Bubbles from the substrate

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BHRay

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Nov 27, 2002
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I'm guessing this is a chemistry question -

I have a 5g that I use to Q new arrivals. Right now it has some gold ramshorn snails that I'm growing out and a colony of ghost shrimp. I sometimes put cuttings of plants in there for the snails. REcently I q'd 6 juvenile rainbow fish for 3 weeks. I fed them pretty heavily on frozen bs and bloodworms. Now when I vacuum or stir the gravel by planting a plant, I get bubbles that rise from the substrate, which is about 1.5 inches of gravel. What are the bubbles? Is there some sort of anaerobic action going on?
 

ewok

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Jun 11, 2002
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new haven ct.
serra: you lost?

bhray: i would do a thorough cleaning, preferrably with no inhabitants...... it does sound like it could be slightly anaerobic, and that wouldn't be good. did you notice anything unusual when you vacuumed? is the crud you vacuum out very dark? any unusual smell when the bubbles break on the surface?

there *has* to be something going on to produce gasses below the surface of the substrate as far as i know.............. maybe decrease the amount of substrate too?
 

Serrateeth_2002

Godzilla
Nov 3, 2002
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Originally posted by BHRay
I fed them pretty heavily on frozen bs and bloodworms.
I'm not lost or is this a spelling error,what is bs anyway?The air pockets in the gravel should be removed,i've read that it causes anaerobic something,just stir up the gravel to remove the bubbles.
 

ewok

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Jun 11, 2002
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new haven ct.
serra: bad advice, if you stir up the substrate and the pockets are anaerobic anything in the tank is liable to die. period. why chance the fish?

bs = brine shrimp
 

Slappy*McFish

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Feb 18, 2002
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The bubbles are hydrogen sulfide gas...which is very toxic and is produced by anaerobic activity...the best way to prevent this in the first place, is to keep your gravel well vacuumed. But it does need attending to..I wouldnt just leave it for fear of disturbing the gravel and releasing it into the tank. Go ahead and vacuum your gravel slowly and try to siphon the gas out of the gravel..it will smell horrible coming out, similar to rotten eggs.
 

BHRay

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I have smelled something. Not rotten eggs tho. I thought it was from the plant clippings. Sometimes I would prune my amaz swords from another tank and hold the leaves down in the 5g with gravel. The snails loved it. I figured the smell was from the dying leaves. I will continue with water changes, heavily vacuuming from just a small portion of the tank to try and minimize disturbing the tank and releasing too much toxins.
 

RTR

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Oct 5, 1998
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Braddock Heights, MD
The bubbles from the substrate may be CO2, N2, CH4, H2S, or possibly even others, depending on the oxygen tension in the substrate. Only the last two (methane and hydrogen sulfide) are of potential harm, only the last of immediate danger if disturbed.
 
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