yellowish tint to water after adding house plants

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svtcontour

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Aug 6, 2004
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Hi there, I've noticed that after having house plants in the tank for some time, that my water is tinted yellow no matter what I do. Basically ammonia measures zero, nitrates are pretty much zero nitrites are moderate - I should do more water changes but even if I did a 50% water change, the water would be almost the same colour the next day.

Someone told me that plants release a chemical called Tannin but was told its safe. Is my only course of action to run some carbon in the filters? I dont do that now....
 
You say nitrates are zero and nitites moderate? Are those backwards. If not then the tank isn't cycled.

As for the tannins, well my planted tanks often have a slight tint to the water. if that tint is great it is probably a sign of the plants dying off. House plants won't last very long. Why not get actual aquatic plants?

Carbon will help to get rid of tannins but will require you to keep adding it every week or so (depending on how much you add). It can get used up quickly.
 
Hi guys, here is a pic of the house plants so you have an idea of what I am doing or trying to do. Since I cant keep aquarium plants alive inside the tank (apple snail eating everything and congos nibbling on leaves), I can do this. The plants should help with some of the filtering as well. They have been thriving very well.

As for my nitrates / nitrites numbers, maybe I have them reversed... The tank has been set up for over a year and everyone is doing well...its just an issue with the colour of the water at the moment.

As for filteration, I've got an Eheim 2217 on the 75 gallon tank. It does have 17 congos, a few harlequin tetras, a single skunk loach and 3 guppies, oh and the apple snail. It is fairly heavily stocked but I think I'm doing quite well on the filteration side too.

Anyway here is a pic
plants.jpg
 
how long have you had those driftwood peices in there? Have you trimmed the tops of your houseplants and not trimmed the roots?
 
Hi Svtconyour. I dont know what causes this, it looks like the plant you have there is pothos. I have this plant in all of my betta bowls and the same thing has happened. I thought it was just the reflection of the plants off the inside of my bowls making my water look yellowish, but gues not, maybe soemone will know what it is. It doesn't bother me. Have a nice day!

By the way I love what you have done with your aquarium and the plants!
 
I have not been trimming the tops, the roots just go on their own. Sometimes the apple snail eats the roots a bit but it cannot keep up with the growth rate. The driftwood has been there since day one so its been a year. I do a 25% water change a week on the tank.

I'm glad at least to hear from someone else that the same thing happened to their water when they added this kind of plant. So its not me going crazy :)
 
i have simmilar problems with tannins but they are coming from drift wood ...the release of the tannins usually subsides with in about 3 to six months ...so i agree that its not the drift wood, do you think the coloring in your case could be rotted plant material? just a guess, but have you tried wiping the glass? i know when i am adding driftwood the color seems to "stick" to the glass, ..i wipe with a dry paper towel on the inside glass when its slightly wet, and the towels come out brown, ..whatever you find ..good luck to you!
 
dude the plants on your tank are Awesome!!! Great idea,i have those and am going to do the same thing,i'll post pics when its done.Thanks for the idea. :thm:
 
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