ADA Amazonia slightly hazy

[pringle]

Hi All,

I do believe that ADA substrate is the best money can buy in the current market. I have my 3 foot (about 170L) aquascape setup as follows;

- ADA amazonia
- Eheim 2236
- 8X39W T5s
- CO2 injection (just less than 1 bps)

pH is about 6. Ammonia and nitrite 0; NItrate about 10.

However, the water is slightly hazy. I am not getting the crystal clear water I thought I was going to get. Is my filter not effective enough? (The 2236s are rated for 300L tanks - 600L/hr) I do have a couple of corrys in my tank and they do like to slightly dig into the substrate, but it should not cause be the cause of this right?

I have redsea substrate in my other nano tank (about 27L), runnning an Eheim 2213, and the water there is clearer than anything I have seen before.

The haziness is not really bugging me - all the plants are thriving and photosynthesising like there's no tomorrow, and the fishes seem to be doing quite well (apart from the CO2 incident I had yesterday - I should start another topic for this). But I just wonder if other people have had this problem?

[taksan]

Slightly??????

ROTFLMAO !!!!!!!

[pringle]

Sorry I'm quite new to forums What does the abbreviation mean?

Anyone have any advises?

[Proteus]

ADA substrate is far from the best substrate available in the market. Yes it is good, but it does have some drawbacks as well. Most notably the clarity of the water.

Several members here have used it, and after weeks and months of the water staying cloudy they replaced the substrate with another type. On the other hand some members have used it and had no issues (poor quality control maybe - this can be confirmed on several large planted aquarium sites in the U.S. relating to bad batches of ADA substrate, mainly the Amazonia variety).

[Proteus]

Here are some examples of such...

From Aquatic Plant Central (ADA Amazonia)
http://www.discusforums.com/forum/files/ada_contaminated.jpg

Taken by Xtreme (ADA Africana)
http://www.discusforums.com/forum/files/ada_africana.jpg

As per previous, many tanks have been set up without issues.

However, I am yet to read about the same issue occurring with Dupla, Red Sea, Seachem or CaribSea substrates...

[pringle]

So Proteus, You are saying its mainly due to a bad batch of aquasoil? I wonder if they have a warranty for it. I've set it up for a month in this tank.

My tank is not as cloudy as those pictures you have posted Proteus, but nevertheless still quite hazy. Thise are really bad. I would be jumping up and down with those results.

The aquasoil is softer than the Red Sea flora base (ie. it breaks down into mud easier than the Flora base). Has anyone compared the softness of the 2 before?

But there has been too many success stories with the aquasoil to lead me to believe that I have done something wrong, but I don't know what is wrong. There are hundreds of success stories in the Planted tank forum and even on this forum.

I'll call my supplier and see what is going on.

[Proteus]

FYI Red Sea Flora Base and ADA Malaya are the same product (both packed in Japan)

[pringle]

Hi Proteus,

I've gone to my supplier and he does not know anything about why the batch of Amazonia soil being cloudy. He has actually used some of the soil in a small tank in his shop, and the water there is very clear.

He ordered that ADA Amazonia in the same batch as mine. However, it is quite unlikely that they are produced in the same batch. I am trying to find a batch number around the ADA Amazonia packaging, but do not see any.

I'm not sure what else I should do.

And Proteus, wow, you sure know behind the scenes information. Its interesting to know that ADA Malaya and Flora base, are being made by the same company.

[apistodiscus]

you could have a bacterial bloom. This should disappear in a few days and has no connection to the type of soil you are using. They usually occurs in newly set up tanks.

8*39watts on a 170 l tank is a lot. That's almost 2W/L. If your planst are growing fine and good but I bet they would be doing just as well with 1W/l

[Proteus]

you could have a bacterial bloom. This should disappear in a few days and has no connection to the type of soil you are using. They usually occurs in newly set up tanks

In a new tank???

When a particular soil has had many reports of creating clouding in the past, I would say black is black, cant be anything else. An over-abundance of nutrients maybe...

[pringle]

Hi Apisto / Proteus,

I believe that I have got my nitrate levels down, which I think is the cause for my minor algae problem. Algae is very managable. I believe that slight algae is nothing unusual in newly established tanks (or have I been believing the wrong thing)

Nitrate is a constant 5 for my tank now. So I do not think the cloudiness is a result of algae bloom. The tank is quite established.

I use seachem liquid fertilisers, but have not added flourish into the tank to keep the nitrate down. But I do use Excel and a weekly dose of iron. So no over abundance of nutrients.

[pringle]

A picture of the slight haze.

[Proteus]

Try cutting back a bit on the lighting for a few days, see if that helps

[samir]

they look a bit like marijuana plants, that would explain the haze :P :lol: :lol:

[scott bowler]

samir if you have been smoking plants that look like that mate you are doing it wrong hehe could explain a few things though hehe

[TW]

Sorry you're having bad luck with the ADA. I have ADA in one of my tanks & it was clear straight from the fill. I used the extra powders & stuff that goes under the soil - I forget all their various names, but at least one of them was meant to help with clear water - so I don't know if that made the difference. Maybe I was just lucky - but so far I am loving this substrate.

These are old pictures taken last May on tank set up.

This one is straight after filling
http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l128/TankWatcher/90L/140506.Fullshotwithwater.jpg
and this one was 24 hours later
http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l128/TankWatcher/90L/ADAsubstrateafter24hrs.jpg

I also know that you need to be really careful & gentle with the water filling process with ADA. My filling process was to initially add sufficient water to dampen the ADA soil. Plant the plants. Then very gently place saucers & plates on the plant & substrate & then gently fill.

I think if your ADA got stirred up at all in the filling, that may have contributed to the problem. Also, I've been told you don't gravel vac the ADA either, just swish your vac around just above the soil. Maybe this is also because gravel vac would cause the haze.

I packed the tank chock-a-bloc full of fast growers to help the tank establish & suck up the extra nutrients - but I see you have already done that too.

Sorry, these aren't really solutions - but more suggestions as to why it might have happened.

Good luck with your tank.

[Ben]

would bio chem zorb help?

[apistodiscus]

@Proteus

a bacterial bloom is most likely in a new tank. I have seen some really bad ones. The water looked the same shade as that waful white/grey you get in fat free milk.

@Pringle

get some Filter Aid, this will clog the fine particles together and they will taken our by your filter. The Amquel stuff works a treat.

[pringle]

No Samir, tried smoking the Toninas, but they are no good....hahaha......

I have cut back on the light for now (6X38w, from 8). I dare not reduce more. I get slightly paranoid with insufficient lighting with an algae bloom I experienced in another tank. The plants didn't absorb the nutrients quickly enough.

You think bio chem zorb is worth a try Ben?

I was told the other thing that could cause such haziness is an influx in beneficial bacteria, but It's been hazy ever since I set the tank up.

[apistodiscus]

my point exactly. Bacterial bloom. It won't do your fish any harm and reducing the amount of light won't make a difference whatsoever. It's not phytoplankton.

[TW]

bacterial bloom is most likely in a new tank Yeah, that's when I've been told bacterial bloom is most likely to occur too - in a new tank. On another planted forum I spend a bit of time on, that is repeated quite often. So far I've escaped experiencing this. I've never tried bio chem zorb, so can't comment on that product. Why not try the The Amquel stuff recommneded by apistodiscus. I've also seen (but not tried) ADA advertise a product called Clear Dash. No doubt it'll be pricey - but it claims to be "highly effective in clearing cloudiness & green water".

Good luck with your tank. BTW, I forgot to mention it looks very nice, despite the slight haze.

[Proteus]

ADA advertise a product called Clear Dash

Dont waste your money on fancy water, try something that is proven to work, Seachem Clarity works and you dont need to sell a kidney to buy it.

[TW]

I expect that's very true. As I said it's bound to be pricey - and I haven't even tried it.

[pringle]

Thanks apisto.

As I have said, I am not really bothered by this slight haze. I would probably wait it out. The bacteria should settle down after a while right. I know that there are some safe chemicals out there like amquel, but I prefer to just wait it out. How long do you think I have to wait before it clears up.

Damn this must be like the longest lasting bacterial bloom ever isn't it? (like 2 months now, since filling in water)

[Merrilyn]

Have you got a UV on that tank pringle?

[apistodiscus]

@pringle
two months sounds likje the longest bacterial bloom ever. Interpet filter aid works as well. All these treatments are quite cheap. In Ireland you get a bottle that will last you several times over for about 8Euro

[pringle]

No I've never used UV on any of my tanks Merrilyn. Is it a good idea to use it on a 2 month old tank? I might overdo it. It's only since about 3 weeks ago that I got nitrate levels stable at 5.

I have heard good things about these floculant agents Apisto, but I am still quite sceptical to using it. Is it really really safe? I sort of works like a detergent doesn't it?

[apistodiscus]

Hi Pringle,
sorry for the late reply. I was busy setting up a friend's fishroom over the last week or so and haven't had the time to post on the forum.

Anyoldhow, the all products on the market that will clear your water are absolutely harmless to fish. They will bind small particles together which makes it easier for the filter to retain them