6 months no water change, no skimmer, no testing and everything looks great

[gobytron]

I'm sure if we could interview the two fish in there, they would tell you they have lived a pretty happy, peaceful life.

Much less stress in an environment where they can't constantly see humans walking by or light's shining into the tank at random times, no hands in there, no big changes or fluctuations in water chemistry.

Fish would also be just as happy with the rich, natural diet of pods and algae than they would be with something you are putting in there.

Again, the idea is that things didn't just get by, they did well....as well as in tanks that I would spend an hour a day or more on.

The fish are fat and healthy, the corals have all grown, both zoas and LPS and the RBTA has split several times.

No animal abuse here.

My two dogs and two cats agree.

[Fin2you]

I have 2 similar tanks on the FW side of things. they are run with tetra whisper filters with Seachem's Matrix live rock in for "filter medium". the only chemicals I use is Prime when I do water top off. They are planted with a good base of Volcanic aquatic soil & well planted. Plants thrive being fed from the fish waste, the oldest kid probably over feeds them but hey they're happy. I find if I have algae growth on the tank it means something is out of balance. I removed a bunch of snails out of my big tank into the smaller & they hatched out baby's. I'm slowly picking the baby's out of the smaller tank & putting them into the big tank. Algae problem being solved. When I have it back under control & the snail baby's are a good size off to the LFS they'll go for some store credit!
In the Salt water tank lastnight I was estatic to discover some Chaeto growing on the back wall! I put my seaweed sheet "clip" which the lawnmower blenny seems to recognize immediately b/c he follows it the minute I slid it into the tank to the middle of the patch empty & he knew what to do

[gobytron]

Originally Posted by Fin2you

I have 2 similar tanks on the FW side of things. they are run with tetra whisper filters with Seachem's Matrix live rock in for "filter medium". the only chemicals I use is Prime when I do water top off. They are planted with a good base of Volcanic aquatic soil & well planted. Plants thrive being fed from the fish waste, the oldest kid probably over feeds them but hey they're happy. I find if I have algae growth on the tank it means something is out of balance. I removed a bunch of snails out of my big tank into the smaller & they hatched out baby's. I'm slowly picking the baby's out of the smaller tank & putting them into the big tank. Algae problem being solved. When I have it back under control & the snail baby's are a good size off to the LFS they'll go for some store credit!
In the Salt water tank lastnight I was estatic to discover some Chaeto growing on the back wall! I put my seaweed sheet "clip" which the lawnmower blenny seems to recognize immediately b/c he follows it the minute I slid it into the tank to the middle of the patch empty & he knew what to do

It really is all about finding a balance.

Once you have that balance, things get a whole lot easier if you don't mess with it.

I haven't kept FW in a long time but the tanks I see now rival reefs for color and beauty.4

King Ed's has a couple on display that definitely get a guy thinking.

[Fin2you]

Originally Posted by gobytron

It really is all about finding a balance.

Once you have that balance, things get a whole lot easier if you don't mess with it.

I haven't kept FW in a long time but the tanks I see now rival reefs for color and beauty.4

King Ed's has a couple on display that definitely get a guy thinking.

I have picts of my 2 FW tanks in my profile albums, if you want to see them. I'm seriously thinking in my 30 of getting rid of the purple Cabomba it is hard to keep bushy & stay colored up if I forget every day to put in the fertilizers. If I do I'll put a background back on this tank to hid the wall & cords. but my 10gal betta tank I love being able to look thru it & see it from both the dining room & kitchen.

[gobytron]

Looks nicer than any FW tank I ever had.

[Zoaelite]

Pictors please?

Agreed though, I find its when I start sticking my grubby hands into the tank that things start going bad.

KISS method FTW.

[gobytron]

Originally Posted by Zoaelite

Pictors please?

Agreed though, I find its when I start sticking my grubby hands into the tank that things start going bad.

KISS method FTW.

coming.

was playing around with my new t5i and took a bunch before I did the WC.

It's funny just how many things benefit from the KISS principle.

[mike31154]

My tank is fairly low tech/maintenance as well, but I do find that sizable water changes on a 21 day cycle help keep things from getting too nasty with respect to algae. Also ensure my fish are fed daily with an auto feeder & when I'm home a mysis/brine shrimp treat in the evening. I have a spawning Maroon Clownfish pair & Mama needs nutrition to do her thing. Nori clip for Yellow Tang.

Have found just as yourself that a certain amount of algae is definitely beneficial to the pod population, which in turn benefits other critters that may populate your tank. I don't get bent out of shape at the sight of a few wads of green hair algae. Don't run a sump so I've learned to tolerate it in the display. I consider it a highly efficient method of reducing nutrients and its FREE. Periodically I get in there and manually pull some of the big wads. I do have a skimmer, old school wooden air diffuser driven. Seeing the goo that it pulls is sufficient to make me think it's probably a good thing to keep running.

Of course this methodology is not appropriate for an SPS dominant tank. I do have some monti caps that are growing gangbusters, but I'm sure more delicate species would not do that well in my system. That's fine, I glean all the enjoyment I can handle from my mixed reef. Fish are fat & well adjusted as far as I can tell. ULN is not for me. This hobby offers so much diversity & avenues to pursue, in the end, whatever keeps one interested & entertained is fine, provided the livestock doesn't suffer. Obviously you've been in it long enough to discover what works well for you.

EDIT: .... don't test much using kits either, can't recall last time I did, month ago? My test is daily DILR (Does It Look Right). Had the tank long enough now that I know something's up pretty quick without resorting to a test tube.