# My new Vallisneria are melting away ...



## Olliesshop (Dec 19, 2010)

I just got (about 1 1/2 weeks ago) a bunch of Vallisneria Gigantea for my 125 gallon tank and they're melting away. I assume they're just adjusting to the new environment, but I wanted to make sure. I have them in relatively hard water at 8 gH and 8 kH with a pH of 7.95, which seem like the right conditions for Vallisneria. I'm hoping they rejuvenate themselves and come back in full force ... but I'm a little worried, since I haven't seen any new shoots yet.

Any words of wisdom would be appreciated.

Thanks.


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## SearunSimpson (Jun 5, 2007)

Are you dosing a synthetic carbon source, such as Excel? That stuff has been known to cause Vals to melt.


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## Olliesshop (Dec 19, 2010)

Not yet ... although I did order some SeaChem Flourish Excel last week. I wonder if I should use it now? I was debating getting some CO2 injection, but decided that the Flourish Excel would be a good interim step ... although it sound like I may be wrong.

Thanks for the help !!!


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## captain_bu (Oct 20, 2007)

Welcome to the forum!

Very common for vals to melt when first planted. If the roots are in good shape they will take off once they are settled in and acclimated to your tank.

Depending on how much light you are running (and what type) you may need to inject pressurized CO2.

I have grown vals for years in an Excel tank but even if the vals don't melt Excel is only a good carbon substitute if the lighting is low to moderate. At higher levels of light you need CO2, Excel won't cut it.


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## Olliesshop (Dec 19, 2010)

FYI, I currently have Two Coralife 36" banks with 2 High Output T-5's per bank (10000K and 6700K each), with works out to about 1.3 Watts per gallon, which seems to be a little on the low side? I have the Vals planted on the sides and the back of the tank. I hope your right and they'll get acclimated and take off ... I guess I just have to wait and see. I think I see some new leaves growing, but I not sure. Such fun !!!


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## captain_bu (Oct 20, 2007)

I would say that based on the plants I see in your tank you have a nice manageable amount of light and the tank should do well, especially if you invest in pressurized CO2. The more light the faster things grow (CO2 speeds things up a lot, too) a 125 gallon tank full of fast growing plants would be a lot of work to maintain. For now I think you would get the most bang for your buck by adding pressurized CO2 not more light.


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## Olliesshop (Dec 19, 2010)

captain_bu said:


> I would say that based on the plants I see in your tank you have a nice manageable amount of light and the tank should do well, especially if you invest in pressurized CO2. The more light the faster things grow (CO2 speeds things up a lot, too) a 125 gallon tank full of fast growing plants would be a lot of work to maintain. For now I think you would get the most bang for your buck by adding pressurized CO2 not more light.


One thing I'm worried about with the pressurized CO2 is it may be too much CO2 for my fish (Brichardi). I clearly want the focus to be on the fish, not the plants, although I want plants to flourish as well. So I think this might be a balancing act to have the fish spawn and still have enough CO2 for the the plants to flourish. What pressurized CO2 system and components would folks recommend? I've done some research and there seems to be tons of options available, especially for the diffuser (I was looking at this one ... http://aqmagic.com/store/product_re...id=54&osCsid=ab00d727e8d89eda49951021b2eb357a, since I didn't want to get too complicated outside the tank ). It also looks like I would need a electronic solenoid, on a timer, so I don't over do the CO2 at night and hurt/kill my fish.

Also, I'm currently running at 2.4-0.5 CO2 ppm (which is clearly very low since I have a high pH for my Tanganyika Cichlids of about 8.0-9 pH). I have an 02 test kit to see what that's running (what should the O2 be running at?).

I'm clearly a Newbie on this so any, and all, help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you !!!


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