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Clay and Peat are OK with me



David wrote:

>I'm planning on redoing my 65 g into a nice planted aquarium for apistos. I
>wanted to place peatmoss with mulm from old tanks on the bottom, then
>fluorite, then sandblast gravel, for my substrate. But I've read that the
>peatmoss with clay substrates is a bad combination because it will lead to
>aluminum poisoning. Is there still a certain amount of peat moss I can place
>in the aquarium? or should I just scrap that idea in the first place? Anyway,
>any comments or ideas would be greatly appreciated.

I have a 29 gallon tank that is well over a year old and it has a 
peat/Flourite substrate (1" peat under 2.5" Flourite).  I've never had any 
problem with this tank with the exception of a persistent algae, which has 
since subsided.  All of the flora and fauna are robust and very 
non-poisoned looking.  I change 2/3 of the water once a week.  Normal pH is 
6.6 - 6.8.  If there's any excess of aluminum in the water, I can't tell.

Good luck!

Chuck Huffine
Knoxville, Tennessee  USA
mailto:grendel at usit_net