1 gallon pickle jar

[paperpxl]

hi everyone, I am new to this forum however have had a planted tank before. I'm experimenting with a nano tank contained in a pickle jar. Currently heres my specs:

approx 1 gallon
substrate: marine sand
no filter
no c02 (maybe excel)
no ferts (maybe flourish)
no heater
light: currently a desktop daylight reading lamp & indirect sunlight during day

flora: java fern, java moss, anubias nanas
fauna: ramshorn snails

I wanted to create a tank that most resembles nature, with the plants filtering the water and providing oxygen and animals providing nutrients. I want it to be as close to self sufficient as possible. So, I just have a few questions about how to start this up.

1. Currently, my plant selection is all low maintenance however, I'm looking for a low maintenance plant that provides lots of oxygen and cleaning power, are there any available and do the ones listed above work?

2. Since there is no filter, there is no water circulation and i dont want to/its too small to add one or a powerhead. My snails are often seen going up to the surface at night (low oxygen?) I'm afraid that my marine sand substrate may also turn anaerobic and cause problems. Are these possible problems as the tank progresses and what can I do about them. I was thinking of MTS to clean the substrate. Note: snails seem to become more active after a water change.

3. Wanting it to be as natural as possible, I dont mind bugs and organisms swimming around, what are possible suggestions for adding the tank that would also be beneficial to the "ecosystem" I was thinking daphnia? I also dont mind algae developing if it is a way to provide food for snails/organisms.

4. Lastly, just any tips anyone may have on this type of tank would be great and any potential problems I could encounter.

Thanks so much,

Jack

Just registered so I have not figured out how to upload photos but if your interested here is a link to my flickr page. http://www.flickr.com/photos/paperpx...7621890443698/

[Joetee]

I would replace about 10% of the water twice a day to help with oxygen, etc. Let the water splash to help.
Looks nice though.
Joe

[Strick]

Ever heard of a Walstad tank? Sounds pretty much like what you're trying to achieve.

Good info here: http://theaquariumwiki.com/Walstad_method

[Gill]

That's a Cool Pico Jar

[paperpxl]

Thanks, I just got some shrimp for it and some mts to clean up the gravel. Ever since setup, my snails and shrimp are always going up to the surface especially at night. I've done water changes twice today and don't know what else to do besides adding filter/powerhead. any tips?

[Joetee]

A small air stone would be a healthy choice, but I am not sure how you would hide it. You should also be treating your new water with something like Prime, etc. It might only need about a drop or two if you use Prime.
If they are going to the surface, then you need to help supply oxygen. Any kind of surface movement would do this.
Looks really good though.
Joe

[Joetee]

I was just thinking. They make a very small diameter acrylic tube that you can maybe heat and bend to the contour of the jar , then silicon it up the inside and and down the outside of the jar, This might not be very visible at all and you can adjust a very slow bubble rate that might be enough to oxygenate the water and yet still be nearly invisible.
Lack of oxygen may not kill the right away, but the stress will eventually kill them.
Just a thought.
Joe

[rachnhaze]

Hmm this concept is very intriguing. I have two huge glass containers that are used for decoration that i got at the goodwill very cheap. They would make excelant little tanks. I think it would be cool to have these as all shrimps. But would they produce enough CO2? Do you plan to add anything besides the snails? i think i shall subscribe and see how this works for you!!

[paperpxl]

I added some Christmas moss and replaced some of the java moss. I also added amano shrimp and an Otto. Currently I'm just tryin to keep the water quality stable and try and get more oxygen in at night. It's hard doing water changes bc so much of the parameters can change quickly so fast. I found my water to be too hard so I mixed some ro water but hopefullly it won't change parameters too drastically. I'm gonna see how everything goes this weekend and post pictures soon. I'm starting to think that a more high tech setup would better replicate natural conditions what do u guys think.

[paperpxl]

O btw Im thinking of adding excel for co2 and also wouldn't an airstone deplete co2 levels?

[OverStocked]

I can't find pics of it, but ages ago I was able to drill a hole in the bottom center of a glass jar using a diamond bit. You only need it big enough for the air stone, and you can silicone around it to prevent leaks. I would even consider super glue if the fit was tight enough. You could then find a very small air pump and even a control valve to lower air flow. The only catch here is then you need to lift the jar up to get it level. I used a cork matt from walmart near the houseplants section. I cut out a line in the matt to allow the airline to go through.

[OverStocked]

An airstone would have no effect on the excel you are adding, and may infact introduce some co2 since you have stagnant surface.

[shrimpo]

I used to keep couple shrimps in a small cube glass with sand, java moss, riccia floating and pest snails. no filter, no heater or anything.
now i keep them in a 10 gallon tank.