Filtering peat to lower pH

[Cacatuoides]

Hi folks,

Just to share with you something I experimented over the weekend...

I was having ph of 6.6 for my apisto tanks and wanted to bring down the ph lower in order to try get the apistos to breed....

Even though I place a bag of sera peat (in a filter bag) in my tank, the ph only drops by 0.2 max....

So I tried something: I pour the peat into a box bubble filter and then cover it with a piece of wool on the top....set it in the tank and bubble it gently...

After a day or two, the ph reading is 4.5 now!! But my male bitaeniata is forever chasing the female!!

[bossteck]

Another way is to place the bag near the filter outlet.
Peat is basically slow release, so if you want to hasten the process, you need to provide some form of agitation.

[Cacatuoides]

Thats what I thought so too, thats why I place it in the box-type bubble filter to make the process faster a little....now that the ph is rather low, I've decrease the speed of the bubbles...

[leeruisheng]

Yeah, I also place my peat tied in mesh near the filter input and the water from the output will flow down against the mesh. I'm using the overhang filter.

[valice]

How's the colouration like? Becomes very very yellow?
Also, isn't it better that the release is slow? So that the pH drop is not drastic?

[Cacatuoides]

Its not that yellow...only slightly yellow, the rate of bubbling is kept at a regular speed, not too fast so that the ph decreases slowly.....if the ph suddenly drops very fast, I think my apistos will be in heaven by now!

I'm using this method as i'm only using a sponge filter which provides very little water agitation that the release of the peat effect is too slow....

[leeruisheng]

As for my method, the pH will stabilize around one week plus. Think still quite gradual. Mine quite yellowish, think due to black water extract. Not very nice when it comes to taking photos in yellow tint.

[valice]

the yellow tint just use photoshop to remove lor...
what peat you using? I just bought the mr aqua one... not sure if it is as good as the sera one... but cheaper... hee...

[leeruisheng]

Usually hobbyist will place peat as one of the filter medium in their canister filter, thus it's the same style adopted by Eman. Think their pH will drop fast over few days. The fact that peat loses its reducing pH power after 4 months, I decided to just place them in mesh straight into tank, This also facilitate changing. Less hassle if you don't mind the sight of mesh in your breeding tank.

Cheers

[leeruisheng]

Sera super peat. Half contents bought my pH down to 5.4 for my 2ft tank and the strength lasted for about 4 months. Now pH around 5.66. Regarding the photoshop, wouldn't the yellow tint also affect the colours of the Apistos?

Cheers

[valice]

But it will also be good to do a cleaning of the filter after 4 months... Just to wash off some of the stuff in the media...

[leeruisheng]

Oh yeah now that you've mention about cleaning, when was the last time I cleaned it? But that's my crs tank. For Apisto's tank, the overhang filter got no place for stuffing the mesh in the filter column. So no choice.

[clouser_minnow]

so after your pH reaches the desired level, do you remove the peat?

[bossteck]

I think should remove. Until the next water change.
Or, if space and equipment allows, use the same method, but in a container of water in preparation for next water change.

[Cacatuoides]

For me, I've off the bubbling and leave it in the tank now....lazy to remove it...