Plant only filtration?

[DantheTman]

Does anyone know if a 10 gallon tank could successfully be filtered using only live plants?
Will be stocked with a trio of C.orientalis

 

[Neotenic_Jaymes]

I've had many 10 gallons with no filters just plants. Mostly I use java moss and elodea. Especially dealing with C. orientalis which is a small species you shouldn't have no problem.

 

[Azhael]

The key is having large amounts of plants. This is doubly benefitial as H.orientalis loves having dense areas of vegetation, and they dislike currents.
You can find several threads that discuss this kind of biological filtration around the forum. Use the search function to find them.

 

[Molch]

think "jungle" - plants everywhere, and include some fast-growing species like Elodea and hornwort. I have many tanks like that, no problem. With just an occasional (every 2 weeks) partial water change they do just fine.

 

[merk199]

None of my aquariums have any filters (newts/freshwater fish). All is done through the use of plants. Should be no problem especially since most newts dislike water current....

 

[Andrej]

Has anyone ever experimented with a mycological based filtration system in a terrarium/aquarium setup? I'm new to the Caudata world and trying to learn what I can before I get my own setup. I was just curious, about the implementation of fungi in a miniature filtration system. I know Chytridiomycosis has the potential to make fungi unappealing to anyone caring for amphibians, but research has proven that mycelium can be utilized for their ability to bioaccumulate toxic chemicals; in a terrarium system where that mycelia mat could be removed quite easily, it seems they could be beneficial organisms in the cleaning of the closed ecosystems.

 

[Azhael]

I doubt fungi could be used as the main source of filtration, but they are certainly present in any tank. Apart from the ever present Saprolegnia, i´ve seen slime molds in some of my tanks. I think they are an integral, albeit mostly unseen, part of the mini ecosystem that is an aged tank.