I have a 220 that a recently added 2" of chopped oak leaves to the bottom of. It looks great and my chemistry is still fine. Has anyone else attempted this? What were the long term results?
Oak Leaves
- Thread starter paulosborne
- Start date
How long have you had the leaves in there? Your parameters might be fine for now but I would think that on a long term basis the leaves will break down and decay and your ammonia will start to spike. It might also soften your water and cause your pH to drop. $0.02
Also (sorry) it seems like a 2 inch layer of leaves would trap detritus and dirt and it seems like it would be hard to clean and vacuum w/o sucking out any leaves.
$0.04
$0.04
Howdy,
Oak leaves are an old-school favorite! I have never used them myself, though. From what I've heard, oak leaves are pretty resistant to rotting (that's why they are used as compared to other leaves). They are slightly acidic and could reduce your pH value at first. You may monitor that, and please post updates. The leaves will not last for years, though, and as stated above, you should keep an eye on your water parameters. On the other hand, it shouldn't be too much work to siphon them out in the Fall and add new leaves...
Please post some pics and reports on your observations and water chemistry as the year goes on.
What fish do you keep?
HarleyK
Oak leaves are an old-school favorite! I have never used them myself, though. From what I've heard, oak leaves are pretty resistant to rotting (that's why they are used as compared to other leaves). They are slightly acidic and could reduce your pH value at first. You may monitor that, and please post updates. The leaves will not last for years, though, and as stated above, you should keep an eye on your water parameters. On the other hand, it shouldn't be too much work to siphon them out in the Fall and add new leaves...
Please post some pics and reports on your observations and water chemistry as the year goes on.
What fish do you keep?
HarleyK
F
FishHeadSoup
Guest
Thanks for the concern... I test my water every 2 days. I am holding at Zero Ammonia, Zero Nitrites, Zero Nitrates, and my PH is holding strong at 8. My tap water is naturally around 8.5. My hope was to lower my PH slowly but down to the 5.5 to 6.0 range.
I have had the leaves in the tank for a little over two weeks, it is still completely new.
I will post pics asap.
I have had the leaves in the tank for a little over two weeks, it is still completely new.
I will post pics asap.
paulosborne said:
Howdy,
Just remember that pH is logarithmic. Water with a pH value of 5.5 is 1000-times more acidic than your tap water. I doubt that you will be able to reduce the pH that dramatically with oak leaves, it would even be pushing the limits of peat. Your only ways may be a pH-lowering conditioner or R/O water ...
HarleyK
My water chemistry is still holding solid, I have not had any changes that are noticable. It was a shot in the dark about the PH, I have had mixed advice concerning how drastic the effects of the leaves would be.
