A few newb questions...

[onesic1]

Hey guys i was wondering if you could shed some light on some things that have me concerned...

First of all, Activated Carbon. Is this good? Bad? for your discus tank? Is it unnessecary? It is just supposed to make the water crystal clear isnt it?

And secondly i am starting to notice a fair bit of hair algea latching onto my plants... Is this bad for the fish in anyway? How do i go about removing it? Treating it?

Thanks for your advice :D

[DR.V]

Activated carbon is good to remove medication at the end of treatment. It also can absorb harmfull stuff from the water, but must be replace regularly.

It also can help to make the water crystal clear.

Algae problem? How long do you have your lights on? Should be 8 hours daily.

HTH

[Suc_Sid]

G'day onesic1,

In my opinion, activated carbon is unnecessary in a discus tank unless you want to remove medications. It is normally used to remove any "discolouration" of the water, however, with discus, i think you'll find you do more water changes and larger volume water changes than with normal fish, and hence, this renders the activated carbon obsolete.

Furthermore, i've heard some people argue it may cause or contribute to Hole in the Head syndrome - i've have had no experience one way or the other, so don't take this as being even remotely accurate. I'd be pleased to hear other people's opinions on this.

With respect to your algae problems, it could be due to the new tank needing to cycle fully or too much phosphate or nitrate(?). Usually you can just remove the algae, it won't cause any concern to your fish. If it gets persistent, add more plants and use some fertilizer such as Seachem Flurish Excel - the aim being to have more plants to soak up excess phosphates and nitrates and use the Excel (which is like liquid CO2) to boost the plant growth.

Finally, as per Dr V, check your lighting. 8 hours is spot on - further, older lights aid in the growth of algae (older being 12 months or more). Try to replace your fluros every year.

Hope it helps

[flaggy]

Hi - depending on the reasons why you are considering carbon, perhaps Seachem Purigen is a good alternative. It polishes water extremely well, does not remove trace elements, meant to target organic waste in particular thus helping with nitrate control, and can be regenerated over and over again...