New Plants & Amber-Colored Water-The Planted Tank-3reef Forums

Linda · 07-11-2007, 01:52 PM

After years of having plastic plants in my FWT, 2 weeks ago plastic was replaced with the real thing. I purchased about 5 plants -- don't know the names, but was assured by my LFS that they were no fuss (yeah, sure). Shortly thereafter, my water turned an amber color. I performed a water change and less than a week later, amber colored water again. I changed the water last night.

Before adding, I tested the water, all was good. Purchased a new CF tube to ensure that the plants had the proper lighting - and it's on about 12 hours a day. I have a 16-gallon bow front with a bio filter, 6" inch bubble stone and sand. What LS is left is one loach and a shark. Lost the two angels.

Can anybody tell me why this is happening?

coral reefer · 07-11-2007, 04:16 PM

Plastic Plants: The Least Common Factor by Steve Coach
Read this as he explains it very well.
Tanins are a big part of your problem...
Good luck and hope things work out for you!

Linda · 07-11-2007, 04:34 PM

Thanks.

By the way, I just finished reading your article, "Invertebrates...diversify you tanks..." It was very enlightening and a copy of it will be accompanying me to the LFS when my tank is finally read to stock.

coral reefer · 07-12-2007, 06:16 PM

Thnaks Linda...appreciate it!
What do you plan on doing to rid this problem?

flipnap · 07-12-2007, 07:38 PM

Heya Linda.. Ive got two freshwater tanks at work.. The only time ive ever seen my water go amber is from some african root driftwood i put in.. it leeches tannins into the water, like coralreefer said.. Do you have any driftwood in there? I also have live plants in my tanks and have never seen them leech any color into the water.. If you have driftwood, you can try boiling it several times untill the boiling water is clear.. I also keep my charcoal filter changed every two weeks and run purigen pack.. my water stays pretty clear.. good luck..

Sndwave80 · 07-12-2007, 09:05 PM

This is a common problem in home aquariums. You’ll need to increase the carbon in the tank to absorb some of the cr*@ for the water. Increase the water flow through the tank too. Basically the plants look great for a day or two and then your water turns yellow/ green for the die off and leaching form the plant itself. If you added driftwood this could also add to the problem as no matter how much you’ve cleaned if before you put it in your tank it was still dirty. They make supplements to clear this problem up but remember everything you put in your thank as a reaction (ammonia, ph, nitrate ect.). Hope this helped!

Matt Rogers · 07-12-2007, 10:51 PM

That is a tell tale for me too with my plant tank and turtle tank. When the water is yellow, I change the carbon.
Edit - but since this is a new situation perhaps flipnap has the right idea with boiling the wood too. I've never tried that though.

flipnap · 07-13-2007, 06:11 AM

sorry, i meant keep your "carbon" fresh.. i dunno why i always call it "charcoal".. been doing that since back in the day

.. also, everytime you change out your filter, if you have a HOB filter, take the whole unit out and clean it thouroughly, wash out the chambers and srub the impeller.. it makes a world of difference with purifying your water and keeping it healthy. Also, running your lights 12 hours a day might start giving you some algae problems.. i run9 to 10 and im fine. And as far as fish, clown loaches are the most sensitive freshwater fishes you can get.. they fall to ich at the drop of a dime.. good luck and keep us posted..

p.s. you can also try putting a small pouch of "purigen" to help purge the water..

jaidexl · 07-13-2007, 05:05 PM

I agree you probably have some tannins leaching from something, it won't hurt anything but your pH. Frequent water changes will get rid of it eventually, IME carbon only absorbs vital plant nutrients, as does other nutrient absorbents meant for fish-only tanks. Increasing water flow and running your air stones will only starve your plants of Co2 and slowly kill them or at least keep them from achieving their full potential, will also promote black brush algae.

Linda · 07-16-2007, 04:38 PM

Yup...it's gotta be the driftwood (that was added the same day as the plants)! You're a bunch of geniuses!!!! All I ever get out of the LFS's is "I don't know!" Ugh. I've done 2 water changes thus far, and it seems to be calming. If not, I'll let you know if boiling it solves the problem.

FLIPNAP: What is a purigen pack, how is it used, where do I get one and how much do they cost? (It's a 29-gal). Oh, and it figures that I would manage to buy the most sensitive freshwater fish alive!

There are confliction suggestions for water flow: one says to increase, the other to decrease (and decrease air bubbles). Since I've had the water flow at max. speed, as well as the air stone, I'll try jaidexl's suggestion and reduce both.

Thanks everybody!