Help

[tom130691]

basically i set the tank up about 3 weeks ago added abit of water treatment and a bit of filter start that was it!

come back to it today (was home for xmas)
and the water has a brown tint and the suckers keeping the heater on had a white mould/slime
why have both of these thinks happen and how do i fix it

the heat and filter have been on for the weeks here the day i set it up

could this be due to the drift wood? will get the brown pics up in a min got to find the wire lol

 

[mattlee]

the brown stuff is diatoms, this is quite common on new set ups and will clear in time. just wipe clear with a piece of kitchen roll or algae magnet, it may come back but will settle and dissappear in time

 

[tom130691]

the brown stuff is diatoms, this is quite common on new set ups and will clear in time. just wipe clear with a piece of kitchen roll or algae magnet, it may come back but will settle and dissappear in time

the water is brown?

 

[tom130691]

its the water that has a brown tint pics on the
Way misses dad used to have fish he reckons its because i didnt soak the wood first so im going to have to do a water change

 

[plecostomus-mad]

i would agree with your miss's dad, its tannin from the wood.

 

[mattlee]

yeah sorry read it wrong.... its 100% tannins. it can be removed using carbon in your filter or by water changes but it will keep coming back until the tannins are exhausted from the wood. you could remove the wood and boil it as this will remove some tannins but not all.

 

[tom130691]

yeah sorry read it wrong.... its 100% tannins. it can be removed using carbon in your filter or by water changes but it will keep coming back until the tannins are exhausted from the wood. you could remove the wood and boil it as this will remove some tannins but not all.

it has been in for three weeks cnt be that much left lol
im currently doing a water change and will ask the guy at the shop about carbon 2morrow

 

[mattlee]

yeah sorry read it wrong.... its 100% tannins. it can be removed using carbon in your filter or by water changes but it will keep coming back until the tannins are exhausted from the wood. you could remove the wood and boil it as this will remove some tannins but not all.

it has been in for three weeks cnt be that much left lol
im currently doing a water change and will ask the guy at the shop about carbon 2morrow

you may be suprised how long wood can release tannins for, i have 2 pieces in 1 of my cory tanks and they have been in there for about3 months and i still get tannins. i quite like the look and the fish seem to like it too

 

[connor_09]

I heard the fish like the tanning from the wood, apparently it wont harm them as it softens the water just doesn't look great on the eye.

 

[tom130691]

I heard the fish like the tanning from the wood, apparently it wont harm them as it softens the water just doesn't look great on the eye.

ye i wouldnt mind lil but thats was abit to much for me

 

[Munerz]

its tanic acids from the drift wood put sum activated carbon in your filter and it will clear up

 

[tom130691]

its tanic acids from the drift wood put sum activated carbon in your filter and it will clear up

filter is brand new and has a carbon element in it

 

[loraxchick]

carbon loses its effectiveness to remove chemicals fairly quickly. your best bet is just to keep doing waterchanges to dilute it. eventually the wood will stop leeching. or take the wood out and soak in a bucket changing the water weekly until the water is clean. then place back in the tank
cheers

 

[tom130691]

well it was in tank for 3 weeks to get to that stage
it been 3days since water still clear !

 

[waterdrop]

Yes, lorax is correct, carbon would be pulling tannins out for about 3 days then would be ready to be tossed. Weekly water changes should be more effective and one wants to do those at any rate because of all the other buildups we don't want to test for. Tom, you are in a position to give us some feedback about how effective water changes are for your wood/water thing, so let us know how it goes over time.

~~waterdrop~~