Hi all,
I've been reading about how many tropical fish like to have peat, or Catappa leaves, and/or tannins in the water, and am confused about whether these things are interchangeable, or provide different benefits, and whether tannins in general from driftwood are a good thing/just as good.
I have a redwood tree in my backyard that drops zillions of fronds and cones; would it be safe and beneficial to add some (really old) pieces to an aquarium? Could I use dead Redwood branches for driftwood?
This is my setup: I have a 40g breeder tank that I'm in the process of cycling, Eco-complete black substrate, planted (Brazilian sword, Amazon sword, Java fern, Anacharis, Water sprite, and I think dwarf Sagittaria [not sure] and Cryptocoryne [not sure]. Also a couple pieces of driftwood thrown in with my used tank (don't know the species, but it is leaching tannins into the water). Also a cork log floating near the surface that I thought fish would like to hide or play around in. I want to make a community tank with a Betta, Glowlight tetras, probably other tetras, and possibly a few Dwarf Rainbow fish, a Dwarf Gourami or a pair, Platies, maybe some kind of Rasbora, a snail, and maybe a very small number of some kind of shrimp--still researching the options. Currently have a Betta splendens and 4 Pearl danios but although the danios are beautiful, I hate how hyper they are and how they aggressively hog any food, which I think would be hard on the more timid fish, so I might return them.
Thanks for any opinions/experience y'all can offer!
I've been reading about how many tropical fish like to have peat, or Catappa leaves, and/or tannins in the water, and am confused about whether these things are interchangeable, or provide different benefits, and whether tannins in general from driftwood are a good thing/just as good.
I have a redwood tree in my backyard that drops zillions of fronds and cones; would it be safe and beneficial to add some (really old) pieces to an aquarium? Could I use dead Redwood branches for driftwood?
This is my setup: I have a 40g breeder tank that I'm in the process of cycling, Eco-complete black substrate, planted (Brazilian sword, Amazon sword, Java fern, Anacharis, Water sprite, and I think dwarf Sagittaria [not sure] and Cryptocoryne [not sure]. Also a couple pieces of driftwood thrown in with my used tank (don't know the species, but it is leaching tannins into the water). Also a cork log floating near the surface that I thought fish would like to hide or play around in. I want to make a community tank with a Betta, Glowlight tetras, probably other tetras, and possibly a few Dwarf Rainbow fish, a Dwarf Gourami or a pair, Platies, maybe some kind of Rasbora, a snail, and maybe a very small number of some kind of shrimp--still researching the options. Currently have a Betta splendens and 4 Pearl danios but although the danios are beautiful, I hate how hyper they are and how they aggressively hog any food, which I think would be hard on the more timid fish, so I might return them.
Thanks for any opinions/experience y'all can offer!
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