No Bubbles!!!

To: Aquatic-Plants at actwin_com
Subject: No Bubbles!!!
From: krandall at world_std.com (Karen A Randall)
Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 08:02:25 -0500

Subject: No Bubbles!!!

<snip tank description>

> Query: I once had happy plants, bubbling all day long.  Then one
> added 15 tetras and they bubbled no more.  Green algae (beard on
> and slime on filter outlet) appeared.
> 
> Any thoughts on possible causes?
> 
> My thoughts:  I suspect PO4 are too high.  My Seachem test kit s
> that if they are too high it will give a false low reading.

I think that's entirely possible, particulary considering your 
very high light level.  It could be from the added fish load (15 
fish, even tetras, is a lot in a 10G tank) or it could be from the 
power sand.  I know from the ADA literature that this contains 
organics, and I know they say to expect algae in the early period 
of the tank.  That's why they suggest stocking the tank with large 
numbers of algae eating shrimp in the beginning.  How long was the 
tank running before the algae problems began?

I'm not at all sure that high phosphate levels would slow 
photosynthesis though, so there is probabl also a deficiency of 
some sort as well.

Karen Randall
Aquatic Gardeners Assoc.
Boston, MA