RE: automatic water changer

[David Lyle Robinson <robinson at ichips_intel.com>]

Wayne,

[Wayne describes an automatic water changer that increased its output]
> Unfortunately, for some reason without my noticing the flow rate has 
> been slowly increasing to a level of about 6 or 7 times that rate and 
> as a result the SAEs in my tank have died but the plants have increased 
> pearling.
> My questions are:
> Was the 1 drop/second rate actually harmful to my fish even though I have a
> pair of kribensis that hatched and raised fry in this tank.
> What is the fresh water supplying to my tank that PMDD is not?

Can't say much about the SAE's since I don't have any.  I change 50% of
my water once per week straight from the tap (contains chloramines) and
my discus do just fine.  However catfish seem to be more sensitive to this
sort of thing, so your mileage may vary.

As far as the explanation for the pearling.  I would guess that it is
either (or both):
  1) The result of dissolved CO2 in your tap water.  Increased flow rate 
     provides an increase of CO2....  which helps the plants.

  2) The pearling is not necessarily O2 being produced by the plants.
     It may simply be outgassing of the dissolved gasses in your tap.
     As the tap water heats up, its capacity for holding dissolved gasses
     diminishes and fine bubbles result.  In this case, I would expect 
     bubbles to also form on other objects in the tank.

Regards,                                   
David Robinson                          The Discus Page
David.Robinson at intel_com                http://www.ee.pdx.edu/~davidr/

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