[gnome]

Well, here's visual proof that the "Flourite trick" really works. Go to the album that's titled "Flourite..." (I think it's the second one).
http://f2.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/mizmo_naomi/my_photos

I bought a bag today, spread some out on plastic sheeting in full sun, did NOT RINSE whatsoever, and let it go bone-dry.

Sprinkled some Fluval Peat Granular on the bottom of the 4-gallon 'long' tank, covered with ~1.5" of the dried Flourite, added water, and you can see that the water never got very dirty at all. There was some dust on the surface, but I didn't even bother to skim it off before taking the photo. I took the picture just minutes after filling the tank.

It works! So no more "Flourite is too dirty..." again! Just remember to dry completely, first.

-Naomi

 

[defdac]

(I think it's the second one).

Only one album is published: "My photos".

 

[gnome]

Oh, dear... I hope it'll work, now. Was I supposed to change the "sharing settings?" Because the only one that was set on "for public viewing" was the "My Photos."

I just changed the rest of them. If it still doesn't work, please tell me immediately. I'll get my computer nerd hubby to fix it. Thanks so much!

-Naomi

 

[AquaCan]

good news gnome
it works!
and it seems the the trick works real well too

 

[gnome]

Thanks, AquaCan!

-N

 

[gnome]

I just added two more photos showing how it looks this morning. I ran an AZOO Palm Filter overnight and it cleared up the mild haze.

-Naomi

 

[Daemonfly]

In reply to original post:

You must have had a "clean bag" of Flourite if you didn't have the dust problems. Last time I used Flourite, it was completely dry and it still clouded the tank quite a bit. It's pretty much hit or miss as to wether you'll get a very dusty bag or not. WHen I first tried flourite, it went right into the tank from the bag - hardly any "dust storm" then. Second bag, I wasn't so lucky.

 

[Macbrush]

This is the best cleaning method I have ever learned! You're my man! I have 30 bags coming next week!

I guess it works because when Flourite is completely dried, most dust would come off and land on the bottom.

But I agree with that sometimes it really depends on luck. I had a few bags of Flourite Red's which took 30+ rinses, and still clouded the water to 0 visibility; while I had 2 bags of Flourite, which only took 2 rinses to be almost completely dust free!

 

[dennis]

I have a better fix I tried eco recently, it costs $2 more from Drs. Foster and Smith, looks twice as nice, is live cultures, better for plants and absolutely no clouding. There was some have, very minimal that wsa cleared up in a few hours. No rinsing. I am sold

BTW, gnome is "the woman"

 

[gnome]

BTW, gnome is "the woman"

Thanks, Dennis :lol: !

Actually, I have a 10-gallon tank in which I used one whole bag of Eco-Complete. I love it, too! Same price, the color is a lot more pleasing and I got only slightly more haze when I first added it to my tank. It also cleared overnight. Only thing is, I've heard people claim that their GH and KH were being affected by this stuff, and I, myself, was wondering why the hardness in this particular tank was often so high, when it's practically zero degrees out of the tap. So while I have no proof that it's because of the Eco-Complete, I decided to do my new tank with Flourite in case there was a connection.

The most annoying thing about Flourite for me is the color. I remember when I first got cherry red shrimp, I couldn't see them sometimes because they blended in so well with the substrate. They definitely look best on something black like Eco-Complete. But I had to give up on cherry shrimp because they were too expensive and never survived long. So the redness of Flourite is no longer such an issue for me. It never affected hardness, either.

When I began filling that little tank with water, I noticed the Flourite "sizzling." It's just like the sound activated carbon makes when you first wet it. I guess it's assurance that the stuff is *completely* dry. So if you try this method, listen for that sizzling sound. And make sure you don't pour the water right onto the Flourite. It's best to add gently, either trickling down the side of the tank or onto a shallow plate, like I did.

30 bags :shock: ! That's a LOT of Flourite!!! And it would be a LOT of water wasted if you were to rinse it in the traditional way. You could empty out one of the Great Lakes .

Good luck!

-Naomi

 

[Corigan]

I guess it's all preference. I like the color of flourite. I'm not sure I would agree with your statement dennis of "better flor plants". I think both substrates are GREAT for plants. I think it just comes down to personal choice. I have also heard about the buffering of the water with the "liquid amazon" and am skeptical of what is actually in the liquid. I know many people have setup tanks dumping the liquid from eco straight into the tank, but I for one am too paranoid to do that and stick with flourite. I did recently mix tahitian moon sand with flourite in one of my newer tanks and love the results that it is producing.

Matt

 

[dennis]

Thanks for catching that corigan I guess I was a little over zelous there. I was think ing that Eco has more nutrients in it initially but those will get used up over time. I too have heard about the buffering effect of the eco. Maybe I will go test mine now. I have read that the buffering ability does not last that long. I don't know.

 

[ShaneSmith]

I wish i had read this before setting up some tanks i used flourite with. Washing was a PAIN i used 7 2x2 foot boxes sent from seachem. IT TOOK FORTY MINUTES TO REDUCE THE CLOUD IN ONE BOX!