how do i get the colour out of mopani?!

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andrewcoxon
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how do i get the colour out of mopani?!

Post by andrewcoxon »

its so frustrating, iv had the same problem before with other tanks so this time after speaking to the guy in my lfs i soaked the mopani for 3 days in cold water and everyday poured the coloured water away and re-filled, then on day 4 i soaked it in boiling water for a few hours and got loads of brown stuff out and then did it again. finally i thought i done it but 2 days later the water in my brand new beautiful tank is clean and clear but with a rather anoying brown tint. will this go with regular water changes or will it be here for every? plz help before i explode with rage!! :lol: :x
My Pleco's:
4 x L46
5 x L174
5 x L134
5 x L287
5 x L257
2 x L236
Mindy
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Post by Mindy »

Personally, I wouldn't worry about it. It's natural, the fish like it and it brings out their colours a bit. It's like home to the blackwater species! The best I can say is just be patient... I soaked mine in multiple fresh changes of hot water for days which does bring out loads of the yellow colour, but even so, when it finally went in the tank, it still coloured the water. Over time though, and with water changes, this becomes less strong. I have it in my 4ft tank and when you look in the tank, it looks clear. It's only when I siphon it off during a water change, and see it next to the new (clear) water that I realise it has a yellow tinge. I don't even notice it in the tank.

If it really, really bothers you though, you could try using carbon in your filter which will take it out, but you'll have to change the carbon quite often, which is an added expense. It's up to you how important it is...
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Post by Barbie »

*hands Andrew a deep breath* ;)

You won't make mopani stop leeching tannins. It does it for years, literally. You CAN add fresh carbon to your filter more often and it will keep it out of the tank. I actually find I prefer the look of the water with some of the tannins now, but it bugged me at one point also. The carbon definitely helps, but realize it will take quite a bit of it, changed regularly to completely negate the effect ;).

*edit, oops, Mindy and I were typing the message at the same time! At least we agreed on the cure ;)*

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andrewcoxon
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Post by andrewcoxon »

hehe thanks guys :lol:
My Pleco's:
4 x L46
5 x L174
5 x L134
5 x L287
5 x L257
2 x L236
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khblock
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Post by khblock »

Hey guys, here's a dumb question.

I thought its the tannins released from mopani wood that causes the chemical reaction to lower ph. If you use carbon to filter the tannins doesn't that negate its purpose to lower ph?

I use carbon to filter out meds, coloration, etc. that I don't want in a tank. I'm using discus buffer to lower my ph keeping it at 6.5.
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Post by Raul-7 »

khblock wrote:Hey guys, here's a dumb question.

I thought its the tannins released from mopani wood that causes the chemical reaction to lower ph. If you use carbon to filter the tannins doesn't that negate its purpose to lower ph?

I use carbon to filter out meds, coloration, etc. that I don't want in a tank. I'm using discus buffer to lower my ph keeping it at 6.5.
The tannins that are leached discolor the water, while the humic acid reduces the pH. I recently used carbon to remove all the tannins, yet it seemed like it didn't remove the humic acid as my kH was still at 2 (normal is 5).

Either the humic acid molecule is too big to get jammed into the carbon pores or my kH drop is due to other acids such as waste, etc.
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khblock
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Post by khblock »

The tannins that are leached discolor the water, while the humic acid reduces the pH. I recently used carbon to remove all the tannins, yet it seemed like it didn't remove the humic acid as my kH was still at 2 (normal is 5).

Either the humic acid molecule is too big to get jammed into the carbon pores or my kH drop is due to other acids such as waste, etc.
Thanks for the answer. I think I'll try carbon in my zebra tank.
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http://www.bestfriends.com
http://worldwildlifefund.org
http://www.oceanconservancy.org
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