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Just wondering about adding last years fallen oak leaves to the tank, and want to know if i should boil them first, and if they drop the hardness and pH, or are they just for looks? Thanks.
There's been quite a bit of dicussion on this so far. Do a search for 'oak leaves' and you should find all you want to know. In short, you can use them, and it is advisable to boil them first. Good luck!
Yes you can use them. I have them in all of my tanks. Instead of boiling though, which I believe make them softer, I just place them in a bucket, add the water conditioner and also a mutliple medical treatment to sterilise them. I let them sit in the bucket for 7 days, then rinse and use. This would be another option.
Have a good day cheers jk :biggrin:
If you boil them all the tanin will leech to the boling water. You rather want it inside your aquarium water. Make sure you collect the leaves from a place which is pollution free and all should be fine after just washing them under tap water
I simply boil them in a bucket of hot water for an hour or two until they sink..Then add them to my tanks, the Apistogramma species love to hide under them.
Yes no problem at all just adding them to the tank... I too feel that boiling the leaves is unnecessary and as Beleg says you want the tannic acids leaching into your aquaria rather than the pot.
I do however have oak leaves and alder cones soaking at all times and use the oak/alder extract to add tannic and humine acids into my aquaria for species that require extremely acidic/blackwater conditions.
Mark...