Water discolouration

[Everlasting]

I've noticed this a bit ever since I set the tank up but it's becoming more pronounced. The water has a slightly yellow/brown discolouration to it. It's noticeable when you look at the tank but it's more noticeable when I do my weekly water changes.

I have a very old piece of driftwood in the tank. It was a piece originally purchased at a fish store and it was intended for aquarium use. My dad purchased it for his aquarium 20+ years ago, and only used it briefly. It has for the last 18+ years sat at his house. Could the colour be leeching off the wood and into the water?

The only other thing I'm thinking could be the cause is my sand substrate. I'm using black tahitian moon sand, and i thought I cleaned it thoroughly. i cleaned each bucket full until the water ran clear, but is it possible that this wasn't enough and some colour is coming off of it? When I first began cleaning it, the water ran jet black, so it did give alot of colour.

Or could it be something else entirely? I use all silk plants and the only other decoration I have in the tank are decorative stones. All my ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH readings are as they should be and all the fish appear to fine.

 

[FishCrazyBenBOMB]

It's the driftwood for sure. It's just tanness from the driftwood, it's nothing to be worried about. A lot of fish actually like it better since it mimics their natural habbitat.

Before you added DW into a tank your suppose to boil it in hot water to get that tan color out of the DW, i'm guessing you didn't know that lol.

If you want, you can take the DW out and boil it just to get the rest of the tan out of it, then put it back in. If you don't wanat the tan in the water, just do large water changes everydad until it appears clear.

 

[Everlasting]

It's the driftwood for sure. It's just tanness from the driftwood, it's nothing to be worried about. A lot of fish actually like it better since it mimics their natural habbitat.

Before you added DW into a tank your suppose to boil it in hot water to get that tan color out of the DW, i'm guessing you didn't know that lol.

If you want, you can take the DW out and boil it just to get the rest of the tan out of it, then put it back in. If you don't wanat the tan in the water, just do large water changes everydad until it appears clear.

I know you were suppoed to do that but I assumed because it had been used previously that this didn't have to be done a second time? Apparently i was wrong!

 

[FishCrazyBenBOMB]

There will always been tanness in DW, so like I said, if you want just remove it and boil it again. If you don't want to remove it, just make sure to do a lot of large water changes to get rid of the color.

 

[Everlasting]

Alright, thanks so much!!

 

[FishCrazyBenBOMB]

No prob. anytime.

 

[CaptainAhab]

Replacing/bulking up on your carbon will also remove the tannins from your water column