure it is thoroughly wet so it will not try to rise through the sand. Do a 25% water change and make sure the soil is well covered with sand.
Thank you sir! My mistake I didn’t pick up on it being fertilizer free. I went to Home Depot and Lowe’s and that was all they had. So what you buy is more like plain dirt? Don’t most ‘potting soils have ferts? What does the peat moss add? Will the tannins not leak since it’s covered with 2 inches of sand?
@@flyby183 you may have to look around a bit to find a potting soil with no ferts but they are out there so far as bleed through is concerned the 2in of sand is sufficient to prevent that the p e a t keeps the pH from becoming too hard and it's better for tetras the little bit of bleed through that occurs with sand is not significant
whatre your thoughts on a pinch of copper sulfate or sulfur powder thrown in the mix for the plants
Copper is toxic. Sulfur is acidic. Neither are beneficial. Is this intended as a trick question?
@@FatherFish purely ignorance, i had some laying around and am novice to aquatics
This is a lot of stuff just for a base layer but Great video!
Yes it is and all of it gets used in about 5 years.!
@@FatherFish Awesome! Unfortunately I am unable to get my hands on all of that stuff but I have a bare bottom tank with 2 internal pumps a external canister and a heater at 29 Celsius preparing for a discus tank currently 9 days into my cycle and just left everything, if u have any advice I epidk really appreciate it 120 litres, as I know discus wet very hard to keep and maintain. But I have faith in u and you're channel you're a LEGEND!! I'm in the uk and I love your videos have spreaded the news to like, comment and subscribe!!!
I just need a recipe for a 29 gallon aquarium No how to break it down
Details are posted on DISCORD: discord.gg/hsrNeS6R
Im trying to gather up the ingredients but the organic snail food seems to be throwing me off. i get alot of snail killer stuff coming up... seems like the opposite of what im looking for! perhaps some brands your using would help us find the right stuff and have all the success you have had!
and is the diatomacious earth supposed to be a bug killer also?
Bone or blood meal are acceptable substitutes, Diatomaceous earth is not toxic. It kills insects by interfering with their mechanical leg joints.
@@FatherFish bone meal is 3-15-0 (NPK) and blood mean is 13-0-0(NPK). so what should we use?
Sir,
Hello from India,, I will be soon setting up a planted talk... and pls donot mind me asking so many questions in last few days..
The approach you taken is quite different than what others suggest or advice and I am really hooked to the idea, as you have aquariums that are even 10 years old..
I had set up an aquarium some months back with my own formulae.. nothing to boast about. had put up a CO2 cylinder too and plants grew like wild but after some months they started dieing at the same speed.... had a heart break coz i thought i found a way to do it right..
Sir, pls donot mind me asking so many questions and I am trying hard to get all the ingredients as per your suggestion.
Right now I face the problem of POTTING SOIL. Sir, potting soil ingredients are manure, cocopeat, verrmiculite, perlite etc... But you already putting in manure and cocopeat in good quantity.. I guess its fine to use simple top garden soil taken from some place where no fertilizers had been used for a long time. The problem here is when i do the simple soil test (putting some in a jar with lots of water, shaking the solution and seeing the sedimenting time and thickness of layers) on top garden soil available near my place.. its mostly about 70% sand, some soil about (20%) and very little clay. I do find some 5kg bags available online that says black forrest soil.. but they donot mention the sand/soil/clay percentage..
I did get some clay from some place where bore was being dug... and it was 90% clay.. But after testing i found it increases the tds of water after some days.. In one of your videos I think i heard something about being high calcium content clay.
Pls help... as you know its not easy to redo once i go wrong...
Also Sir, pls comment on use of seaweed fertilizer which is gaining a lot of popularity.
Reading your posts, i have a feeling you do not like very long messages but I could not decrease the size. Infact, wished to write more and more. LOL. anyway,,pls accept my respect for YOUR vast knowledge,, experience and helpfull nature.
Visit my live stream dated 7/19/20 for response to your comments. Thank you. FF
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wth.....this isssssssssssss..more complicated than cookingggggggggg
Thassssss insssstring
no chemicals ))))))))))))).....
close but not quite. Chemicals that are intended to kill or restrict should be rejected. Chemicals that promote natural balance such as salt, iron, and magnesium are most desirable.
i didnt catch the 4:00
diatomaceous earth. Not, however, calcium.
Thanks!
Thank you so much. I am so honored that you appreciate my work. I appreciate your work as well, without people like you, these truths would not be known.
I am taking my wife on our 10 year honeymoon/anniversary. I never took the time to take her anywhere yet but in the first part of 2025 we are coming to Florida. I am hoping I get to meet you then.
I am located in Salisbury MD now
Oh darn. Well that won’t work out then.
Thanks
You are welcome Triple J
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