fluorite vs laterite: am i missing something here?

[mgkaelen]

hi friends.. have been talking to people like allivymar and madasafish but i must not be understanding what the deal is with fluorite and laterite... i thought laterite was more $$ but the websites i'm on keep showing the fluorite is the more expsnvie purchase!

for a 15lb bag of fluorite (which says will give me a 2" bed in a 10g tank), the best price i can find is $14.99

however, "first layer pure laterite" says it will treat one oz per gallon, meaning that a 20 oz box will treat 20 gallons. the smallest pack i can find is 20 oz and that's only 10.99! if i could find a 10 oz bag, i assume it would be roughly $6... ?!

for both of these substrates, is it necessary to also add gravel/another layer? i'm pretty sure with the laterite you use gravel, but what am i missing here ??

 

[mgkaelen]

update i see 20 oz of laterite on bigals for $6.99 ?!

 

[BrianNY]

Hi Meg, This is just my opinion. Get Eco-Complete from From Drs Foster and Smith on line. I bag is 20lbs for $17.99 plus $4.50 shipping. It may cost a little more but you'll be happier in the long run. There is no rinsing needed, it's buffered and mineral rich, and you won't need any other substrate.

Brian

 

[stoneydee]

I just set up a tank using flourite as the base substrate and did put about an inch of gravel on top of it, because regardless of how well you rinse, it is still very dusty and I didn't want the major murkiness afterward. My understanding about laterite is that it can also cause major clouding and a lot of folks use regular gravel on top of it also. The gravel also helps to anchor the plants. Flourite is pretty tiny grains, although certainly not as small as sand.

I have heard of folks just using either as the only substrate, placing a piece of paper on top of it, then a plate when you add your water, to avoid the cloudiness. Then you very carefully remove your plate and paper. The reason I chose flourite over laterite was 1) availability and 2) an interview with a Seachem rep I read. Supposedly, I shouldn't have to add iron for quite a while.

 

[spellweaver9]

Yes, i would go with eco-complete, i have a tank with flourite and one with eco-complete, the eco-tank looks better, less messy, plants look great against the dark colour of the eco-complete-also in my opinion the eco tank plants look alot better!!-flourite was a mess and still is when i vacuum the gravel-makes water look like muck.

 

[Guest]

Flourite is a complete substrate. Laterite is a substrate additive. You would need gravel to place over it. But I too will say get the Eco-Complete.

If you rinse the Flourite correctly there is very little problem with cloudiness in the tank.

 

[betowess]

I have flourite which I rinsed the heck out of. I have no cloudiness with it when I'm replanting and moving the gravel. My plants are doing well in it!

 

[spellweaver9]

Thats the great thing about eco-complete- no rinsing you just pour the whole bag in -liquid and all

 

[malkore]

laterite IS more expensive...here's why: it doesn't last forever. Every couple of years you'll have to remove all the gravel and put in more laterite.
Flourite doesn't last forever...only a couple hundred years...initially it might be more expensive but over the long haul it's cheaper, and honestly after a couple of gravel vaccuming's it doesn't cloud up badly at all...where as laterite will ALWAYS cloud up if it's disturbed.

 

[Robert H]

Thats not true. Laterite will last just as long as Flourite. They are both basicaly clay. Clay is inert, it lasts for ever. Technically laterite is a little different from clay, it is a weathered soil. It does not break down.

Like Rex said, laterite is an additive. You put less than an inch of it mixed with gravel underneath two or three inches of gravel. It cost much less than Flourite, but you need gravel to go with it. Flourite is a clay gravel that can be used by itself.

Eco Complete may be used by itself and is fortified with reallly all the trace minerals plants need. Flourite and laterite basicaly only provide iron. Eco Complete also has live bacteria and is packed in black water. Black water is made from peat and other tannins which softens the water and provides organic acids that make the minerals easier for the plants to use.

Robert
www.aquabotanic.com

 

[Electrobes]

heck I used the shulz pond soil/gravel at walmart