using fluorite-- do i need flourish iron?

[mgkaelen]

hi friends,
i recently set up my live plants, and they're doing alright. i've had them for about a week and have noticed my ciliata growing already, but the other plants i haven't noticed much growth. i haven't started any supplements, however i'm planning to buy flourish tomorrow. is it also necessary to have fluorish iron? i know fluorite is so rich in nutrients (iron at least) that i wasn't sure if i needed it --- is the normal old fluorish even necessary? i want my tank to become a jungle, but i only have 2wpg. i'm going to try to get up to 28 and also buy a CO2 setup in the next week..... now that i realize it, i think i have pretty high light plants and i don't think i have enough light as it is (green crypt, ciliata, indian water star (i think it's hygro polysperma-not sure though), microsword, red ludwigia, and a random assorted plant from petco (sunset hugro maybe? hard to say, it's still small); at least none of them are dead yet, and my puffers seem to be enjoying their tank so far! any suggestions about supplements etc would be appreciated. thanks guys.

 

[mgkaelen]

28 watts, that is (in my 10gal).

 

[Raimeiken]

8O i happen to be going to do the same thing. heavy planted tank + puffers 8O but in a 50 gal tank but i'm still looking for lights though, i only got a standard 48" 40watt light right now

 

[medge00]

i'd wait a bit to see how things go. eventually, you may need to add iron. but i wouldn't begin to think about iron until you have CO2. once you start adding CO2, you'll need to add other food for the plants, because they start growing at accelerated rates and need the nutrients to grow. without CO2 they don't grow as fast, thus they don't need too much added stuff all the time.

 

[MantisX]

Youll know if you need to add anything once the co2 comes along. It will drive the plants so hard, that you will see their quality go down a little bit. Maybe a lighter green or hanging over where theres bright light.

 

[betowess]

I'm not sure about this. But I think it takes a while for the flourite substrate to mature and build the various bio-chemical relationships before your plants will extract much iron. This is a good question for Rex. I believe some suggest putting a little peat below the substrate to speed up the process. I think it takes some months before the plants can pull substantial FE from the flourite.

Seachem's Iron is chelated meaning (I think) that it is dissolved in solution in the water. I think it can really help alot in a newish tank, but beware the dosing as it can jumpstart an algae issue. I know this the hard way. I wouldn't dose what they recommend. Some folks on the Krib suggest putting a little in and watch how the plants respond. If still too yellow, add a little bit more next time. Once nice and green back off til they look like they need it again. Many dose Seachem Iron 3X per week. Pottasium is important too. But always better to be under dosing than over. HTH

 

[madasafish]

As I understand it, "chelated" actually refers to the arrangement of metal and other ions in a cyclic molecule--here specifically to the arrangement of an iron ion (Fe2+ or Fe3+) bonded to at least 2 non-metallic ions. Chelated iron is more easily absorbed by an organism (humans included), possibly because it resembles an organic molecule (I think Chelated iron is also called "ferrous gluconate") in which case I assume it contains H, C, and O, all elements present in organic molecules. But that's 60% knowledge and a little research and the last 40% (second sentence) guesswork.

 

[Guest]

Chelated iron is organic iron. There are several chelate's that can be used. ETDA and gluconate are two of the most common.

The iron in Flourite is not available till you establish acidic conditions in the substrate. In a normal tank this can take weeks to months. I do recommend the addition of a small amount of peat at the bottom of the substrate to jump start this process.

2 wpg on a 10 gallon tank is IMHO a very low light tank. I doubt iron is going to help. You need to make sure that the major nutrients are right before you start wondering about iron.

 

[mgkaelen]

thanks for the suggestion, rex. i bought a CO2 thing, but i know it's the wpg that's more important than anything else. i'm hoping to raise the qpg up to about 28wpg (i have an incandescent hood and am looking for compact fluorescent bulbs .. they come in weird wattages) -- i'll be sure to put that in the tank soon. thanks!