Plants on mesh mat growing on Coconut Fiber. Is it safe for my fish / water?

[Carpio]

Hi everyone, I recently purchased some Dwarf Baby Tears on mats. They finally came in and they are beautiful. I noticed that there is a very tough strawlike bed that the plants were rooted in on the mat. I pulled the straw off one mat but left the other as I had no idea what it was. I left the other mat on because the roots of the plans were so tangled up in it that I felt like I was killing the plant by pulling it off.

After some research on the site, I purchased the plants from it turns out it is coconut fiber. Should I pull the coconut fiber off the second mat or just leave it because it's safe. Here is a picture of the fiber that I pulled off the first mat.




Does anyone have experience with this or any advice? Thanks, everyone!

 

[Anteater]

I don't have any experience with this particular scenario, but coconut huts are often used in aquariums. I think the fibres are safe if they are from coconuts, and you can just put them in the tank attached to the plants.

 

[Sauceboat]

They are safe to use but I think they may release quite a bit of tannin

 

[Carpio]

Thanks, everyone! I've decided to leave the coconut fiber in the tank. It's sandwiched between the plant mat and the substrate. I'll be monitoring any fluctuations. I appreciate the support!