Hi All,
This pic of my moderately planted 55
(http://www.straightlinetech.com/tank30-mar-03.jpg) shows fairly well the
problem I'm having with cloudy water. Quick-specs:

My Aquarium Experience: 6 months
55 gallon, established 3 months, fishless-cycled
Ammonia, Nitrites, Nitrates: all zero
Ph: 7.6
Temp: 77
Water changes: 25% every two weeks.
Filtrations: Emperor 400

Lighting: twin-tube flourescent (80w) 12 hrs/day

Am I right that the cloudiness is likely from the driftwood tannins? I
really like these two pieces of wood and want to leave them in. I find that
using charcoal (comes in the standard Emperor filters) helps a little with
the cloudiness, but I also recall that charcoal removes certain trace
elements that the plants need.

So I'm not sure what to do - continue using charcoal?, not?, something else
entirely? Is there crystal-clear water in my future?

Any input much appreciated.
Thanks,
Howard