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  1. Ben Rhau

    Can I make blackwater using my tap water?

    I don't think there's enough of a difference between the source water and your tank water to see a big change in pH. My guess is that the leaves and wood add some buffering capacity. I've posted about this several times. I don't think it's possible. Great, maybe the pH itself doesn't matter so...
  2. Ben Rhau

    Can I make blackwater using my tap water?

    At that rate, It would take 10 - 15 water changes to replace 90% of your water. Since there is such small difference between your tank water and the peat water, I think you can either do larger water changes, or daily 20% changes for 8 or 9 days straight (or until you see a difference). I...
  3. Ben Rhau

    Can I make blackwater using my tap water?

    How big are the water changes, and how often?
  4. Ben Rhau

    Can I make blackwater using my tap water?

    I kept my RO water at room temp, and given the needs of my fish and the size of the water changes, it never changed the tank temp by more than 2 or 3 degrees.
  5. Ben Rhau

    Stocking a 75 gallon

    Depending on the species, some will not breed in hard water. However, if the water conditions are such that they're not breeding, that's not ideal for maintaining health. If you put males and females together in healthy conditions, you can't stop them from breeding. If you want to avoid that...
  6. Ben Rhau

    Can I make blackwater using my tap water?

    A <column design> is the most effective, because the fraction collected at the bottom doesn't mix with the source water, so it's not equilibrating. That obviously takes some time and effort, so what Mike suggests (forcing water through the peat) is another good solution. In my experience, it...
  7. Ben Rhau

    Newbie questions

    Yes, these are the ones I've used. The reason I suggest boiling is that the leaves persist and don't stain the water much. I'd like to get things moving a little faster by breaking them down a little first.
  8. Ben Rhau

    Can I make blackwater using my tap water?

    The Sera pellets are not a bad option, because you can put them in a bag. Likely expensive, though, for what it is. With loose sphagnum, I'm not sure how people deal with it for large tanks. I made a small peat cannon (basically like a giant coffee pourover using an inverted gallon jug) but I...
  9. Ben Rhau

    Newbie questions

    Yes, and in my experience they take a very long time to break down. Maybe boil them first.
  10. Ben Rhau

    Fin rot or spawning damage?

    Fins can be delicate, particularly the thin extensions. Probably just wear and tear. It grows back.
  11. Ben Rhau

    Can I make blackwater using my tap water?

    Phosphate buffers combine a weak base with its conjugate acid. They will definitely increase the conductivity of your water, and as such, have no practical purpose when reducing pH in aquariums. You don't need to buy API products. Can you find something on Amazon or an online lab supply store...
  12. Ben Rhau

    Macmasteri in Metaframe tank

    I’ve never found glassworms for sale near me, and definitely have never seen black mosquito larvae listed frozen in the States. Only the kind the sell in liquid in jars.
  13. Ben Rhau

    D24 How to improve Color?

    People have said the same for wild caught borellii, of their colors being a lot less vivid the longer they're kept in captivity. Mac is correct that some individual specimens just have more color than others, particularly when you're talking about specific patterns on the face. That said, a...
  14. Ben Rhau

    Blackwater tank with leaf litter -> Cyano bacteria

    My guess is that these mystery products are antibiotics (perhaps not disclosed?) or flocculants.
  15. Ben Rhau

    Blackwater tank with leaf litter -> Cyano bacteria

    I'm not sure if anyone can give you an answer with certainty, but it could also be that the tanks where you have a leaf litter bed have other properties that are ideal for cyanobacteria. For example, tanks that are optimized for heavy plant growth and/or more flow are more likely to be in...
  16. Ben Rhau

    Blackwater tank with leaf litter -> Cyano bacteria

    That’s because the conditions are still ideal for it to continue growing. You could choose to dose nutrients minimally so that the plants would always deplete them. I understand you don’t want to do that, in which case your only other option is to black out for a few days and then significantly...
  17. Ben Rhau

    Blackwater tank with leaf litter -> Cyano bacteria

    I agree with all of this except to be careful about what is meant by "competition." It's not competition for nutrients. Algae and bacteria can survive on almost nothing compared to plants, so you can't simultaneously starve them out and expect to grow plants. However, high light relative to...
  18. Ben Rhau

    Can I make blackwater using my tap water?

    Haha, I can’t help you with the “real scientist” bit. :) I understand this is happening on the molecular level, but in aggregate I don’t recall seeing a big conductivity change before and after. Possibly went down slightly, but the difference was not far from the margin of error. Perhaps enough...
  19. Ben Rhau

    Can I make blackwater using my tap water?

    Yes, I will add that conductivity did not appreciably change, though I suppose it’s possible that GH makes a difference. There were also dissolved organics released to the water.
  20. Ben Rhau

    Can I make blackwater using my tap water?

    Hm, maybe not for the same reasons... It sounds like you're asking whether the compounds that cause the coloring effect precipitate out of solution at acidic pH. If we're talking about humic and fulvic acids, we know that they're soluble enough to stain acidic blackwater so darkly that you...
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