So I accidentally added 3 large leaves in a 5.5 gallon tank . I removed them after 3-4 hours since I saw the water became too murky. The fish seems fine for now but I noticed a white foam formed around the filter .
Can the community advise me on what should I do ? I am really concerned for my Betta .
https://www.reddit.com/gallery/1k6ttls
Posted by coldplayer96
4 Comments
It’s just adding tannins into your water, no worries at all. Lots of people use tannins on purpose for medicinal/antifungal reasons in the aquarium. Your betta probably enjoys it. It will just make the water a little yellow/brown. If you put carbon insert in your filter it can clear the water if you want to but not necessary. I am assuming those are Indian almond leaves(or catappa leaves) right?
https://preview.redd.it/jbvh478lpswe1.jpeg?width=4284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d9aa9424da4803022fca805884c388fe583dee67
I believe he should be fine, mine looked like this I put two big leaves in a 5 gallon, I left them in there for a few days then took them out once he was looking better but I don’t believe tannins will hurt him
He’s going to be absolutely fine! The murkiness is just tannins, and many people actually cultivate blackwater tanks with high amounts of tannins on purpose, as it more closely resembles the natural environment that a betta might have in the wild. Tannins have slight antibacterial properties and aid bettas in maintaining a healthy slime coat as well; they’re very healthy. Here’s a picture of my blackwater tank!
https://preview.redd.it/n3ghb5mhrswe1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a970ac914aedf371dfacd141c0fc8db5a201789e
https://preview.redd.it/3tmh9j5dsswe1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7964cd79beeac979b48b8255d7220176ecfb47f6
This is the water in my 10g blackwater tank (before a majority of the plants were added). Tannins can make the water REALLY dark, depending on how much is in there. It’s not a harmful thing at all, and can be especially beneficial to bettas. The only thing to be aware of is that tannins can affect the ph and make the water more acidic – mimicking the natural habitat of your betta. If you’re not interested in tannins but you enjoy the look of leaf litter, you can always boil the leaves before adding them 🙂