Oak Leaves

[Mike C]

I have read on the forum that oak leaves are good for both lowering pH and atmosphere for the apistos. I got some today at the park, and of course they were green. My plan is to dry them out in the oven for 30 minutes at 150F and then briefly boil to kill any critters. Questions:

Does the plan sound feasible or do the leaves need to be naturally dried out (autumn leaves) for the tanins to be effective?

How many leaves do people put in a 10 or 15 gallon tank at a time?

How long do you keep them in the tank? Until decomposing and falling apart?

Do the leaves appreciably lower the pH? Mine is at 6.8, w/ KH of 2

thanks, Mike

 

[Randall]

Oak Leaves

Dear Mike,

Oak leaves can make for a pleasant Apisto environment when used as leaf litter, only you need to used dried dead leaves that have been thoroughly rinsed. Live leaves, even if baked, contain tree sap that can kill your fish.

You can use as many leaves as you like for as long as you like, but a lot of leaves will have a softening and acidifying effect on your water.

Good luck.

Randall Kohn

 

[cootwarm]

Do oak leaves have the same benefit if (with undergravel filter) they are crushed and covered with a layer of gravel. I'm thinking that the undergravel filter would facilitate the chemistry, but would the leaves quickly decompose and lose the effectiveness?

How does oak leaves compare to peat, used in the above manner as well as in general?

Michael

 

[Neil]

I think that they would deteriorate too quickly and not perform quite as good of a job as peat. But the general benefits are the same. The whole reason to use leaves is not only for the tannins (and their related effect on water and the fish) but also for the dual purpose of cover and breeding surfaces. Grinding them up and burying them would defeat that. Use peat. It will give you more of your desired effect.
Neil