yellow water and driftwood

[xxmoorishmanxx]

i have put a piece of driftwood in a freshwate tank and it turned the water yellow, im not sure y. is it tanic acid? And is there a way to get rid of it.

 

[bungle]

I'm pretty sure it will dissipate over time. When setting up my tank, the driftwood turned the water a tea-ish color. Its now about three months later, and my water is clear.

 

[Madame_X]

i have put a piece of driftwood in a freshwate tank and it turned the water yellow, im not sure y. is it tanic acid? And is there a way to get rid of it.

It is indeed tannic acid (or tannins) leeching from the driftwood. It will soften your water a little so your PH can be affected if you already have pretty soft water.

Other than that, it won't hurt anything (in fact, some fish thrive in black water). But if you really want to get rid of the yellow color, activated carbon in your filter should take it right out.

 

[xxmoorishmanxx]

the tank is a species only tank and only has about 5 gallons of water (it's half land half water) so the filter we are using is a submersable and dosent usee that much carbon, would it be worth it to buy a filter bag and fill it with ac. keeping in mind too that it is still cyccling.

TIA

 

[Bearfan]

It would be easier to remove the driftwood and boil the tannins out of it, otherwise it will continue to leech.

 

[xxmoorishmanxx]

how long would i need to boil it

 

[Bearfan]

I would boil it (slow rolling boil, not a huge boil) for about an hour, change the water and repeat it. If the water comes up fairly clear, you're good to go.