Planted Tank Poisoned  - 10/22/06
Hello Crew,
<<Good morning. Tom here.>>
I had a 10 gallon very plainly planted tank that was doing well for quite some time. It contained a Bolivian ram and 8 neon tetras. Then, the plants started to brown and the stems became thinner and thinner, so I went out and I got some new plants. So, I took my fish out and put them in a bucket  with a heater and air stone because I had to take everything apart and I re-planted everything. I kept about 3 plants from my old setup and the rest went to the garbage. My question is, can you over-fertilize a tank?
<<The simple answer would be, “Yes.” Let’s continue, though, because I don’t think this was the problem.>>
I put fertilizer  tablets in that were made mostly for pond and outside use because my mom said  those would be fine so I used them. I put about a 1/2 a cube per bunch and then a few bits and pieces for other lonely stems in my tank. I probably put  about 5-5.5 tablets in total, before I read the instructions. I came back to show my parents what I had done with my once beautiful and fulfilling tank, and every single one of my Neons was upside-down on the bottom of the tank dead!
<<Extremely sorry to hear this!>>
One snail was upside-down and was barely moving at all, not trying to get right side  up or anything, and my ram was all black and lying in a ditch in the gravel,  breathing heavily. I then read the directions on the fertilizer package because my mom suggested that I poisoned my fish by over-fertilizing my tank!  The  directions say that you should use 1 tablet for every gallon of potting soil. I  don't use any soil but I use gravel and I used almost 6 tablets of fertilizer. Could this have killed my fish???  
<<I don’t believe so in the sense that too much fertilizer poisoned them. Actually, what you’ve provided on your Ram is more telling. What you’ve described in the Ram is consistent with ammonia poisoning. You don’t say how long your fish were left in the bucket during the tank “renovation” but with only a heater and air stone, it’s possible that there was a severe ammonia spike during this time. Is it possible that the bucket you used may have contained remnants of cleaning products such as ammonia? Might also account for what happened. By way of explanation, over-fertilizing almost always results in algae blooms/growth. Too many nutrients for the plants alone to utilize and the algae takes off running. If all else had been fine, I’d suggest that you’d have observed something on this order before such a catastrophic die-off of your pets.>>
I  am in the process of saving my ram and getting him acclimated to one of my other  tanks. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!!!
<<I wish you the best of luck with your Ram. As you’ve, no doubt, concluded, it’s best to stick with products that are specifically designed for aquatic plants where planted tanks are involved. Terrestrial plants derive nutrients from fertilizers in a different fashion than do aquatic plants and the formulations can vary.>>
Thanks for your wonderful site!
<<And, thank you for the kind words. Good luck in the future. Tom>>

Platy and Plant problems   9/17/06
Hello WetWebMedia crew!
<John>
After several months of a well-established tank, I have developed quite a frustrating and persistent problem.  It began with a stubborn case of fin rot on a guppy that would not resolve.  Consequently I treated with erythromycin for 5 days and this cleared up the problem with his tail and he is now on the mend!  Nitrites have fallen back to zero from peaking at about 0.3 ppm and the tank is doing fine in terms of water quality.  Parameters are:
Ammonia: 0 ppm
Nitrites: 0 ppm
Nitrates: 12 ppm
pH: 7.5
Temp: 25C
The tank is approximately 24 gallons and 40 cm deep with 18W fluorescent lighting (single tube) from Sylvania that claims to have 10,000K spectrum and the company says is ideal for growing plants.  As the medication damaged some of my plants, I have removed the dying ones and replaced with some new ones (soaked for 10-15 min.s in potassium permanganate to remove unwanted visitors) - similar to Amazon swords, but I only have the Italian name and not the scientific name.  
<Both likely Echinodorus species>
The problem with the plants is that they are turning yellow and developing some brown holes on the established leaves (veins seem green) even after I purchased them a healthy green colour from the LFS.  I have fertilized with solid pellets and have also used a pellet that encourages rooting.  There is also some liquid fertilizer in the tank that I add approximately every three weeks as indicated on the product.  Still, I am not sure what would be causing this.
<Mmm... could likely be just the KMnO3 treatment... permanganate is a powerful oxidizer... dangerous. But could also easily be a bit of "moving shock" syndrome... All that can be done is be patient at this point>
The second problem is with a female sailfin platy.  I noticed her with some laboured and rapid breathing.  She does not swim as much and seems lethargic.  On closer inspection I could see fine white filaments (diameter is sub-millimetre, very fine) extruding from her mouth and also extruding from her gills.  Looks like very fine silk thread.  Currently I can see about 4 or 5 of these maybe 3-4 mm long.  Could this be gill worms?
<Mmm, not likely, no>
  I had thought mouth fungus, but it does not look "cottony".  If worms, then I am not sure where they came from as the plants I added are not from a tank containing fish and I even did the potassium permanganate soak, so it seems improbable that this would be the source.  There have been no new additions and it is even possible that I was seeing these prior to the addition of the plants.  Clearly it is a gill problem, but I cannot seem to identify it.  Would this possibly result from the erythromycin treatment??
<Likely this is some bit of mucus from the trials of being present in a non-cycled system... and will clear on its own>
I hope you can offer some advice as I am not sure what is going on with my tank!
Best regards.
<Well... better by far never to actually treat (most fish medicines are generally bio-cidal in action) in ones main/display tank (but do elsewhere)... And a need to understand that aquatic time-frames are different (much more delayed) than our terrestrial impressions... Some/many things "take time"... Best to learn/practice patience here. Bob Fenner>

Aquatic caterpillar  12/14/05
Hello
I recently bought some aquatic plants and have found what looks like a white woolly bear caterpillar. Any help would be appreciated
thank you
CJ
<Good observation... likely a crustacean, but could be an aquatic insect... even an intermediate stage (metamorphosis) of a terrestrial insect with an aquatic juvenile phase. Do keep your eye on this/these... if it gets large, it may become predaceous... and should be removed. Bob Fenner>

Planty Problems - Imbalance of Nutrients - 08/23/2005
Hello.  
<Hi.>
This is a loaded question.
<Uh-oh.>
Hope the answer is here.
<Might be a loaded answer.... <grin>>
You've been reliable in the past.  I have a 108 gallon tank up and running for the past 2 months. I put in several species of plants from the start and the tank is broken in nicely. pH from my tap is about 6.8 but the water in the tank was about 7.6 which is now about 7.2 and I am trying to get it down below 7. I attributed the increase in pH to the new gravel (geo systems brown river) and thought it would decrease and stabilize over time.  I removed all questionable rock and added Fluvals peat chips to an AquaClear 300. That's all that's in the filter.
<This should help immensely.>
I also have two 500 AquaClears with the ceramic rings and sponges. I removed the carbon as I am using plant Gro. I also have just added a huge piece of driftwood.  
<Also will help.>
I have used blackwater extract but am almost out of it and don't plan on buying anymore (no need I feel.)
<Agreed; the wood and peat will do this for you.>
Here's the problem- My Amazon swords and Anubias nana are gathering a dark green fuzzy algae around the rims of their leaves.  I have 3 Chinese algae eaters and just added 10 otos and 6 flying fox to keep algae in check. However nothing is touching this particular algae.
<If possible, you might try "algae-eating" shrimp, Caridina japonica.  Very efficient munchers of algae.>
I do 1/3 water changes every week or so and as I say the water is crystal. The lights on the tank are two 36" flora Glos and two 36" SunGlo that go the length of the tank. The spectrum is ideal to look at but are the lights the right spectrum? The plants are growing nicely. I feel the tank is planted heavily enough, but wouldn't consider it "heavily planted". Don't really want to add more plants because of the algae.
<More plants will help outcompete the algae....>
As I say the pH seems to be dropping - am I on the right track regards to pH?
<Yes.>
Does a high pH contribute to this particular algae growth?
<Unlikely.>
Should I discontinue the plant Gro and put the carbon back in?
<I would for now, unless you start adding CO2.>
Will CO2 help?
<Quite possibly.>
Do I need more light? - the fixtures are the Hagen 72" that takes two 36" tubes.
<Yes, very, very likely.  Those "normal output" bulbs don't do much for light output.  Unless you stick with strictly low light plants (I don't think the swords will last long in this!), do NOT add CO2, and cut off all ferts for now, you're going to continue with algae problems - and difficulties with your plants.  Please look for Peter Hiscock's book "Encyclopedia of Aquarium Plants", and also the book by Diana Walstad on low-light, low-tech planted aquaria....  the name of her book escapes me at the moment.>
So I have two fixtures on the tank.  Don't really want the expense of changing that over. As you can see I have many questions regarding this.
<I see ;)>
Temperature in the tank is 78-82 degrees depending on humidity. What should I do?
<Just as above.>
Is there a fish that would eat this?  
<Those that you have may, but you really need to get to the root of this....  there is probably too much fertilizer in the tank, vs. not enough light or CO2, so the plants can't use enough of the fertilizer to inhibit algal growth.>
Please tell me the problem can be solved?
<Likely!  But it might be a bumpy road!  You'll get there, no worries.>
Thanks again for any and all help!!!  Regards,  Craig P.
<Wishing you well,  -Sabrina>

Something's eating my plants 7/21/05
I have a 70 gallon planted tank with what seem to be chew holes and scrapes
on my broadleaf hygros, anubias nana, misc. crypts, Amazon swords, and even
the java fern.  
<Mmm, some tough, and not tasty plants...>
My dwarf lily is left alone as well as the Sagittaria and
Vallisneria.
<Good clues, information>
This is what I have in my tank: cardinal tetras, Rummynose
tetras, turquoise rainbowfish, ocats, SAE's, botia striatas, a zebra danio,
a roseline shark and a Chaetostoma.  My system is pressurized co2, 3.7 watts
per gallon, around 78 degrees, pH typically 7.0, KH 7, ammonia- 0, nitrites-
0, nitrates between 5 and 10 ppm.  Weekly water changes of 50%, four drops
Dupla plant 24 started this week (previously Flourish once a week).
<This will greatly help in time>
Trying
to correct this, I started feeding more veggie matter a few weeks
ago (spinach, cucumber on a clip, veggie flakes) but everything continues to
look terrible, with new holes daily. I'm about to lose plants over this.
The  tank has been up about 9 months but it is my first tank.  I've searched
extensively on the internet and this site.  What is eating my plants (none
of my livestock is supposed to) and what else can I do? Love the site!
Thanks, Stephanie
<I would try removing one of the possible culprits at a time... the shark, Chaetostoma, the Botia in this order are likely... Hard to catch... use two nets... Bob Fenner>
I forgot to mention in the email I sent a few minutes ago that I give one
algae pellet (Omega One product) per day after light's out and there are two
pieces of driftwood in my tank.  Thanks.  Stephanie
<Sounds like a very nice system. Bob Fenner>

Brown/orange coating on leaves, literacy
Hi guys.
<Lewis>
I've just set up a new 100 litre freshwater tropical aquarium there are currently two fish in the tank and it has been running for two weeks.  just recently i have noticed a brown/orange coating on the leaves of my plants, and there have been several pesky little snails annoying me, is the discolouration caused by the snails or is it something else (maybe the filter, biological filter in tank hood)?
thanks Lewis
<Mmm, hard to tell w/o more information, perhaps a microscopic examination... perhaps just an algal growth, maybe evidence of some sort of deterioration of your plants themselves... from lack of nutrient, lighting...? Bob Fenner>

Plant help
Help ! I have a white mold like substance growing on the bottom of the tank and around the sucker holding the heater (its slimy and slippery to touch), some fibers also white are growing on the plants and killing them, it's not doing anything to the fish but the plant are doing very badly, including some small Java Ferns. how do I control this and/or eliminate it
Thanks,
Mark   
<Please read here re plant/ed tank algae control: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/PlantedTksSubWebIndex/algcontags.htm
and the linked Related FAQs above. Bob Fenner>

Amazon Sword plants with Black Fungus
Hi, folks.
<Hello Dave>
My first real question. I went through the plant disease FAQs but did not see anything that looked like it is related to my question, so, here goes.
<Okay... I do wish we had spiffy pics here... as there are in good home gardening books... someday>
I have what has been so far a successful 46 gallon freshwater aquarium that I started around September or so of last year (I'm prepping for a 90 gallon marine tank and decided to set up the freshwater tank first to get back into the swing of things)). Anyway, I introduced an Apple and a Ramshorn snail last year, only to have them devour my three Amazon Sword plants (live and learn).
<Tasty>
So, I deleted the snails and re-planted. Since then, I have been dealing with disposing of hundreds of small snails by feeding them to the fish as I snare them. I recently added a pair of clown loaches to help.
<Ah, good>
The small snails seem to be less prevalent than they were, and I think I have them under control. Although there are small snails still present, the replacement Amazon Swords were doing great until about a month or two ago, when I noticed that (again) the Amazon leaves were getting thin and lacy.
<Mmm, a nutrient deficiency... likely nitrogen based>
But, in addition, there has developed a solid-black fungus-looking coating on the edges of the leaves, as well as a more diffuse covering of the same stuff on the leaves and stems. It looks like very short algae, but it is jet black, and is destroying the plants.
<Ah, yes... a blue green... sometimes called "beard algae"... trouble>
I have never seen this before. I had lots of green algae, but a pair of Chinese Algae Eaters and some freshwater shrimp were doing a great job of controlling that. It does not look like any of the algae-eating critters that I now have are touching the black stuff, 
<Nope>
and I am pretty sure that it is not algae. So, first, do you have any idea of what this black stuff might be?
<Yes...>
I have heard that a 19:1 solution of 5% sodium hypochlorite (e.g., household bleach) and water can be used as a dip to remove unwanted "stuff" from plants, but I don't know if that is the right thing to try here or not, and in any case I don't know how long to dip the plants in this sort of solution. Any help in identifying and eradicating this stuff would be much appreciated.
<Can be attempted... but I would try a few other means of control first... Do go, read at "the krib" (.com) re beard algae... and on our site: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/PlantedTksSubWebIndex/algcontags.htm and the Related FAQs: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/PlantedTksSubWebIndex/algcontagfaqs.htm and consider means to limit nutrient... from the get-go with cleaner water, and through better filtration...>
Thanks (again!) for the excellent website and for your generous contribution of time to the questions that come your way.  Cheers, Dave Danile
<Read on my brother. Bob Fenner>

Plant decay
Hi everyone,
Are brown roots dead and therefore should be cut off?
< Brown roots are indeed dead and should be discarded.>
What if the whole root
base is like that?
< Then none of the existing roots are good.>
Is the plant dead so just throw away?
< I would place the plant in a bucket of water and place it out side and see if it generates any new white roots.>
What does it mean
when the leaves get slimy sort of then when touched disintegrate in the
water?
< The plant is no longer alive and is breaking down.>
All new setup, 55g with GE 40W Daylight Ultra, Seachem flourish
< Is this Fluorite?>
fertilizer
topped w gravel, Natural Plant System Co2, pond plant fertilizer tabs, no
carbon media sponge filter.
Plants are/were as follows:
Moneywort Bacopa monnieri
<A stem plant that requires good light and benefits from CO2>
Nana Anubias
< You mean Anubias Nana? This is a slow growing plant that does well in hard water under low light conditions. Roots should be ties to driftwood and rocks and will rot if buried in the sand.>
Green foxtail
< This plant prefers cooler water and I use as a floating plant under the bright light that it needs.>
Wisteria Hygrophila
< I like the floating wisteria. It does well under lots of different conditions. Hygrophila is a stem plant that requires bright light and some CO2>
Java fern
< A slow growing plant that does well in hard water and low light levels. Tie this one on to rocks and driftwood too. >
Amazon sword
< A plant tank staple. Slow to medium growth depending on the conditions. Bid plants are always showy.>
Ludwigia natans
< Same as Bacopa>
Sagittaria
< Does well in all kinds of water but prefers bright light. >
Several
So what do you think is the cause?
<Hopefully you have at least 2 inches of Seachem Fluorite as a substrate. If you have hard water the co2 is binding with the calcium in the water and turning into calcium carbonate with no co2 free for the plants. Is your water soft? Hard water sometimes interferes with the plants ability to uptake nutrients. How long do you leave your lights on for? One 40w bulb in a deep 55 gallon tank is barely going to cut it. They should be on at least 12 hours a day.>
  I took them out and they are just sitting
in a container w water right now.
< I would let them float in the aquarium right now under the light. See after a few days which ones are developing new roots. The Anubias and fern should be tied to something in the corner away from the light. Plant the ones that look like they are growing and toss the ones that look like they are dieing.>
Since roots are brown so I should just
get rid of them?
< If the plant is soft and mushy then it is time to get rid of them before they clog your filter.>
Maybe I should just quit trying to grow plants. Please help
me get to the bottom of this. What is happening? Why does everything smell
funky and dying?
< Try some of the easier plants like Cryptocoryne. They require low light levels and do well in Fluorite. Stay away from the stem plants unless you soften the water and add additional light.-Chuck>
Please help. Wonderful website and you that reply to these
questions are wonderful people. Thanks for your reply.

White mold on plant
Hello,
I'm a novice aquarium enthusiast and have maintained a fresh water aquarium for about 2 1/2 to 3 years. I have had live plants in my tank and never had any problem with them.
<3 years with a planted tank with no problems... Sounds to me you should upgrade you "novice" title.>
Recently (about 7 weeks ago), I went from a 10-gallon tank to a 35-gallon tank. (Fresh water.) Since the change, one of my older, more reliable plants has what looks like an enormous amount of white mold around it. There was some of this on the other newer plants (after about 3 weeks), but siphoning seemed to take care of the mold on the newer plants.
<This is actually a Fungus that is regularly seen in freshwater aquariums.>
My problem is, my old plant keeps getting the mold, no matter how much siphoning I do. And now, what's worse, it seems to be spreading out. It is white and flat, sort of like cotton.
<That description really sums up what Fungus looks like, If it was a large fuzzy look it would be a true fungus. The fungus you have I tend to find is easier to treat then the true fungus. I have never had a bad case in any of my planted tanks, the only problems I had were resolved by me adding some more current to the water and increasing the aeration (with an airstone and air pump) This seemed to cut down on the fungus problem. For your case it sounds like it might be a bit sever and medication should be considered. I would look at products by Jungle, like their "Fungus Eliminator". Read the package and make sure that this product won't harm any of the plants you have in your tank. I was also told that Aquatronics makes a product that helps with Fungus in the tanks. It's name is "Fungus Plus", and I haven't personally used it, but was told by multiple people that it works. I would do a bit more research online and see what you can find before jumping into it.>
I've had food that rotted on the plants before, and that mold seems to have a "fuzzy" texture like the question asked in your Q & A section, but this is NOT the same.
<Make sure you don't have extra food in the water, the extra nutrients can help feed growths like that. And be sure to keep up with the water changes to ensure the plants and fish stay healthy. I suggest you look for a rather nice book that was suggested to me for my planted tank. It's called "Ecology of the Planted Aquarium: A Practical Manual and Scientific Treatise for the Home Aquarist" by Diana L. Walstad. I'm sure you can find it at a local book store or library. If not then there are some rather impressive online forums specifically dealing with Planted aquariums, such as www.AquaPlant.com. Do a search online and I'm sure you will find a forum that you will enjoy. Many of the online forums can also give you suggestions for books to look up.>
Do you know what this is and whether or not I can correct this, or do I have to trash the plant? And more importantly, is this mold harmful to my fish (guppies; tetras; white clouds & an algae eater) ????
<Fish can become infected with Fungus, and other problems like Columnaris, which is the white slime on their body. If the conditions are right for this fungus to grow on plants than it can be able to effect the fish. If you add the medicines to the water it should help remove the problem.>
Thank you so much, Max Lenc
<Good luck. -Magnus>

Fresh Water Plants
Hi guys,
Is there any other solutions to be used instead of using aluminium sulfate
to eradicate the undesirable hitchers on the plants. How about dipping
into Methylene blue solution for a few minutes?
Thanks.
<A few other chemicals have been advanced for the job... not Methylene Blue. Alum (aluminum sulfate) is the best, safest yet (as far as I know of course). Bob Fenner>

Medicating a Large Plant Tank
Hi,
<Howdy>
I have a 100 G community setup that is moderately planted and  becomes more so every day.  It is also fairly well stocked with various small tetras (Amber, Cardinal, Rummynose, Costello, Green Fire, Dwarf Pencils etc), Corys (sterbai, panda, hasbrosus), a pair of whiptail cats, a large Farlowella, a gold nugget pleco, and a few freshwater shrimp.  It is currently filtered by a Eheim 2217, a Magnum 350, and two Penguin 550 powerheads with sponge filters.
<Sounds Nice, I love the Corydoras sterbai, great choice>
I also do 10-20% water changes every 7-10 days.   My problem is a few of the fish have a what appears to be a case of mild ich.  It affects mainly the Rummynose and the rainbow and emperor tetra pair.
<Rummy Nose  Tetras are a great indicator of developing problems.  Sounds like you have a good water change regime, keep an eye on the test kits, make sure nothing is out of whack.>
A few of the cardinals have it and if you look you can spot a dot here and there on a few other sp.  The fish seem unaffected and are quite active, feeding, and no one has died.  I have tried Quickcure with minimal results.  I've used copper before with good results but never in a planted tank.  Realizing that the shrimp will unfortunately die, I am also worried about the plants as I know some are copper sensitive, such as some sword plants.  Below is a list of what I currently have in this tank.  Can you tell me which ones are or are not copper sensitive?
Thanks
<I am really not sure which species are less sensitive to copper, I would not recommend using copper in the main tank at all.  Keep an eye on the fish with the spots, if they start to get worse start thinking about a small quarantine tank and brushing up on your fish catching skills.  Meds in the main tank can destroy your biological filtration, kill your plants and shrimp, it will cost a lot more to medicate 100 gallons as apposed to 10-20gallons.  You can use our google search to search for more specific information on the plants below, AquaBotanic is also a nice plant site.  Best Regards, Gage>
Anubias gigantea
Aponogeton rigidifolius
Barclaya longifolia
Bolbitis heteroclita
Crinum thaianum
Cryptocoryne usteriana
Egeria najas
Hydrocotyle leucocephala
Limnophila aquatica
Marsilea crenata
Nuphar japonicum
Nymphaea maculata
Nymphaea stellata
Vallisneria gigantea
Vallisneria spiralis

Re: please help i think i have mites !!!!!!!!!!!??????????
hello I just wondered if you would know I got a 10 gall. freshwater tank w/ live plants I just noticed tiny red bug i think they are spider mites but not sure they stay on top where the water where some of the plants come out .I also had some house plants around the tank so they might have came off them or the new plants i put in my tank i cant get rid of them so please if you know anything or anyway to get them outta there please let me know w/b       Dawn & Louie
<Possibly are mites or even aphids. Try "wicking them out" by dipping clean, non-printed (white) non-odorized paper towels over the surface. Dunk the emersed plants... and the "bugs" ought to stick to the wetted toweling. If this doesn't work we can talk about other ways to remove them. Bob Fenner>

Tiny Creatures on Glass
Hello Bob,
<Scott F. at your service!>
I have kept fish tanks for along time (20+ years) and am still amazed at how amazing they are to watch.
<agreed!>
I just started a first time project. I wanted to setup a live plant tank. I did a lot of research on the subject and have this setup. A 90 gallon tank with 4" of Fluorite for substrate. Compact Fluorescent lights(4-96W bulbs 2-5500k and 2 6500k) CO2 injection w/controller to keep pH at 6.8 for the discus I want to keep. A Fluval canister filter for filtration.
<Sounds nice!>
The tank is medium to heavily planted for about 2 weeks now. I did have some snails that were introduced with the plants. I will be purchasing a couple of clown loaches in a week or two to help with that problem. No fish yet. My question is this I came home this evening and did my usual of looking over the tank checking some test readings....Amonia-0...Nitrite-0....PH
6.78...1pp/L iron....Gh-3....KH-5.
<water parameters sound okay>
I was looking in the tank when I noticed what looked like these whitish spots on the front glass of the tank. Upon getting out a magnifying glass I noticed that they are moving on the glass. I also saw a larger about 1/8 inch long creature on the glass, kinda reminded me of a parasite I saw but that required a microscope. What are these? Do they present a problem? Will they hurt the plants or eventual fish I will be getting and if so how do I eradicate them?
<Hard to say from here. Many possibilities. They could be anything from baby snails to Planaria, or even hydra. Planaria could present problems for your fish should they spawn, as they can devour fish eggs. Hydra can ingest fry. These pests can usually be eradicated through natural measures, such as predators, like loaches, etc. New plants should be disinfected before planting and thoroughly inspected for snails. Do some research on wetwebmedia.com for more information on what these creatures might be and how to control them. Good luck!>
Sorry for being so long winded but any and all help would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you
Philip

Tiny creatures
Hello Bob,
<Hi Philip>
I have kept fish tanks for along time (20+ years) and am still amazed at how amazing they are to watch.
<Me too>
I just started a first time project. I wanted to setup a live plant tank. I did a lot of research on the subject and have this setup. A 90 gallon tank with 4" of Fluorite for substrate. Compact Fluorescent lights(4-96W bulbs 2-5500k and 2 6500k) CO2 injection w/controller to keep pH at 6.8 for the discus I want to keep. A Fluval canister filter for filtration.
<Sounds very nice>
The tank is medium to heavily planted for about 2 weeks now. I did have some snails that were introduced with the plants. I will be purchasing a couple of clown loaches in a week or two to help with that problem. 
<Good choice>
No fish yet. My question is this I came home this evening and did my usual of looking over the tank checking some test readings....Amonia-0...Nitrite-0....PH 6.78...1pp/L iron....Gh-3....KH-5.
I was looking in the tank when I noticed what looked like these whitish spotson the front glass of the tank. Upon getting out a magnifying glass I noticed that they are moving on the glass. I also saw a larger about 1/8 inch long creature on the glass, kinda reminded me of a parasite I saw but that required a microscope. What are these?
<Likely some sort of worm... an annelid...>
Do they present a problem? Will they hurt the plants or eventual fish I will be getting and if so how do I eradicate them? 
<I would do nothing... mainly these are transient, common experiences>
Sorry for being so long winded but any and all help would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you
Philip
<Enjoy the evolution/unfolding of your system. Bob Fenner>

Re: Tiny creatures
Dear Bob:
Thank you for your quick response, I just want to make sure I understand completely. I don't have to worry this is completely natural and don't do a thing? 
<Correct. I would "do" nothing>
They will not hurt the fish? I like the idea that I have successfully created a natural, evolving biosphere.
<I as well>
The plants are growing nicely. I do have very little green hair algae that is growing but not a problem. I read your article on algae eaters and will be getting some Otocinclus to help with that. I wont be getting any fish for at least one more week to allow the plants to thoroughly root themselves and get established.
Thank you again,
Philip
<You are well... on your way. Bob F>

The FW bane...
Hi guys,
<whasssup P-F, Antoine here>
The little desktop tank at work is going fairly well, but I wound up with that most common of hitchhikers on FW plants, rams horn snails. I want the buggers gone. Here's the problem though, I know Skunk and Clown loaches will eat them right up, but will they also eat the Malaysian Trumpet snails I want in there? 
<indeed all bets are off on the small/young at least>
Would the little MT's be safe, or am I looking at letting the Loach cleanup, having the tank sit fallow of snails for a while, and finding the Loach a new home when I restock the MT's?
<bingo!>
Thanks again! P-F

What is this Stuff Growing on my Plants?
Hi.
<<Hello, JasonC here filling in for Bob while he is away diving.>>
Great web site.
<<Bob will be happy to hear you like it...>>
I have what looks like mold growing and spreading on the live plants in my 20 gal freshwater aquarium. It looks like tiny little blackish-blue hairs - almost like a light covering of fur - growing on the leaves and stems. I've tried algae remover, but no improvement. I've also tested the water in my tank and it's within specs.
These are the effected plants:
 - Genus Bacopa
 - Hornworts
 - Ceratopteris
Any help would be greatly appreciated as the part-time teenagers at my local Petsmart and Petco are clueless and I've not seen any product other than algae remover for aquarium plants. <<Sounds like Blue/Green Algae, which is a pretty common affliction. Best removed by hand/gravel vacuum, and perhaps a rinse in fresh water.>>
Jeff Johnson
<<Cheers, J -- >>

Melting Plants
Hi!
I have two aquariums, and have older plats in one, and newer plants in another. Four days ago, I bought an Arrowhead, (again) and it has started doing what I term as a "meltdown". The plant is turning to mush more and more everyday. This is in a species tank where I keep the water at a 6.4 PH, and very soft hardness. I have Leaf fish. This is my second attempt at this beautiful plant, but they both just seem to melt. I also seem to be getting a little meltdown on my Green Wendth. Do you know causes this, and what do i do about it? I love my aquariums, and have been a plant lover for them for a while. I just can't get some species through this mushy meltdown stuff.
please help!
Stumped
<Could be a few things at play here... by an Arrowhead, I take it you mean some species of Sagittaria? One aspect that may be awry here is just the specimen... it may have been cultured before shipping in emersed condition... and subsequently just "drowned" by your placing it immediately underwater (surprised!? it happens). The other notable fact you mention is the water's pH... at 6.4 it may be low, but also is likely indicative of a lack of alkaline reserve (among other potentially lacking materials...) do you have test kits for alkalinity? Do you utilize soil, other purposeful additives to your system? You might want to (re)read the sections on the WWM site re setting up and maintaining planted aquarium systems here.
The "Wendth" you mention, is this a Cryptocoryne sp? They're "melt down" syndromes are typically due to maintenance issues... and being kept too long underwater (best to cycle above and below...)... Do get back to me with responses to the above questions if I may be of service.
Bob Fenner, just back from travel...