# Schultz Aquatic Soil



## Qwertus (Oct 14, 2008)

Are there an amount of time i should wait before introducing fish to a new aquarium with this type of soil? I waited 1 day after filling it with water and soil before putting feeders in there alone with the filter media thats was currently on my 55gal tank(matured) and a few ornaments from that tank to help the growth of bacteria, so far both of those fish died a few hours after being in there.


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## mistergreen (Mar 3, 2007)

something else is going on. The soil is inert.


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## Qwertus (Oct 14, 2008)

Well even if the tank isnt fully cycled, filter and aeration should keep those feeders for more than just a few hours, the water is still a bit cloudy from the soil.


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## yum (Feb 11, 2008)

did you give the soil a good rinse? in my experience, i had to rinse mine at least 5 times to get most of the fine particulates out. the powder is so fine that it may have choked the fish's gills? i know that it certainly coated the inside of my nostrils and left an awful taste/smell for a while.


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## Mud Pie Mama (Jul 30, 2006)

I agree, something definately seems off.

I'd proceed w/ extra caution. If you have the standard test kits I'd run the whole range and compare Nitrite, Nitrates, Ammonia, KH & GH. Also, since you have no livestock there right now I'd try to do a 90 - 100% H2O change, just in case some type of contamination happened. The SAPS is very pourous; if it came in contact with any liquid spilled on the floor the bag sat on, it may have absorbed something peculiar: ie., cleaning products, garden chemicals, etc.


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## down_shift (Oct 16, 2008)

It took me a month to cycle my 2.5g with Java fern/Java Moss/Wendii, brand new red sea nano with SAS.

Did you test the parameters?


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## Qwertus (Oct 14, 2008)

I'll do as close to 100% water change as possible, wait a few days and put another feeder fish in again. Everything tested normal so far. (very close to my other tank)


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## Qwertus (Oct 14, 2008)

Alright i did a water change, 90%+ waited for about 2 days before dropping another minow in to test it. So far it survived for about 2-3 hours. The weird thing is, i saw what appears to be hair algae growing on that minow after only been in the tank for more than 1 hour.

Is it possible that the substrate give too much nutrient which created the "algae in crack" growth rate?


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## Rusalka (Jun 11, 2008)

Is the minnow still alive? Any updates? Perhaps a photo of the hair algae on your fish would help.

I've used schultz aquatic soil several times as a soil topper with no problems - but this sounds very strange to me. I agree with mud pie mama you may need to start fresh with a brand new bag of aquatic soil. 

Is your tank an NPT - aka does it have regular garden soil in it? Schultz aquatic soil doesn't have any nutrients in it - but it does absorb nutrients and any other substance VERY well. Do any you have live plants as well as decorations?


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

This may be a silly question but did you dechlorinate the water? It is very odd for fish to die a couple of hours after adding them to a tank.


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## mistergreen (Mar 3, 2007)

^^^ good point.. Or it's chloramine.


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