# Do you leave the lead weight on when planting stems?



## mmelnick (Mar 5, 2010)

When everyone plants new stems from the store that come with the lead weights around the roots do you leave it on or take it off to plant it in your tank?


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## regalesse (Dec 18, 2010)

i do and have seen no changes in any of my water parameters.


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## Sharkfood (May 2, 2010)

I don't think those are made of lead nowadays.


That being said, I don't use those weights. There's no reason for them really. Just get the stem an inch or so in the substrate, and they'll stay down just fine.


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## Betta Maniac (Dec 3, 2010)

Most are zinc. Not only do I leave them on, I add them on!


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## CDNSimpson (Aug 4, 2010)

This was brought up in the "Aquabotanist" section of the March issue of Aquarium Fish International. Stephen (the columnist) points out that keeping the weight on the plant tightly could inhibit growth. He also mentions that a fish that ingests a piece of a lead weight could be at risk of lead poisoning (mentioned a case where a loon died and was found to have a lead fishing sinker in its stomach).

He also points out that those weights should be properly disposed of - mentions tire dealers. He seems to be of the opinion that those weights are still made of lead. He doesn't mention any possibility of changes in water chemistry.

All that said, I've always left the weights on until the plants are firmly rooted.


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## MissGreen08 (Jan 4, 2011)

I am fairly new to planted tanks, and I left mine on if I couldn't firmly plant them without them floating. My bolbitus would not stay down for some reason until the roots grew a bit. When I rescaped my tank last night I removed the last of the weights.


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## Kibblemania1414 (Feb 1, 2011)

CDNSimpson said:


> This was brought up in the "Aquabotanist" section of the March issue of Aquarium Fish International. Stephen (the columnist) points out that keeping the weight on the plant tightly could inhibit growth. He also mentions that a fish that ingests a piece of a lead weight could be at risk of lead poisoning (mentioned a case where a loon died and was found to have a lead fishing sinker in its stomach).
> 
> He also points out that those weights should be properly disposed of - mentions tire dealers. He seems to be of the opinion that those weights are still made of lead. He doesn't mention any possibility of changes in water chemistry.
> 
> All that said, I've always left the weights on until the plants are firmly rooted.


wow nice i read that too!! sweet


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## mmelnick (Mar 5, 2010)

There seems to be some differing opinions.

And I'm not concerned with water issues. Lead doesn't dissolve in water. I was mostly concerned with plant health and growth.

Thanks for the replies.


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## redfalconf35 (Feb 24, 2008)

As far as my experiences, i try to plant w/o them, but when the stems start getting stubborn (half are floating within 8 hours), i weight them.


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## DarkCobra (Jun 22, 2004)

Based on the weight, softness, and oxide color of multiple styles of plant weights I've seen, they're almost certainly lead.

I've heard lead plant weights are restricted by law in some parts of the world like the EU, so they use zinc there. Some of those might find their way over to the US as well.

Lead does "dissolve" in acidic water. Tomatoes used to be considered poisonous, because people who cooked with them regularly would get sick. It wasn't the tomatoes at fault but the lead cookware, tomatoes were just acidic enough to dissolve the lead. But tomato sauce is much more acidic than a CO2-injected tank, so I don't worry about it too much.

I generally plant without them, but use them when required. When moving or removing plants, I take the precaution of looking for the sinker and removing it, rather than letting them get lost and accumulate in the substrate.


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## boringname (Nov 11, 2010)

I tried taking them off and the plants never stayed in place so that was the end of that.


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## feral13 (Jan 17, 2006)

I do not use them for my plants. Seems to damage the stems and they grow better spaced out anyway.

I will use one to sink vegetables for feeding fish and I use them to save clippings in a grow out tank.

Interestingly, when I broke down an old tank, there were dozens of them in the substrate. None showed any signs of erosion and they have been in there for years.


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

I take them off because I find the stems rot where the weights are around them and then they become useless anyway....so I just plant the stems in the substrate. I also like to spread out the stems so they can start filling in more of the tank and they definitely seem to do better when spread out, so that helps them fill in more quickly too roud:


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## mylittlefish (Oct 5, 2010)

obsessive compulsive ....... can someone Plez edit and correct subject line typo


My Virgo Rising on my horoscope Haha!


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## mmelnick (Mar 5, 2010)

mylittlefish said:


> obsessive compulsive ....... can someone Plez edit and correct subject line typo
> 
> 
> My Virgo Rising on my horoscope Haha!


Sorry I didn't even notice. :biggrin:


And thanks for all the advice guys!


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## Karackle (Dec 11, 2007)

mylittlefish said:


> obsessive compulsive ....... can someone Plez edit and correct subject line typo
> 
> 
> My Virgo Rising on my horoscope Haha!


lol...and yet you wrote Plez instead of please? :icon_lol: :hihi:


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## mmelnick (Mar 5, 2010)

Karackle said:


> lol...and yet you wrote Plez instead of please? :icon_lol: :hihi:


That what I was thinking when I saw that. :hihi:


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