Best nitrate sucking plants

[Bill Stock]

I'm looking for the best Nitrate sucking (fastest growing) Goldfish
resistant plant there is. I'd like to reduce my nitrate levels in my tank.
I'm looking for a fast growing floating plant, that the Goldfish won't
devour. I did have Water Hyacinths over the winter, but the light they
require made the tank too warm in the summer. Besides the GF ate all the
roots and they made for a messy tank.

I just added some Hornwort and the GF seem to be leaving it alone so far.
I've also heard that Duckweed is a fast grower, but the GF ate every last
bit of this I put in the pond. More eating equals more pooping, which kind
of defeats the purpose of adding Nitrate suckers. I've also heard that Java
Fern is a good choice, but that it prefers to grow on rocks?

Advice appreciated.

[Bill Stock]

"Bill Stock" > wrote in message
...
> I'm looking for the best Nitrate sucking (fastest growing) Goldfish
> resistant plant there is. I'd like to reduce my nitrate levels in my tank.
> I'm looking for a fast growing floating plant, that the Goldfish won't
> devour. I did have Water Hyacinths over the winter, but the light they
> require made the tank too warm in the summer. Besides the GF ate all the
> roots and they made for a messy tank.
>
> I just added some Hornwort and the GF seem to be leaving it alone so far.
> I've also heard that Duckweed is a fast grower, but the GF ate every last
> bit of this I put in the pond. More eating equals more pooping, which kind
> of defeats the purpose of adding Nitrate suckers. I've also heard that
Java
> Fern is a good choice, but that it prefers to grow on rocks?
>
> Advice appreciated.

One more plant for consideration, Water Sprite? Do GF like this one? Does it
suck nitrogen out of the air like Azolla (not good). Also, can Salvinia
outgrow GF munching?

TIA

[[email protected]]

when you find it, let us all know. nitrates are used up by algae, string algae is
even better. nitrates can be lowered by feeding a lot smaller amounts of higher
protein, higher quality food with less waste. "fillers" in low end fish food is in
and out of a fish without being digested.
I have been thinking about some kind of a veggie filter mounted on top of the tank...
havent gotten around to building one tho. Ingrid

"Bill Stock" > wrote:

>I'm looking for the best Nitrate sucking (fastest growing) Goldfish
>resistant plant there is. I'd like to reduce my nitrate levels in my tank.
>I'm looking for a fast growing floating plant, that the Goldfish won't
>devour. I did have Water Hyacinths over the winter, but the light they
>require made the tank too warm in the summer. Besides the GF ate all the
>roots and they made for a messy tank.
>
>I just added some Hornwort and the GF seem to be leaving it alone so far.
>I've also heard that Duckweed is a fast grower, but the GF ate every last
>bit of this I put in the pond. More eating equals more pooping, which kind
>of defeats the purpose of adding Nitrate suckers. I've also heard that Java
>Fern is a good choice, but that it prefers to grow on rocks?
>
>Advice appreciated.
>
>



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List
http://puregold.aquaria.net/
www.drsolo.com
Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other
compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the
endorsements or recommendations I make.

[Bill Stock]

> wrote in message
...
> when you find it, let us all know. nitrates are used up by algae, string
algae is
> even better. nitrates can be lowered by feeding a lot smaller amounts of
higher
> protein, higher quality food with less waste. "fillers" in low end fish
food is in
> and out of a fish without being digested.
> I have been thinking about some kind of a veggie filter mounted on top of
the tank...
> havent gotten around to building one tho. Ingrid

I don't see how plants floating on top of the aquarium (or in for that
matter) would be any different than a veggie filter for a pond. Plants will
starve your Algae of nutrients and it will decline. When I had Water
Hyacinths in the tank, my nitrates were practically zero. But their light
requirements make them a bad choice during the heat of the summer. Not to
mention the GF thought they were an all you can eat salad bar.

[Geezer From The Freezer]

Bill Stock wrote:

> I don't see how plants floating on top of the aquarium (or in for that
> matter) would be any different than a veggie filter for a pond. Plants will
> starve your Algae of nutrients and it will decline.

I have loads of plants in one of my tanks and I still continually get green
algae

> When I had Water
> Hyacinths in the tank, my nitrates were practically zero. But their light
> requirements make them a bad choice during the heat of the summer. Not to
> mention the GF thought they were an all you can eat salad bar.

LOL

[[email protected]]

when they are in the pond or tank the fish will strip the roots. also, part of a
veggie filter is moving the water past the plants and thru a couple filters which
removes fine particles. and the lights over the veggie filter can be more
substantial without affect the temp of the water.
yeah... WH are great. Water celery is even better, they grow up and out. Ingrid

"Bill Stock" > wrote:
>I don't see how plants floating on top of the aquarium (or in for that
>matter) would be any different than a veggie filter for a pond. Plants will
>starve your Algae of nutrients and it will decline. When I had Water
>Hyacinths in the tank, my nitrates were practically zero. But their light
>requirements make them a bad choice during the heat of the summer. Not to
>mention the GF thought they were an all you can eat salad bar.
>
>



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List
http://puregold.aquaria.net/
www.drsolo.com
Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other
compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the
endorsements or recommendations I make.

[Dark Phoenix]

> wrote in message
...
> when they are in the pond or tank the fish will strip the roots. also,
part of a
> veggie filter is moving the water past the plants and thru a couple
filters which
> removes fine particles. and the lights over the veggie filter can be more
> substantial without affect the temp of the water.
> yeah... WH are great. Water celery is even better, they grow up and out.
Ingrid
>

So, with a veggie filter, the roots don't just hang into the tank, they are
in a totally separate container that the water pumps through? (light slowly
dawns)

Guess I can't just hang a pothos over the tank and let it hang in....


--
Laurie, Dark Phoenix

"It is better to believe, than to disbelieve; in so doing you bring
everything to the realm of possibility."-Albert Einstein.

[sophie]

In message >, Dark Phoenix
> writes
>
> wrote in message
...
>> when they are in the pond or tank the fish will strip the roots. also,
>part of a
>> veggie filter is moving the water past the plants and thru a couple
>filters which
>> removes fine particles. and the lights over the veggie filter can be more
>> substantial without affect the temp of the water.
>> yeah... WH are great. Water celery is even better, they grow up and out.
>Ingrid
>>
>
>So, with a veggie filter, the roots don't just hang into the tank, they are
>in a totally separate container that the water pumps through? (light slowly
>dawns)
>
>Guess I can't just hang a pothos over the tank and let it hang in....

I have a stem of a cane-stemmed begonia just hanging in the tank and I
can say that when I had a small and overstocked tank it made a
noticeable difference to water quality.
>
>

--
sophie

[Charles]

On Fri, 23 Jul 2004 22:26:16 -0700, "Dark Phoenix"
> wrote:

(snip)
>Guess I can't just hang a pothos over the tank and let it hang in....


Just a comment on this part, I have pothos dipping roots into a couple
of my tanks. I don't think they grow fast enough to do anything
significant to the tank, they just are there. Aglonema as well. slow
growing.


--

- Charles
-
-does not play well with others

[Donald K]

Dark Phoenix wrote:

>
> Guess I can't just hang a pothos over the tank and let it hang in....

Think power filter or "hang on the back" filter.

I have a pothos clipping growing (very loose definition of growing) in
one of mine.

The light in that area sucks, so it survives, not thrives...

Can't say it does anything for the nitrate levels, but it isn't a
serious attempt either...

-D
--
"One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem,
see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable
words." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

[[email protected]]

right. no big hungry fishy mouth stripping the stuff on the roots.
yeah, sure, try hanging pothos over the side. I havent seen GF eat those roots.
http://puregold.aquaria.net/mypond/changes/changes.htm
part of the veggie filter idea is it is pretty. there isnt this stuff hanging in the
tank. altho I do like vegetation wtih fish moving thru it looks cool.
Ingrid


"Dark Phoenix" > wrote:

>
> wrote in message
...
>> when they are in the pond or tank the fish will strip the roots. also,
>part of a
>> veggie filter is moving the water past the plants and thru a couple
>filters which
>> removes fine particles. and the lights over the veggie filter can be more
>> substantial without affect the temp of the water.
>> yeah... WH are great. Water celery is even better, they grow up and out.
>Ingrid
>>
>
>So, with a veggie filter, the roots don't just hang into the tank, they are
>in a totally separate container that the water pumps through? (light slowly
>dawns)
>
>Guess I can't just hang a pothos over the tank and let it hang in....



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List
http://puregold.aquaria.net/
www.drsolo.com
Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other
compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the
endorsements or recommendations I make.