Re: Peat Filtration

[IDMiamiBob@aol.com]

In a message dated 11/19/00 1:42:36 AM Mountain Standard Time, 
festae00@yahoo.com writes:

> Pretty much what's happening is no matter how much peat I bag up and
>  place in the AQ300 on my 90g, nothing seems to happen.  However, soaking
>  the peat I have in water yields a pH of roughly 4.0! 

I think the key here is "bagging up".  I'm not sure what an AQ300 is, but I'm 
assuming it's a filter of some sort (I'm a sponge and UGF kind of guy.  Ask 
me what a hydro-sponge is and that I can handle.).  It's been my experience 
that when peat is placed in a nylon stocking or bag, the water doesn't flow 
through it.  If there's some way to just lay the peat in it and then put some 
kind of screen over the outlet end of the chamber, I think you will get much 
better results.  I use old-fashioned box filters in my smaller tanks.  There 
is a volume-ratio issue as you suggested.  Depending on how hard your water 
is, it may take HUGE amounts of peat.  Then it becomes necessary to do an RO 
or DI solution before the peat.

Perhaps you can get a 55 gallon barrel somewhere, dump the entire 40-lb bale 
of sphagnum into it, then top it off with water, and stick an aistone in the 
bottom. Then you wait a week, and start using this water for water changes 
until you get water parameters you want.  Keep topping it off until the peat 
becomes ineffective and then replace the peat.

Bob Dixon
Cichlid Trader List Administrator       º o
http://cichlidtrader.listbot.com               0
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