Mopani wood questions

[SadSoyBeans]

Hi, im going to do a rescape for my 29g, it will be planted and everything. At my lfs there is a sale going on for a bit on some decent sized mopani wood. Do any of you guys have some tips for scaping with it? I havent really used it before.

 

[TMaier]

I have several pieces. Lots of tannins! To keep my water clean I usually boil it for a bit. And then soak it in old tank water. I’ll change the water weekly for a month. Usually by than the worst of it is over.

 

[SadSoyBeans]

Arent tannins good for tropical fish? Maybe not the giant amount that they release in the begining but ive heard that they are.

 

[TMaier]

Some fish they are good. But I raise snails and the tannins can lower the PH and impact snail shell strength.

 

[Fresh2o]

Yes, tannins can provide benefits including lower pH, reduced metal concentrations, anti-fungal properties.
https://tanninaquatics.com/blogs/t...hat-are-the-benefits-of-a-blackwater-aquarium

 

[SadSoyBeans]

Okay thanks guys.

 

[SadSoyBeans]

I guess that raises another question, would blue velvet shrimp be okay in a black water aqaurium?

 

[SadSoyBeans]

Im planning on adding those

 

[Fresh2o]

The shrimp should be fine in that setup. I would monitor the pH, KH, and GH.
I have a blackwater setup and the pH is pretty stable at 7.2 (tap is about 7.4). No snails except for a single Amano. However, the snails (primarily ramshorn) are doing really well. The new shell growth is a nice tortoise shell color as opposed to a crusty white color (that is when they were in a high tech planted tank).

 

[SadSoyBeans]

Okay thanks