# Flourite? Whats it like



## Gemleggat (Oct 10, 2004)

Hi i am thinking of buying a load of flourite for a new set-up, i live in the uk and i has only recently became easy to come by, whats it like? does it cloud water etc....... I am used to using the dennerle type system with lots of quartz (small grain) over the "soil" with heating cables.


----------



## Gemleggat (Oct 10, 2004)

Has anyone tried this stuff?

http://217.112.90.103/eshops/cat.as...lay&ppp=5&md=False&bc=000000&group=Substrates


----------



## pineapple (Jan 22, 2004)

Flourite is popular.

Treated carefully, it does not cause clouding. But you would do well to do a search on this board and some others to learn about planted tank enthusiasts' experiences and related advice.

My personal advice is to place it in a bucket, squeeze out an old filter over it, add a little water to cover, and let it dry out completely over several days. It can become a little smelly during this process. When completely dry, lay out on newspaper to make sure, place in your aquarium, plant and fill carefully with water.

Other people repeatedly wash Flourite to rid it of dust. It requires a lot of washing. By using the method I have detailed above, you will find that the small dust-sized particles bind to the main grains.

I also add some coarse silica sand to Flourite. Flourite by itself is a bit coarse, IMO. The sand makes it easier for plants such as Eleocharis, Marsilea etc to establish roots.

Andrew Cribb


----------



## Gemleggat (Oct 10, 2004)

my main concern that it was to course to lets some plants with runners pick through it easily, i'll maybe mix it with something else.......


----------



## Bonsai (Jul 26, 2004)

I've rinsed it a little, I've rinsed it alot ..... either way, it'll cloud up at first. after a day, it's pretty clear. I, personally, prefer the look of Eco-complete but the flourite works well too.

It's got lots of "sharp-edged" pieces which I learned when one jammed under my fingernail .... other then that, it's all good.


----------



## Rex Grigg (Dec 10, 2002)

Once I figured out the secret to washing Flourite I have never had a problem with it clouding the tank. Also I place a plate over the substrate and slowly add the water. Works pretty well. I can wash a bag of Flourite in about 10-15 minutes MAX. I agree cutting it with up to 50% coarse sand (based on depth not weight) works quite well.


----------



## Gemleggat (Oct 10, 2004)

i'll try it, it only been easy to come by for a short time and no one stocks it, i have managed to find a online site which does it in the UK.


----------



## pufferfreak (Oct 19, 2003)

My flourite looks good, 100% flourite, 2 bags of regular flourite and 1 bag of flourite red, I mixed them evanly. I never washed the bags (should NOT do this ha) and from planting plants my water is cloudy for like 2 days afterwards lol


----------



## Marc (Oct 13, 2004)

from my understanding you are not suppose to was flourite? Washes away the "good stuff"


----------



## Wö£fëñxXx (Dec 2, 2003)

Flourite is good stuff, if you wash it good and use a plate on substrate to fill, there will be almost no cloud at all, crystal clear in a few hours roud: 
I have a couple of tanks with Flourite/sand no complaints, I actually like it better than Eco Complete, but thats a personal preference thingy :wink:


----------



## Rex Grigg (Dec 10, 2002)

Marc said:


> from my understanding you are not suppose to was flourite? Washes away the "good stuff"


What "good stuff" would that be? The dust that can require a diatom filter to get rid of? You can't wash away the iron. But you can wash away the dust. If you wash the Flourite correctly you will retain all the "fines" but rid yourself of the dust. And it can be very very dusty.


----------



## Marc (Oct 13, 2004)

Rex Grigg said:


> What "good stuff" would that be? The dust that can require a diatom filter to get rid of? You can't wash away the iron. But you can wash away the dust. If you wash the Flourite correctly you will retain all the "fines" but rid yourself of the dust. And it can be very very dusty.


Well from my personal experience, i cant say that washing or not washing Flourite has made a difference in my plants, as far as "good stuff" is concerned. I was always told that washing it was not needed. The dust does cause the water to be cloudy, but it usually goes away in a day.


----------



## malkore (Nov 3, 2003)

but if you don't wash is Marc, it'll come back with a wicked vengence whenever you do anything in your tank.

Plus the last 3 bags of flourite I used had large dirt clods in them. Adding a 1/4cup of mud to my precious tank would make Malkore a very angry plant geek.


----------



## Marc (Oct 13, 2004)

malkore- yes that is very true. I was just always told not to wash it, so i never did. after a couple of water changes it was alot better...so i guess you guys are right- save your self the trouble and wash it out. :tongue:


----------



## ACFishTank (Jul 26, 2004)

I have recently used onyx (by Seachem), but has also used flourtie in another tank. So far its proved to be great. I have a difficult time growing hairgrass in pure flourite because it was coarse. If you are going to use flourite, you may want to mix it with a finer substrate as well. And everyone is right... its a pain to clean.. not your ordinary gravel.. but seems to be worth it in results!


----------



## Darks!de (Oct 19, 2004)

Yeah, i just got flourite the other day, mixed like 50/50 with my fine gravel. I washed it in a bucket for about 30min, and yet when i put it in, it clouded my tank pretty bad. A day later, it's pretty much clear, but not 100%. I can see the dust particles settling on the bottom and creating a fine layer on everything...is there any way to clean that up? or will it eventually just bind with the rest of the substrate? can i vac it up?


----------



## Bonsai (Jul 26, 2004)

it will eventually bind to the subtrate ... however, I've had to "slap" some of the plants for a few days in order to get that dust to circulate rather than sit on its leaves.

I just set up another 2.5g w/ 50/50 flourite & gravel ... however, instead of mixing I just flopped the gravel on top of the flourite. I figure that it'll mix itself in time and my plants art planted through the gravel into the flourite. there was virtually no dust when I filled it with the water. Of course, that's only 2.5g ... not, say, 75g.


----------



## g8wayg8r (Dec 24, 2003)

I just planted a 10-gallon tank with a bag of washed and dried flourite and the tank was a bit cloudy after adding water for the first time. After a few day most of the fine stuff settled out. Whenever I extract a plant or put a new one in there is alway a small cloud but it seems to settle out faster now than when it was new. The plants seem to like it. I would use it again and probably cut it with some coarse sand like others have suggested.


----------



## speechless33759 (Sep 11, 2004)

One way to get the water clearer faster when I fill it is after rinsing the flourite and putting it in the tank, take a bowl/dish on one end of the aquarium and pour some water onto the dish. When you get enough water in abou 2 inches...start sucking up water at the other end of the tank...then while it is sucking add more water to the other end. The cleaner water will begin to push the dirtier water towards the opposite end which will be sucked up by the hose or whatever you have pulling at that end...usually will have to fill a 5 gallon bucket up with bad stuff but the tank is really clear after about 1-2 hours....but then again I have well water so I don't have to pay for my water!


----------



## Gemleggat (Oct 10, 2004)

I think i'm going to cut it with some coarse sand if i do use it. I guess i dont mind clouding if it clears up. Thanks


----------



## Georgiadawgger (Apr 23, 2004)

Rex Grigg said:


> What "good stuff" would that be? The dust that can require a diatom filter to get rid of? You can't wash away the iron. But you can wash away the dust. If you wash the Flourite correctly you will retain all the "fines" but rid yourself of the dust. And it can be very very dusty.



so true....I put 5 bags in my 46g tank and it was a cloudy mess. Of course we (my GF and I) haphazardly rinsed it through a spaghetti collander, but my diatom filter cleaned up all the residual "dust". It did take about 4 re-charges though. I'm actually glad I washed it and used the vortex since when I have to do my scaping there isn't much of a mess (except for the usual fish mulm) that gets stirred up.


----------

