# Does Eco-Complete go bad?



## Nlewis (Dec 1, 2015)

Functional said:


> Bought everything for a planted tank about 3 years ago and ended up not setting anything up (some life changes). Finally am able to set up a proper tank again and am going to give the planted tank a try. I have 4 sealed bags of Eco-Complete but I have no idea if there is any type of beneficial bacteria that may not have lived the 3 years or whatever. Is my soil still good to use or will I have to pick up some new stuff?
> 
> Thanks guys!


No, it doesn’t go bad. It’s inert rock.


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## Nubster (Aug 9, 2011)

At most you might rinse it but I don't know it's needed. The substrate itself is just lava rock.


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## Functional (Jan 19, 2018)

Thanks guys...if I remember right this stuff was the stuff to use back when I bought it and never bothered to look it up until now. Seems the trend is back on the sand and/or soil with fertz again. Not sure how I feel about the potential for PH/KH swing either...even though its temporary I've been seeing only 3-4 weeks up to 6 months of effects on water. Might end up with PFS anyway.


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## Nubster (Aug 9, 2011)

It's lava rock. Should be no affect on water parameters.


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## madcrafted (Dec 23, 2017)

During the first two weeks I was getting higher GH readings. I didn't rinse mine, though. I was under the impression that it sped up cycling, so I let it be. It was perfectly suitable for shrimp. Now I have to add GH booster to get back in that ideal range... both for plants and shrimp. As previously stated, the media itself is inert.


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## FishRFriendz (Dec 21, 2016)

Interesting. You'd end up paying more using eco-complete or flourite.


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## CRS Fan (Jan 14, 2010)

Eco Complete has calcium in it and will buffer up the water (sometimes above a PH of 7) initially. But the buffering capacity does taper off over time (usually over a 3-6 month period). 

Best regards,

Stuart


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Functional (Jan 19, 2018)

CRS Fan said:


> Eco Complete has calcium in it and will buffer up the water (sometimes above a PH of 7) initially. But the buffering capacity does taper off over time (usually over a 3-6 month period).
> 
> Best regards,
> 
> ...



Yea this is what I've read, seems hit or miss depending on the batch. Think I'll sell it off locally and just use BDBS instead. Planning on keeping german blue rams and i'm already at a PH of 7 out of the tap. Not looking to fight PH even more with the Eco.


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