# Water hyacinthe & water lettuce...from the pond to the t



## gregga (Jul 30, 2002)

A friend offered me a large quantity of water lettuce and water hyacinthe from his outdoor pond. Is there any drawback to adding these to my african cichlid tanks?


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## Aulonocara_Freak (May 19, 2011)

They might get eaten but if it's free TAKE IT!


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## dsouthworth (Sep 7, 2011)

Aulonocara_Freak said:


> They might get eaten but if it's free TAKE IT!


everything useful when it's free. i agree with this guy!


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## 748johnd (Jun 30, 2007)

Both require strong lighting and you will need at least two inches of open space between the water surface and the cover glass unless it is an uncovered tank. You will also want to disinfect the plants otherwise you may get critters you don't want.


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## gregga (Jul 30, 2002)

how do you disinfect plants?


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## Aulonocara_Freak (May 19, 2011)

Dip the plant's in *PURE* H2O2 for about 30 second's to 1 minute and it will kill snail egg's, bad bacteria, etc. T[/u]his is what I do when I find local aquatic plant's.


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## 748johnd (Jun 30, 2007)

You can also use alum, potassium permanganate or bleach. PM me if you want to go that route. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) works too. I never put plants in my tank without first disinfecting them. One time I both a very clean looking bunch of anacharis. I kept it in a plastic container for a couple of days before disinfecting it and I saw some kind of small red worm crawling around on the bottom of the container. Better there than in my tank.


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## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

Snails are a pretty certain fact with pond stuff. Be aware that any of the dips may have a bad effect on the plants. How much varies a lot, from minor leave browning to total death for the plant.


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## gregga (Jul 30, 2002)

thanks for all the feedback.....


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## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

I find I have a fair number of failures when using bleach on plants. Is the hydrogen peroxide less hazard to the plants? When you say "PURE" do you mean just straight or something really different? I'm looking for alternates to what I've done and can't find the potassium permananate so far.


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## Aulonocara_Freak (May 19, 2011)

PfunMo said:


> I find I have a fair number of failures when using bleach on plants. Is the hydrogen peroxide less hazard to the plants? When you say "PURE" do you mean just straight or something really different? I'm looking for alternates to what I've done and can't find the potassium permananate so far.


1. IME yes, the hydrogen peroxide is better. Because I have used both, bleach and hydrogen peroxide and the plant's do pest when I use the H2O2.

2. I mean by PLAIN hydrogen peroxide, not diluted or anything else.

Out of the all the plant's I have cleaned with H2O2 they are all still in my tank to date healthy and beautiful.


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## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

Thanks. I have that on hand. I'll give it a try.


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## Aulonocara_Freak (May 19, 2011)

PfunMo said:


> Thanks. I have that on hand. I'll give it a try.


ANYTIME!  Glad to help a fellow expert.


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

Aulonocara_Freak said:


> Dip the plant's in *PURE* H2O2


You can't buy "pure H2O2", because special precautions are necessary to handle it safely. In a nutshell, it's explosive when it comes in contact with a range of metals (catalytic decomposition).

The most concentrated solutions of H2O2 that are commercially available are around 30%, with the remaining 70% being water. Even 30% solutions of H2O2 are mostly for lab use, and are highly corrosive. I very much doubt a plant dipped into that stuff for 30 seconds would survive.









_Skin immediately after exposure to 30% H2O2 (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H2O2)_

H2O2 you buy at the drugstore for household use is typically a 3% to 8% solution in water. I assume that's what you mean, and I'd personally lean towards using the 3% solution.

You might also want to keep in mind that the effect of H2O2 is much stronger in alkaline solution. If your plants came from a tank with alkaline water eg from addition of baking soda, and still had some of that water on their leafs, the effect of even a 3% H2O2 solution could be stronger than desired, and turn your plants into peroxide blonds


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## Aulonocara_Freak (May 19, 2011)

fmueller said:


> Aulonocara_Freak said:
> 
> 
> > Dip the plant's in *PURE* H2O2
> ...


That's what I mean, didn't want to get all scientific but that's what u r for.


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## fmueller (Jan 11, 2004)

Aulonocara_Freak said:


> That's what I mean, didn't want to get all scientific but that's what u r for.


Sorry, I studied chemistry until the bitter end and then gave up working in that field. Sometimes it is still showing through


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## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

Have you all seen the cartoon about what each group does about a swing? Engineers, designers, builders and users all view things through different filters so it takes acombined effort to make it work. Same applies to fishkeeping. There is no one true guide because each of us view it through differing filters. Add them together and it comes closer to working than going with one single view. If you want to see what I mean, ask your wife what she thinks about a fish tank!!!!


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## ivanmike (Jun 15, 2003)

If you can successfully keep water hyacinth indoors (think LOTS of light) they are a great plant for removing nitrogenous waste. I used them in cichlid ponds (which were run only for 4 months here in new england) and my only "filtration" was water hyacinth. Their roots also act as "detritus magnets" and it's not unusual to seem them covered with "****" that they gradually absorb. they also grow and propagate at an alarming rate - which is good in a pond as it tells you they are doing their job admirably.

FWIW, the only WH I've ever seen overwinter in NE were in greenhouses, but I'm sure some have been able to keep them indoors with enough light.


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## mbargas (Apr 19, 2009)

748johnd said:


> Both require strong lighting and you will need at least two inches of open space between the water surface and the cover glass unless it is an uncovered tank. You will also want to disinfect the plants otherwise you may get critters you don't want.


I agree that they require very strong lighting, especially the hyacynth.

I used water lettuce once, and found that it grew very fast with intense super compact flourescent lighting. The problem I had was that the water lettuce soon covered the entire surface of the water and caused impairment of gas exchnge from the surface, resulting in low oxygen levels, and the unfortunate death of many fish. So if I were to do it again I would try to keep an open area, and provide much more circulation and aereation than is usually required.


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## iwade4fish (Jan 5, 2009)

Got some hyacinth in a 40tall mbuna, reproduces steady but the older leaves drop off quick. Only 5 large leaves seem to ever stay healthy at one time. They dig it up once a week, but I don't mind, and it seems to have lowered the nitrates a bit in the process, so :thumb:


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