Sphagnum Peat Moss

[yorky]

Hi all,
I need information on where to buy the above.
I believe its sold in nurseries but most only carry the Horti Peat Moss.

Its good for lowering ph and softening water.. and very economical.

[stormhawk]

Hi Yorky,

Sphagnum peat moss is available locally but more in a dried moss-like form. It would better to use the Horti Peat Moss. Easy to handle. Another type of peat is coconut fiber peat, which we killie guys refer to as cocopeat. Also easy to handle but it does not acidify water as fast as the peat moss.

However if you still want to try the sphagnum peat moss you can find them at nurseries. They're a pale yellow colour, much like dried mosses. Also sold under Horti brand if I remember correctly. They tend to float alot.

[Wackytpt]

Hi Yorky,

Sphagnum peat moss is available locally but more in a dried moss-like form. It would better to use the Horti Peat Moss. Easy to handle. Another type of peat is coconut fiber peat, which we killie guys refer to as cocopeat. Also easy to handle but it does not acidify water as fast as the peat moss.

However if you still want to try the sphagnum peat moss you can find them at nurseries. They're a pale yellow colour, much like dried mosses. Also sold under Horti brand if I remember correctly. They tend to float alot.

stormhawk, then those dark brown are coco peat ah?

[stormhawk]

Which dark brown type? Horti Peat Moss is usually quite dark colour with alot of sediment, especially bits of minerals added in since its meant for plants.

Cocopeat tends to look a little more like a lighter shade of brown. However it has alot of fibres trapped in the bricks and it expands when it has absorbed water. I use this at home for breeding my annual killies.

As for sphagnum moss, its a pale yellow colour much like dried moss which I stated earlier.

[yorky]

Hi Stormhawk, thanks for the information.
The reason why I am looking for Sphagnum Peat Moss is that it is able to acidify and soften the water effectively.
Does Horti Peat Moss have the same effect and most importantly, safe for fishes?

[stormhawk]

Horti Peat Moss works very much in the same way, but you'll have to either boil or microwave it first to make it safe for the fishes. The problem with Horti Peat Moss is that it contains small amounts of minerals meant for plants, so you'll probably have to sift through the peat after every boiling to remove all of the unwanted items.

It would be more advisable to rely on "ketapang" leaves or aquarium-grade peat moss like Sera's peat pellets or Eheim's Ehfitorf if safety is of paramount concern to you. I've used both coco-peat and horti peat moss with my killies and have no problems but your mileage may vary.