Re: Peat

[daktari@earthlink.net]

Doug Brown wrote:
> 
> >With the addition of peat, will it lower the PH and the softness? Is there
> >a point
> >where the water is too soft for Dwarfs?
> 
> Well, I'm new to apistos but not peat moss.
> 
> First off, FYI many plant people are avoiding peat moss these days as it is
> mined from environmentally sensitive areas.
> 
> pH - Peat moss contains fulvic and humic acids (organic acids, also called
> tannins) which are nitrogen-containing organic acids. The breakdown of
> these acids provides nitrogen, hence peat is somewhat useful as a
> fertilizer. The formation of acids in peat can also deplete the oxygen in a
> contained area such as a bog. This breakdown will of course also occur in a
> fish tank, but providing the peat with more oxygen will provide more acid
> formation. Filtering water through a lot of peat will eventually result in
> a pH of 3.5-4.5.
> 
> Softness - The carbonyl groups in the acids can bind cations, and it has
> even been proposed to use giant ion exchange columns of peat to treat waste
> water and remove heavy metals. Peat can then somewhat soften water, but it
> takes a large amount to have a noticeable impact on the hardness of typical
> tap water.
> 
> I typically add several tablespoons of sphagnum peat to my filters (for the
> appropriate fish). My tap water measures out at pH=5.5, DH=10. If I measure
> before and about 3 days after adding peat, there is pretty much no change
> in pH (maybe -0.1 units) or hardness (maybe -1 degrees), but the water gets
> nice and brown. If you have soft water to start with I'd think peat could
> be effective at conditioning it to typical apisto conditions.
> 
> -Doug Brown
> debrown@kodak.com
> 
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------
The  amount of Nitrogen present in peat is  normally very small, too
small to be of value  as a fertilizer. The  peat is formed as the
result of  anaerobic conditions, not the other way around. The decrease
in pH in peat filtered water is  almost completely due to leaching of
existing tannins from the peat.