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Hi,
I was doing a water change in one of me tanks today and there was, what appeared to be air bubbles traped in the gravel. As the gravel vac moved near them they rose to the top and burst giving off a 'rotten egg' type of smell.
The fish in the tank all seem fine in fact the albino cories keep laying eggs on the glass.

Is there a problem? What should I do?

Thanks
DASHMAN:88)

Its better to be hated for who you are...
Than loved for who you are not

Hi,
Your substrate has developed areas of anaerobic bacteria.
They form black patches and give off hydrogen sulfide gas
which you so well describe. You are correct, it is NOT GOOD,
and can be toxic to the fish.

Vacuum the gravel well. Then depending upon how well planted
that tank is, remove some of the gravel. It has compacted
and the spaces between the grains have become clogged with
detritus. Introduce some of the MTS snail, and employ some
cories to keep the gravel loose and aerated.
In a non planted tank you don't really need more than say
an inch of gravel. In a planted tank, it depends upon the
types of plants you have in the tank and the depth of the
substrate should be as much as 4 inches.

Ease up on the amount of food you feed your fish per
feeding session, and clean the tank weekly. Divide the tank
into quarters, and once each quarter, vacuum the gravel in
A section, throughly. That should take care of the problem.

Frank


Last edited by FRANK at 04-May-2005 09:40

-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Tip top marks for your post Frank.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~ My fish blow kisses at me all day long ~~~

I have a query regarding water hardness. Our tap water's GH varies from 24 - 30. I was wondering if I could use air conditioner water and mix it with the tap water to reduce the amount of GH from the tap water. I tested the air conditioner water and GH is 0. I presume that I have to boil the water as well before actually using it so as to kill any bacteria that it might have. I was planning to use this water for my new aquarium which is going to contain discus. Apart from this problem of GH, I never managed to control the PH because of the high GH and hopefully in this way I can control the PH.
:%)