[Wet Thumb Forum]-Looking for advice

[JayO]

I successfully set up a tank in Singapore using plants and "muddy dirt" from one of the local pond plant vendors. I used 2-18w fluorescent lights, one cool white and one Singapore "Grow Light". The tank had rear lighting through a somewhat shaded southern window. For filtration I used an overflow setup with about 2 pint flooded wet/dry type filter. The lower tank was too deep for wet/dry action. Everything was fine.

I moved back to the US and attempted to find more "muddy dirt" by locating a hill in a remote area that had had been opened by erosion. There is about 0.8 in of soil covered by about 1.5 inches of natural gravel about 2 mm in diameter. I aged the dirt for about 5 weeks in water. The tank is set up across from a somewhat shaded southern window.

For emergent plants, I have 1- 6" Arrow head type plant and about a pint of riccia. For submerged plants I have spiral Val, 5 small Crypts and a very large red Crypt colony. 2 bits of Cobomba and an Anubas died.

The plants were getting lanky so I purchased a 96 watt compact fluorescent setup. I am running 1 6700 K lamp. The plants recovered and started to grow new leaves.

Algae has become a problem. It appears as brown filaments and as a blue-green scum on the surface. The water is covered by a viscous "oily" film. I have increased the filter flow rate to break up the film. I taped of the base of the tank, put a shade on the window, added activated carbon and did a physical clean. I changed the water several times and added a dwarf water lily. The lily has not yet reached the surface.

PH is stable at about 7.0, I am using a 5 in 1 strip chemical nitrate, nitrite detector which indicates "OK". Hardness is about 100 ppm. Ammonia appears near the 0.25 ppm lower limit of my test kit.

The plants are able to fend off the algae. All of the plants are producing new leaves but the algae concerns me. My guess is that my eroded soil contains a concentrated nitrogen source.

JayO

[JayO]

I successfully set up a tank in Singapore using plants and "muddy dirt" from one of the local pond plant vendors. I used 2-18w fluorescent lights, one cool white and one Singapore "Grow Light". The tank had rear lighting through a somewhat shaded southern window. For filtration I used an overflow setup with about 2 pint flooded wet/dry type filter. The lower tank was too deep for wet/dry action. Everything was fine.

I moved back to the US and attempted to find more "muddy dirt" by locating a hill in a remote area that had had been opened by erosion. There is about 0.8 in of soil covered by about 1.5 inches of natural gravel about 2 mm in diameter. I aged the dirt for about 5 weeks in water. The tank is set up across from a somewhat shaded southern window.

For emergent plants, I have 1- 6" Arrow head type plant and about a pint of riccia. For submerged plants I have spiral Val, 5 small Crypts and a very large red Crypt colony. 2 bits of Cobomba and an Anubas died.

The plants were getting lanky so I purchased a 96 watt compact fluorescent setup. I am running 1 6700 K lamp. The plants recovered and started to grow new leaves.

Algae has become a problem. It appears as brown filaments and as a blue-green scum on the surface. The water is covered by a viscous "oily" film. I have increased the filter flow rate to break up the film. I taped of the base of the tank, put a shade on the window, added activated carbon and did a physical clean. I changed the water several times and added a dwarf water lily. The lily has not yet reached the surface.

PH is stable at about 7.0, I am using a 5 in 1 strip chemical nitrate, nitrite detector which indicates "OK". Hardness is about 100 ppm. Ammonia appears near the 0.25 ppm lower limit of my test kit.

The plants are able to fend off the algae. All of the plants are producing new leaves but the algae concerns me. My guess is that my eroded soil contains a concentrated nitrogen source.

JayO

[dwalstad]

Hello JayO,

You don't say how long you've had this tank set up with the plants. If it's just a month, I'd not be too concerned. Soil can be unstable for several months after submergence releasing nutrients into the water that stimulate algae. My 45 gal had minor algae problems for about 8 months. But plant growth was always phenomenal, so I didn't mind the algae that much.

I doubt that the soil is releasing enough nitrogen to cause your algae problem; nitrogen doesn't hang around in natural (unfertilized settings).

Iron could be stimulating the algae. Soils release lots of iron when they are first submerged due to organic matter decomposition. Soil release of chelated iron stimulates algae. Later when the soil stabilizes, it releases less chelated iron into the water. Plants can get their iron from soil, but since algae is restricted to what's in the water and there isn't much of it, you get a nice system for controlling algae.

If you've got Val, you should be getting LOTS of new plants via runners, not just a new leaf here and there. If you're not getting really good plant growth, then either the algae is inhibiting the plants or the soil is not all that good for the plants you have. If what you dug up was subsoil from an eroded site, you may never get optimal plant growth. If this soil came from a barren, eroded area, it probably won't do well for aquarium plants. I compared growth of Alternanthera aquarium plants in subsoil v. topsoil. Plants in subsoil were stunted and miss-shapen, probably from metal toxicity.

If you think the soil is okay, I'd try more plant species, robust growers such as Amazon swordplant, Ruffled swordplants, floating WaterSprite, Duckweed, Sagittaria, etc. The only fast-growing plants you've mentioned is Val. And if its not multiplying like crazy, then I can see why you've got algae problems.

Diana Walstad

[JayO]

The tank, which by the way is 50 gallons, is about 1 month old but it has far more algae than I had in Singapore. The soil did not look like subsoil to me; I am still worried that I picked up fertilizer of some sort. I don't really trust my nitrate, nitrite test kit since it is so simplistic.

In terms of plants, I also have a fairly large bunch of Baby's Tears Micranthemum, Java Moss, 3 small unnamed sword type plants and small numbers of duckweed and salvinia that I pick up for free with the other plants. The baby's Tears are growing numerous roots and leaves. They are however sort of covered with the brown algae. Many of the new leaves on all of the plants are shorter and lighter green than the parents, indicating to me that they are getting lots of light.

JayO

[dwalstad]

I'm glad to hear that you are getting some plant growth and you have some fast-growing species such as duckweed. I assume that your fish are doing fine?

Don't let your tank "get to you". You might want to set a time limit for improvement (say another 3 months to give your soil a chance to stabilize). It sounds like you've done the best you can.

Then relax. It the tank improves, fine. If it doesn't, then tear it down.

Diana Walstad

[JayO]

One more clean and another week of waiting and things look much better. Thanks for the inputs.