5 gallon NO FILTER

[Cdarling8]

I have an ordeal, I want to setup a tank that uses only plants for filtration! The tank will be a 5 gallon, with a 25 watt heater and a lone betta. What fast growing plants will work? Myrophyllum, elodea, frogbit, java fern?

 

[Hendre]

Duckweed will certainly help! Elodea, hornwort, bacopa are also good fast growing plants

 

[J. H.]

Why not dump the betta and go for inverts? Snails, shrimp, crays, ostracops, pods, there are plenty of options. Some of the small killies might work, too.
Growing pothos, spiderplants, coleus, wandering jew, or other houseplants out of the top is the easiest and most effective IME.
The bottle to the left has no filter.
All of the plants either mentioned by me, or in the picture worked well except for the curly pondweed. (I only tried devil's horn plant and coleus with a filter for water circulation, though.) (The 10g is no longer running, but the bottle still has live moss and snails.)

 

[aae0130]

Without a filter or at least a bubbler, your water temp will be inconsistent throughout the tank if you have a heater. Put something in there to move the water. Even if it’s just a tiny air stone.

 

[skjl47]

Hello; As already mentioned several plants will do. However plants provide only a portion of the "filtration" by taking up stuff from the water such as nitrate they can use for growth.
Regular water change (WC) seems your best bet.

 

[markstrimaran]

Theirs algea. It needs water flow to work. Plus an algea eating fish.
This is my 75 gallon Algea Reef. Very little bio filtration just 300 watts of leds and a 15 gallon algea refugium.