Hello All! + *65 Gallon Project*

[Realevil1]

Finally got the drift wood to settle on the bottom, now running a C-220 Marineland, as well as my Penguin 350 (soon to be toast by the sounds of it).. but still looking for another canister

Ammonia is gone but there is a slight sign of nitrites and nitrates left.

PH is now 7-7.1ish

there is a bit of tannin in the water which i like, but with the carbon in the 350 filter the water is pretty clear, and will probably get even clearer.

Edited January 13, 2014 by Realevil1

[kukayla]

I am fairly new to aquariums. What is the purpose of the oak leaves? Similar to almond leafs?

[Realevil1]

Because I chose to do a biotope, I wanted it to look as natrual as possible. So not only does it give a more natural realistic feel, Oak and Almond leaves also release tannins into the water which is (in my opinion) essential to amazon/south american cichlid tanks.

http://naturalaquariums.com/bb/index.php?topic=2785.0

https://www.google.ca/search?q=the+significance+of+tannins+in+tropical+animal+production&oq=the+importance+of+tannins+&aqs=chrome.2.69i57j0l3.8548j0j7&sourceid=chrome&espv=210&es_sm=93&ie=UTF-8#q=tannins+in+aquarium

[ckmullin]

Peat sacks in something like organza works well. I've done this method just experimenting. Organza is typically material used in wedding dresses however it is quite cheap for the qty we'd need. This can also be found at times at the local $1 stores, well for a buck.