Driftwood leaching too much 'juice'

[cumzilla]

Any better way to stop/reduce the amount of tannins leaching from the driftwood? I had boiled, soaked for a couple weeks before introducing it to the tank, but it is still leaching for about a month now. Every week, i have to do >50% WC.

[Urban Aquaria]

Some driftwoods tend to rot longer and keep releasing tannins (especially the softer wood types that still flake off bits of bark and wood)... i've also kept some before which keep continuously staining the water for months and even years.

The best way to get the water clear is to use active carbon in your filter, that will adsorb the tannins. You'll need to keep changing out the carbon as it gets exhausted though.

There are other products you can try like Seachem Purigen which adsorbs dissolved organic compounds (ie. tannins), and it can be "recharged" periodically, instead of needing to buy new packs.

[cumzilla]

thanks UA, already planning to get purigen, i had read about the benefits of having it in the filter, but may have missed out on its ability to absorb tannins.

[jyn1989]

to add on, i would suggest purigen over activated carbon as it works WAY better for me. activated carbon wastes more space as u need quite alot of it to be effective. after purigen, my water is crystal clear

[cumzilla]

for activated carbons, is it better to get those pack in small bags? if so, how many bags do i need in a canister filter? purigen just get the 100ml one in bag will do rite? and for placement in the canister, the activated carbon will be placed above the activated carbon pad and then follow by purigen?

[Urban Aquaria]

for activated carbons, is it better to get those pack in small bags? if so, how many bags do i need in a canister filter? purigen just get the 100ml one in bag will do rite? and for placement in the canister, the activated carbon will be placed above the activated carbon pad and then follow by purigen?

It depends on your water volume and the level of tannins, generally the more volume of chemical filtration you use (ie. active carbon or purigen), the longer their adsorption lifespan.

Usually there will be recommended usage amounts based on water volume listed on the product packaging, so you could follow those for a start. Basically the more you use, the more effective the filtration.

Placement-wise, chemical filtration is best positioned at the final layer in the filter. They adsorb dissolved compounds, so for maximum efficiency, the water flowing though them should be free of dirt and particles.

Btw, if your filter already has a carbon pad in it, they usually only last for around 2 weeks, by which time you should discard it and replace with a new one. Same for active carbon packs. For Purigen just need to recharge it when it turns dark brown color.

[cumzilla]

It depends on your water volume and the level of tannins, generally the more volume of chemical filtration you use (ie. active carbon or purigen), the longer their adsorption lifespan.
...

Btw, if your filter already has a carbon pad in it, they usually only last for around 2 weeks, by which time you should discard it and replace with a new one. Same for active carbon packs. For Purigen just need to recharge it when it turns dark brown color.

100ml pack purigen stated in the package for 400L, more than enough...just dunno about the activated carbon, never see properly the package. Din know the carbon pad has to be replaced after 2 weeks, i reuse it after the 1st maintenace of the canister. Now, just before the outlet is the carbon pad followed by a white pad. So the arrangement will be white pad --> activated carbon ---> purigen ---> carbon pad ---> outlet?

[Urban Aquaria]

Yeah, a 100ml Purigen pack can treat quite alot of water, but its actual lifespan still depends on the amount of excess organic compounds in the water. Just have to try and see.

Carbon does tend to have a relatively short lifespan, but it is very aggressive at adsorbing everything during its working period so it can often generate quicker visible results. But do note that since carbon adsorbs everything indiscriminately, its possible some of the plant nutrients and fertilizers dosed may also be adsorbed too, so you might need to increase fertilizer dosage to compensate.

Purigen is designed to focus on adsorbing dissolved organic compounds, so has much less effect on chemical fertilizers, hence more suitable for planted tanks.

As for placement in canister filter, because the carbon pad is also made as a mechanical filter media too (it looks like the fine filter wool, just black in color right?), its better to place the carbon pack or purigen pack after the carbon pad.

[cumzilla]

ok, noted. Thanks again.

[fireblade]

to me, if want to use wood should be prepared to accept a bit of browning to the water during the initial stage.
after a while without you noticing, the brown tint will be gone...

By the way, how many of you recharge your purigen using bleach? do you remove the purigen from the bag or just bleach the bag also? or just simply throw the purigen away.

[Urban Aquaria]

I recharge my Purigen packs with bleach mix... just put the entire pack into a plastic cup with the 1:1 bleach/water mix for a day, make sure the purigen turn back to light beige color, then soak in dechlorinated water for another day (i usually add extra Seachem Prime just for sure), then can use again.

[fireblade]

thanks for the advice!