browning moss

[tigger1]

Ok they say java moss is almost unkillable but i think i've managed to do it. I bought small patches off of E-bay and they were nice and green. Now they are turning a shade of brown/rust. Here are the peramiters:

55 gal tank
7 mickey mouse platties
Ammonia = 0
Nitrite = 0
Nitrates = between 20-40
PH = 7.29 - 7.30
Lighting = 2 - 15W bulbs that came with the hoods
Temp = around 80 degrees

Had the moss for about a month and half now and sewed it to a piece of screening. Looks like the platties are nibbling on it to but not sure.

I made up another 10gal tank but it doesnt seem to want to cycle...ammonia just wont go down and no nitries or nitrates and that has been running about the same amount of time ive had the moss.

Please help if you can

[stirling84]

not sure if i can help here but my moss was all good in my 33g with 40w of lighting and the moss was pretty much on the floor of the tank but when i moved it to a smaller tank with about 2w a gallon the stuff fried as you are saying, maybe shading it a bit more will help.

[rich311k]

I have to beleive that the moss is just not getting enough light. I know people have had success with that same setup. How old are the bulbs? What color are they?

[Sarkazmo]

Not enough light wattage wise. How many hours a day do you have the lights on?

Sark

[tigger1]

Not sure how old the original plants were that the bulbs came off of, I've had the cuttings for almost 2 months. The were a nice green when i got them....the first bulb turned brown and the 3 new bulbs are starting to brown... They are at the bottom of the tank and i tried to make sure there were no silk plants covering them over.

I leave the lights on for about 8 hours because i do get algae, black patches on the silk leaves and brown stuff inside my my syphon box. It also gets refracted light that comes from the next room over.. not alot but some.

[rich311k]

I meant how old are the light bulbs in the hood?

[tigger1]

I meant how old are the light bulbs in the hood?


Sorry, I'm a true blond hehehe. They are about a year and 4 months. I started the project around June '08

[rich311k]

Before we give up on your moss, get new 6400k bulbs for your hood. Older bulbs lose there spectrum and light output as they age.

[tigger1]

cool thanks rich311k ill look into it. I'm recycling the 10 gal tank i have that was planned to be my moss tank which has a brand new light, if i cant get the 6400k lights right away maybe putting it in there will help.

Thanks again guys :)

[tigger1]

ok update:

I moved a patch of moss over to my cycling 10gal tank. Changed the bulb 3 days ago to an Aqua-glo 15wT8 18000K light. It says it has strong photosynthitic spectrum range to stimulate vigorous plant growth. There is nothing in the tank but the moss.

The moss still looks brown. I know there will prob be an adjustment time but how long should it take? Is it not wise to put the moss in there while cycling?

The peramiters on the 10 gal is:

Ammonia 1.0
Nitrites 0.0
Nitrates 0.0
bringing the temp up to about 80-82 degrees

[rich311k]

Give it some time to recover at least a month, it will not care about the cycle.

[EddyC]

Unlike fish, plants actually like the cycling period. Ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate provide necessary nitrogen to the plants, so most plants thrive when placed in a tank that's just beginning to cycle. So cycling the tank with the moss in it might actually help it.

As rich311k said, just give it more time.

[tigger1]

Thanks for the quick reply. 30 day countdown starting :)

[Denis Goulding]

I have the same problem, new bulbs, still brown??????