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Phosphate, Malaysian Snails and Newsgroup



Subject: Re: Elevated Phosphates

> I have a 180 gal with a good amount of plants (20-30 echinodorus
> , cabomba, Java fern and few others submersed plants I am trying
> Additionally I have mixed floating plants: duckweed, frogbite an
> medium fish load (is it really medium, at least for fishkeeping 
> 6 green discus, 14-16 Pristella tetra, 4-5 Neons, 2 L. curviceps
> Rineloricaria sp. and 2-3 Peckoltia). The substrate is gravel, w
> layer containing some laterite, peat and Delaware Imports tablet

There's at least part of your problem.  DAI tablets _definitely_ 
contain phosphate.  

> Here is what I am doing: please let me know if there are better 
> 
> 1) I have eliminated all peat from the filters and cleaned them 
> that this will also reduce the silt deposited on the plants, whi
> was leaching out from the gardening grade peat. The CO2 injected
> adequate to control pH by itself. 
> 
> 2) I bought several pouches of Phos-Zorb, which I am using one a
> replacing it when phosphate levels stop dropping. I started usin
> week ago. I am now at the second one, and the levels are now aro
> mg/l. No sign yet of clear improvement in plant growth.

Large frequent water changes are cheaper than phospahte removing 
resins, but both will work.

> 3) What levels should I realistically try to achieve? Because of
> water phosphate content, I guess that only the use of resin or m
> filtration of the tap water could bring the levels below 0.4 mg/
> levels compatible with adequate algae control? Would the plants 
> pick up measurable amounts of phosphates and successfully compet
> algae and cyanobacteria? 

My phosphate level is usually unmeasurable, but in the planted 
Discus tank I kept, that was difficult to acheive.  In that tank, 
I found that I was OK as long as I kept the phosphate level below 
.5ppm.  It depends to a large extent on how much light you have on 
the tnak how much phosphate you can get away with.
 
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Subject: extracting Malaysian trumpets

> So, I want to replace the gravel with a sand/laterite mix, and I
> take the Malaysian trumpet snails that are currently in the tank
> new tank with the other living contents.  How can I get them out
> gravel?  I have an idea which is to place the gravel in a bucket
> enough Miracle-Gro to bring the nitrates up to about 60ppm, thus
> the snails up where I can get at them.  This doesn't sound parti
> elegant, and I was wondering if anyone had any better ideas.

You don't need that many to reseed the new tank.  Pick out a dozen 
and throw them in.  You'll have plenty in no time.

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Subject: List vs. newsgroup (again)
 
> My policy is going to be to post to both (assuming that the 
> administrative chores are still being done for the list).  I wil
> probably place more emphasis on the list responses to my questio
> on the quality of information I receive here as opposed to the q
> information I typically see on the newsgroups.

This is one of the things that always bugged me about the 
newsgroups, and would keep me from reading both the list and the 
newsgroup.  I really _hate_ having to read throuhg double 
postings.

I know you're not trying to cause trouble, Tom, and I don't know 
what the solution is.  I just know I hate it. :-(

 ------------------------------

Karen Randall
Aquatic Gardeners Assoc.
Boston, MA