Finally giving my 55 the overhaul it deserves

[gatotsu77]

I think that yes, they prefer acidic, dark water, but mine are doing fine without it. It's probably more important for wild-caught fish than farm-raised. The pH in my tank is about 6.9, and the water's clear. I wouldn't mind tannin stained water, but my driftwood never really put any out. I collected mine from a river and it was pretty weathered already. If you don't like the dark water you can run fresh carbon in the filter and I think that'll help. Otherwise, it should stop leaching on its own after a while.

I took a video a couple weeks ago of my glowlights' first (observed) spawning, seen here.

Wow, that female really is a lot bigger than the other two! I'd been considering glowlights for a while too... they school fairly tight? Or are they mostly just everywhere? I'm kinda getting used to the tannin color... its just very dark at the moment. I'm concerned that my plants won't get enough light...

 

[Marinemom]

Your plants should do fine in it. Some people just cannot get used to the look of the darker stained water but the tetras really do seem to glow in tannin stained water and I think they act better since it is more like their natural enviroment. It really is just a matter of preference.

Marinemom

 

[gatotsu77]

I ordered a new light today anyway, so hopefully that'll help my plants too. (I wanted something to penetrate the tannins a little bit, and hopefully promote better plant growth... the bulbs I have atm are weird. 1 is 3800k and the other is 12000k. -_-) I got a 48" enclosure with 130 watts of compact fluorescent light @ 6700k. I should have it by friday.

 

[soobie]

I'd been considering glowlights for a while too... they school fairly tight? Or are they mostly just everywhere?

Mine usually are in a loose school, mixed up with the black neons. I don't have anything aggressive in the tank, though, so they probably feel pretty relaxed. Just the tetras, panda cories, and three new otocinclus. I really like the glowlights- they're beautiful, and very, very peaceful. Even more laid back than the black neons.

 

[irishspy]

My tank went from crystal clear to nearly amber overnight, and I had been soaking that driftwood and changing the water daily for 2 weeks... :angryfire:

I'm not a fan of tannin-stained water, either, even though it's great if you're breeding tetras (and some other species). I think activated carbon with scrub it out, as well as purigen.