alan mcilvried June 30, 2007 Share June 30, 2007 I have a window pretty close to my tank, and was wondering if siphoning water into the yard for water changes will eventually kill the grass? I've stared dumping water in one spot in my yard as a test. So far seems ok, but only 3 or 4 times so far. Who thought that aquariums and agronomy would be intermingled topics? Al Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
modelrr June 30, 2007 Share June 30, 2007 I would think the salt would eventually kill the grass Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kngfisher June 30, 2007 Share June 30, 2007 I did this a few times and in the beginning, all seemed well....not issues.....then time passed and the damage was seen....the salts burned the leaves of bush I was "watering"......the grass died too.....had not weeds though :-) ..... yes, it seamed like a great idea rather then tossing the used tank water down the drain but over time, not so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason the filter freak June 30, 2007 Share June 30, 2007 ASK DAN ASK DAN! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArtC June 30, 2007 Share June 30, 2007 I have a window pretty close to my tank, and was wondering if siphoning water into the yard for water changes will eventually kill the grass? I've stared dumping water in one spot in my yard as a test. So far seems ok, but only 3 or 4 times so far. Who thought that aquariums and agronomy would be intermingled topics? Al Yes. Needs to build up to some level, but unless you happen to have a lawn of marsh grass... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salt_the_earth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toastiireefs June 30, 2007 Share June 30, 2007 (edited) ooops... i have been watering my mothers garden with waste water-- i figured 1) the roots would kinda filter out the salt- and there has been so much rain its not that much compared to the amount of fw 2) the old water has nitrates and trites in it that plants need to grow- after the nitrifying bacteriea in the plant nodes/nodules w/e they are called changes the nitrogen compound into a useable form.. nitrate right? so wouldnt it actually be helpful- besides the salt i guess it would be supplementing your soil with nitrates that have been other wise depleted by the plant growth- we have TONS of plants in our yard- idk about grass for this situation but regular flowers etc instead of planting legumes for a year to make the soil rich we are directly adding the compound to the soild- there for making the soil more nutritious and beneficial for the plants NITROGEN CYCLE PPL WE SHOULD KNOW THIS STUFF!!! He'll (without the ') i could be completely wrong... - sara EDIT: so i read the wiki article-- which doesnt sound too promising- i guess salt just has bad effects- but my other reasoning for the nitrogen was good-- huh? right? *nudge nudge* Edited June 30, 2007 by toastiireefs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArtC June 30, 2007 Share June 30, 2007 ooops... i have been watering my mothers garden with waste water-- i figured 1) the roots would kinda filter out the salt- and there has been so much rain its not that much compared to the amount of fw 2) the old water has nitrates and trites in it that plants need to grow- after the nitrifying bacteriea in the plant nodes/nodules w/e they are called changes the nitrogen compound into a useable form.. nitrate right? so wouldnt it actually be helpful- besides the salt i guess it would be supplementing your soil with nitrates that have been other wise depleted by the plant growth- we have TONS of plants in our yard- idk about grass for this situation but regular flowers etc instead of planting legumes for a year to make the soil rich we are directly adding the compound to the soild- there for making the soil more nutritious and beneficial for the plants NITROGEN CYCLE PPL WE SHOULD KNOW THIS STUFF!!! He'll (without the ') i could be completely wrong... - sara EDIT: so i read the wiki article-- which doesnt sound too promising- i guess salt just has bad effects- but my other reasoning for the nitrogen was good-- huh? right? *nudge nudge* Yes, you are right about the nitrates. Bird waste, bat waste, cow waste are all used as fertilizer - why not fish waste? Unfortunately for the plants (and fortunately for your livestock!), your waste water has nitrates measured in ppm and salt measured in 10s of ppt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveS June 30, 2007 Share June 30, 2007 I've wondered about this a lot! Let me add another twist to the question- in addition to the grass, what do people think about saltwater going down a septic system? For me, I'm not on the public sewer system. So my waste water has to go to either the grass or septic. Which one is the better option? yes, grass might die but for septic, do I need to worry about a rusting septic tank? What about increased salinity killing all the bacteria that are supposed to "process" the waste? I'd rather have problems with dead grass than you-know-what... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toastiireefs July 1, 2007 Share July 1, 2007 more worth it to have bad grass than pay for plumbing! i say dump the water in a weedy area or an area where there is no garden or something- at a base of a tree- or take it too a park and spill it out in a forest haha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite July 1, 2007 Share July 1, 2007 saltwater burns when a person has even the tiniest cut, so I would think it would burn a plant in large quantities. Maybe dumping it over a compost pile would work out ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArtC July 1, 2007 Share July 1, 2007 I've wondered about this a lot! Let me add another twist to the question- in addition to the grass, what do people think about saltwater going down a septic system? For me, I'm not on the public sewer system. So my waste water has to go to either the grass or septic. Which one is the better option? yes, grass might die but for septic, do I need to worry about a rusting septic tank? What about increased salinity killing all the bacteria that are supposed to "process" the waste? I'd rather have problems with dead grass than you-know-what... I live on the Bay - just mail your old water to me and I'll dump it in with the rest of the saltwater. Looks like the salt doesn't damage the septic tank, but it can damage the field over time. The salts supposedly can force chemical reactions that form clays in the surrounding soil. And clay has lousy perc rates. Whether your water changes crank out the amount of salt that a water softener does is another question. http://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/gndwater/privatewe...rs.htm#Research Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fab July 1, 2007 Share July 1, 2007 In ancient times, conquering marauders sowed fields with salt to destroy the arability of soil. That was a way to vanquish an enemy far into the future. The Romans did this to Carthage and totally annilated it for the rest of history. Don't kid yourself about dumping saltwater on lawns or gardens. You will produce a disaster over time and it will be extraordinarily difficult to restore your soil to being fertile. fab Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite July 1, 2007 Share July 1, 2007 good info fab - i only knew about "scorched earth" as far as the subject goes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mike & Michelle July 1, 2007 Share July 1, 2007 (edited) One only needs to go to Florida after a hurricane to see the damage saltwater and salt spray does to all types of plants. Having grown up there, I can tell you that saltwater will kill grass/plants. Mike Edited July 1, 2007 by Mike & Michelle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fab July 2, 2007 Share July 2, 2007 Forrest, "Scorched Earth" often actually improves soil fertility. It is used to deny an enemy of short-term use of real and personal property, not long term degradation of arable property. That is unless the scorching includes non-biodegradable toxins. fab Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite July 2, 2007 Share July 2, 2007 (edited) Forrest, "Scorched Earth" often actually improves soil fertility. It is used to deny an enemy of short-term use of real and personal property, not long term degradation of arable property. That is unless the scorching includes non-biodegradable toxins. fab The tactic is the same, to make the land unusable. If the goal is to take the land, you don't want it to be useless for a very long time, however if the goal is to scr*w over the other people and not to acquire the land, the longer the problem the better. Back to the real topis.... I think it's well estalished now that it's best to not dump the water on plants or soil. Perhaps a home distillery is the way to go, then you can just purify the water and re-use it (i don't know if it's legal) Edited July 2, 2007 by treesprite Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman July 2, 2007 Share July 2, 2007 The tactic is the same, to make the land unusable. If the goal is to take the land, you don't want it to be useless for a very long time, however if the goal is to scr*w over the other people and not to acquire the land, the longer the problem the better. Back to the real topis.... I think it's well estalished now that it's best to not dump the water on plants or soil. Perhaps a home distillery is the way to go, then you can just purify the water and re-use it (i don't know if it's legal) I can't imagine there are any laws against distilling freshwater from saltwater. Just keep the corn mash out of it - don't want to compete with the ethanol people. Of course, you still have the salt residue to take care of. I've been pouring saltwater on the gravel driveway, but so far it doesn't seem very good at killing THAT grass. bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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