ketapang leaves for all blackwater fish?

[celticfish]

i use to put them in betta tanks when i was a kid.
i had atree outside my home so i had plenty!!
what i did then was what you wanted to do benny.
except i used the red leaves fresh.
but i don't leave them there till thy kingdom come.
i replaced them every two weeks.
as johnc said no smell if you keep the water moving.
smell will be there in stangnant water and if you leave them to rot w/o replacing them.

i am currently using them for my blue heckels.
i reckon it should work as an additive for all blackwater fishes.
the acidity and antibacterial properties of the sap help reduce infection on these fishes.
helps tetra mortality rates a lot!

[XnSdVd]

I'm agreeing with johnc. That and the leaves eventually decompose into liquid compounds anyway. What ever remains is essentially the same as goldfish poop. Which is never really a problem for us. Especially if you've got LOTS of snails

No, no smell.

[benny]

Thanks for all the comments.

Which is never really a problem for us. Especially if you've got LOTS of snails

So the snails can survive in such low pH and mop up the decomposing leaves?

Cheers,

[Johnc]

So the snails can survive in such low pH and mop up the decomposing leaves?

Oh, no problem at all! I have snails breeding in literally BLACKwater. I have more problem getting rid of them than keeping them alive.

But if you are breeding dwarfs, you may want to check if the species know how to deal with snails which poach eggs.

/John

[XnSdVd]

Trumpet snails seem the best choice, they keep out of sight during the day, and at night they come out looking for food. Though I have no idea where your fish'll lay their eggs.

Any yeah, there's something about living snails that protects them from the acid. Once they're dead their shells dissolve in a few days. So if you can, occasionally remove the larger snails to keep your KH low.

[Cacatuoides]

i have these leaves littering the floor of my 1.5 footer with my pair of rams breeding recently with more than 50 fries.....the ph does drop and gives a good darkish natural tone to the water....so far no signs of decomposing since more than 2 weeks of soaking.....i think it does induce a bit of breeding but still not sure cos my westies haven not breed yet despite so much leaves and dark dark water.....maybe experts can provide some advise??

cheers!

[pressure]

i think ketapang also buffers the water at about 6-6.5, the acidity is caused by the tannic acid and humic acid,...i used it for my aros, very very good

[pressure]

I'm actually think if creating an apisto tank using ketapang leaves litter as substrate. Anyone locally has tried that?

From what I heard, this will stink up the water and it will smell reall bad after a few days. Was advised to use commercial black water instead. I thought the leaf litter being a natural biotope will make the fish feel more comfortable.

Cheers,

i think you can overcome the smelly prob by having some sort of water "movement' , i think the smelly hydrogen sulphide is caused by anaerobic bacteria "eating" up the leaves

[sage08]

IS the ktp leaves good for planted tank as well? I've started putting some into my main tank which is planted and am monitoring the effect.

[Cacatuoides]

i've left some of these leaves in my breeding tank and after quite a while, the leaves breaks down into sort of powdery, making the water abit foggy, should we remove the leaves after a certain period of time?

[pressure]

i've left some of these leaves in my breeding tank and after quite a while, the leaves breaks down into sort of powdery, making the water abit foggy, should we remove the leaves after a certain period of time?

if you breeding tank is well "biologically" filtered, then no need as the BB will chew it up, if not...better remove ....my 2 cents...

[Goondoo]

IS the ktp leaves good for planted tank as well? I've started putting some into my main tank which is planted and am monitoring the effect.

The will reduce the lights reaching your plants to some extend definitely...