My Canadian Peat moss Filter.

This thread is a continuation of another thread here.

OK. I got some Canadian Peat Moss from a local nursery. R30 for the bag. Took an unused external filter, filled silk stockings pieces and placed it in both trays. Took a 70lt bucket and hooked the filter up to that. A picture says a thousand words, so here it is.











Thanks, @Marco

 

Its a pleasure. Of course you will have to make peace with the tea coloured water, and remember to NOT filter the water through charcoal after the peat as this will reverse and remove the peat effect.

 

Nooo! No way to filter it out?

 

if i may, why are you going with this form of filtration? what are the pro's and cons?

 

Vez, it is not a form of filtration. It is a form of water preparation. See the previous thread, linked in the first post.

 

I was considering adding charcoal in the same filter, as I do not want to WC with tea! hehe...

 

oh i see, and i didnt she the fisrt thread.....

 

Nope...no way to filter it out. Dont stress about it man. The fish will love it and be healthier and happier.

 

hehe, dont know if I will be able to get used to it. I just loove crystal clear water. How about mechanical filtration?

oh, I see...

 

From my experience and reading, adding carbon in addition to peat moss in a filter, will only remove the tannins (while having no effect on the pH / hardness).

On this, I have used Sera Peat Moss granules (@JungleAquatics) - one bag (foot stocking) in my 500L has lowered my hardness and allowed my pH to drop 'naturally' (I agree with Marco that unless you are an expert - stay away from the pool acids and buffers!). Once the pH is achieved (I aim for 6.5), then I take it out for a couple of weeks.

 

Richard, I do not understand. Do you do the peat filtration in the tank, with your filter system, or what do you take out? When and where do you use the AC?

 

just a side question here dont mean to hijack but does tanniin stained water affect light penetration,i'm considering a blackwater tank.

 

Yes it will affect light penetration

 

Yes - the stocking with the peat granules in it is inside my filter (after filter floss, before charcoal) - you have to keep an eye on it because it can rot if you just leave it, hence why once goal pH has been reached, I take it out.

I also want to warn that I have used this with a large tank (500L) - so as I do bi-weekly (20%) water changes, it (the peat) slowly softens my water and keeps my pH around the 6.5 level. Doing massive water changes would then cause pH and water conditions to change drastically, so then I would advise using the peat in a water bucket / tank (as Marco has done above) - else your water conditions will fluctuate too much!

 

Hi guys I have done a similar thing although mines taking a lot longer I have a corner filter in my tank with filter wool top and bottom with the moss in between the wool this process takes a lot longer but also works...

 

hehe, I did it silly! Marco's instructions.
OK, so I can add charcoal to the system above and prepare my water in advance. Then, when happy with the parameters, do the wc. I however think the pH will bounce back in time, as Marco said, the peat is then filtered out chemically. Nothing stopping me from experimenting, as it is in a bucket.

Thanks Richard.

Reminds me, nearly 24 hours now. Time for a parameter check.

 

One other thing some of the guys on the forum mentioned using Perigen (spelling) to get rid of the brown colour I stand to be corrected but this also increases the PH?

 

Purigen is also a chemical filter, such as AC. I do not think it alter pH.

Peat moss water parameters after 1 day.
pH = 6.5
gH = 7d
kH = 2d

pH reduction from 8 to 6.5 is 1.5pH down.
gH reduction from 11d to 7d is 4d down.
kH reduction from 6d to 2d is 4d down.

 

Richardnuss is correct the carbon will not counter the effects of the peat. Carbon absorbs tanins & chemical impurities.

 

Quote - "It is important to filter the water first over charcoal and only then over Peat moss, because otherwise the charcoal would remove humic acids and other substances given off by the peat moss into the water"

From: Discus Health. Dieter Untergasser; 1991;p158.