water discoloration

[Holly9937]

This might be a dumb question, but if the water is discolored because of an algae bloom or tannins, does it look green or brown if you were to place some tank water in a white cup and look at it them? My water seems a bit discolored, I'm assuming from some driftwood I added, but when I look at it in a glass, it looks totally clear :huh:

[dirtydawg10]

When I added my driftwood the tannins turned my water a little brown. If you just take a little out in a white cup you may not see it. I could tell the difference after my water changes. Maybe if you put a cup of tank water next to a cup of tapwater you could see the difference.

[Holly9937]

Maybe if you put a cup of tank water next to a cup of tapwater you could see the difference.

good idea, I just tried it though and they both look the same :duh:

[patoloco]

To see the color, you need light to cross a large line of water. The amount you put in the cup might not be enough to tell.

My NH3 and NO2 test kits use a yellow coloration as indicator, which is hard to see. I either watch the test tube from top to bottom, or compare it with a tap warter tube next to it, just like Dirtydawg said.

[dirtydawg10]

Don't get me wrong...the tank was not dark brown or anything but it had a slight hint of brown to it. My tank is up against an offwhite wall and when I looked through the tank the wall color looked darker. Don't worry it goes away after a while.

[patoloco]

I have a 9 gl. tank with a relatively large piece of dritçftwood in it. It make the water look like chammomile tea in a mater of 2 days. Fish don't seem to bother.

[Holly9937]

I know if the discoloration is from tannins it does not bother the fish (in fact, some like it). But, I'm not convinced it is not an algae bloom, it almost looks greenish. I am able to see the color by looking through one end of the tank to the other (6 feet). I guess I was trying to figure it out on color alone. I don't know much about algae blooms, what else might tell me if thats the problem? Is there actually algae present in the tank too? Or just in the water?

[misopeenut]

it seems like fish that has red color do well in black water, ever since i added drift wood and peat moss to my tank my ram turned red from blue and my white clouds looks like neon tetras with the red stripe

[thefirethief]

Im not sure how to tell if its an algae bloom or not but if it turns out to be tannins then heres what Ive read will help....

Apparently activated carbon in your filter works wonders with it, but thats not worked for me so far. Just be careful if you are medicating the tank as the carbon will remove that too.

Boiling the wood for about 8 hours is supposed to take most of the tannins out, but I cant find a pot big enough for mine. Thinking about putting it in the dishwasher but I doubt it will be hot enough.

Im happy to do big water changes every few days though. :)