adding iron

[justDIY]

can I add iron in the form of rust?

like, putting rusty steel bolts in the substrate and a few in the canister filter

steel's a mix of iron, chromium and carbon ... I'm not sure about the chromium in the tank, I don't know if it's toxic or not

 

[Guest]

can I add iron in the form of rust?

I have no idea. For plants to use iron, it must be in its chelated form. However, I don't really know what that means , so i just use an iron supplement.

 

[shawmutt]

I probably wouldn't use rusty stuff as a medium, it's too likely to introduce unwanted contaminants into the tank. It's just easier IMO to buy the stuff made for aquarium plants.

 

[justDIY]

rusty stuff

aww darn ... rusty stuff is cheap - real cheap ... so cheap, some may call it free

A few gardening sites I visted talked about burying rusty nails, screws, soup cans in a garden after it's been tilled ... and the plants get a boost from absorbing the rust

but those are terrestial plants, not aquatic ... I'm sure chelated stuff works faster ... but it's $10 for a small bottle here ... can full of assorted rusty screws in the basement, free

maybe I'll try just a few small screws in the filter, that way they'll be easier to remove should something seem to be going wrong.

 

[JamesMJ2]

Chelated means the iron is bonded with something else to make it stable. Adding rust would discolor your water too. I would suggest some red pottery, it has some naturally occuring iron, and you can drill it to make a place for your fish to swim in and around. Also Try some acquatic soil it usually has inron suppliments in it. let me get a pic of my Fish pot so you can what I mean...

 

[Biggen]

I don't think I would put anything metal into my tank. It is possible that metal can leach contaminants into the water over time.

I don't dose iron into my tank at all since I have flourite as my substrate in my planted tank. It has all the iron my plants need. Also, since the iron is only in the substrate and not in the water column, algae can't use it all that much...

 

[justDIY]

yup, and I think good 'ol chemistry has gotten me anyway

further reading revealed that ferric oxide (rust), is Fe+++, which can't be easily absorbed by plants unless they're terribly desperate for iron

I guess I'll stick with root-tabs and try to find some flourish+iron online somewhere cheaper

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thanks y'all for your input!

 

[fishstixs05]

For many years people believed that to get iron levels in their tanks they could bury a few nails into the substrate. However this was disproved, as it was found that thise type of iron can not be brocken down and used by plants.

 

[Doraemon]

glmclell, try buying the stuff online. http://www.bigalsonline.com

$12.99 at my lfs....and it's only $7.29 online.