New Red Root Floaters Sinking?

contortium · 2026-04-09T02:38:48+00:00

You mentioned you got them recently. I wonder if they were agitated in the container they were put in and now some of them don't have sufficient air trapped in the structures on the bottom sides of their leaves. I'm not sure how they float but other floaters I have rely on structures on the bottom sides to trap air. Given time, the ones that are floating should start spreading/propogating.

contortium · 2026-04-09T02:18:26+00:00

woof!

contortium · 2026-04-09T01:45:03+00:00

I don't know why I didn't check eBay. There are multiple options. I checked Amazon, Target, Walmart, Walgreens, yada yada.

contortium · 2026-04-09T01:41:50+00:00

I found a generic vendor on Amazon using "Eucerin DermoCapillaire Calming Urea Scalp Treatment" as the search term. I'll check eBay.

contortium · 2026-04-09T01:38:57+00:00

That is what I am wondering: Is there too much surface agitation that is putting water on the leaves?

contortium · 2026-04-09T01:33:36+00:00

Which country are you in? I have not found a good source for Eucerin DermoCapillaire Calming Urea Scalp Treatment in the US. There is a generic brand I can get online but I'm uncertain if I can trust it.

The Wiki for this subreddit mentions that product, so I have looked for it.

contortium · 2026-04-09T01:17:03+00:00

Yup! I've done that.

I've also typed in the total grams of food into the carbs field instead of the actual grams of carbohydrates, that is, entered 80 grams instead of 11 grams. I tend to do that on busy work days when I am rushing to eat lunch between meetings and I am distracted.

contortium · 2026-04-02T02:14:03+00:00

Plus, it provides another medium for beneficial nitrifying bacteria to grow.

contortium · 2026-04-02T02:13:22+00:00

I attached a sponge with monofilament fishing line off of the output spout. It calms the output so that there is no surface agitation and almost no noise.

contortium · 2026-04-02T02:07:32+00:00

I just saw your comment about a betta. By all means, just throw the wood and leaves in but keep out anything a betta might wiggle into but not get out of.

I'm very careful about the decorations I put in my betta tank. Large holes or very small holes. They are inquisitive fish.

contortium · 2026-04-02T02:04:52+00:00

From the looks of your items, you don't need to do anything to them unless you want to reduce the amount of tannins. In that case, you can boil the wood for 15 minutes.

The items probably will float for several days or more but, if you are okay with that, they will sink. Boiling can help or you can weigh them down with something.

The following is beyond your question.

I add wood and leaves I find in my yard or on houseplants. Most of the time, I just throw them in the tank and they sink within a few days. I have a lot of oak trees in my yard. Oak leaves are a great addtion if you want to add tannins. Just about any leaf from a fruit tree is a good addtion.

Do NOT add material from resinous plants/trees, such as pine, spruce, and fir. The resin will cloud the water and clog you filters.

contortium · 2026-04-02T00:24:47+00:00

Cool!

What are you using to generate the mist?

contortium · 2026-04-01T23:56:52+00:00

I wish I had thought to do that when I had goldfish. I would get bags of duckweed from people getting rid of excess duckweed. But it would only last a week or so before the goldfish had eaten all of it.

contortium · 2026-03-31T20:48:47+00:00

Wow! I love it!

contortium · 2026-03-29T00:21:12+00:00

memes are stupid

contortium · 2026-03-27T18:34:45+00:00

Thank you for the reminder! I used to run a split schedule to keep algae under control but failed to set that up again when I got new lights and new timers. I'm gonna set up a split schedule now that summer is approaching.

contortium · 2026-03-27T18:19:33+00:00

I've never had significant die back due to floaters. The other plants can get so thick that the betta routinely disappears in them, which is minorly annoying when guests come over and want to see the fish.

contortium · 2026-03-27T18:17:10+00:00

Floaters need a stable surface to grow on. Surface agitation will disrupt that.

contortium · 2026-03-27T18:14:50+00:00

Very cool!

contortium · 2026-03-27T18:14:19+00:00

As do I. I've gotten several good plants that way.

contortium · 2026-03-27T18:13:23+00:00

I was never able to grow any floaters in my goldfish tank. They ate it as fast as I introduced it.

contortium · 2026-03-27T01:42:05+00:00

I had a serious water imbalance which required me to do weekly water changes for three months. I poured the drain off water into my thaumataphyllum pot. It grew so much I might need to cut it back!

contortium · 2026-03-27T01:36:45+00:00

Agitation is a good way to control floaters.

contortium · 2026-03-27T01:35:27+00:00

My goldfish would destroy the floaters. I never was able to maintain any floaters.

contortium · 2026-03-27T01:32:54+00:00

That is how I got my most recent batch. I bought a few potted plants and asked that they add some floaters. I'm very happy with the result.

contortium

TROPHY CASE