# PFS or SafeTSorb for my 75 gallon display tank?



## suds1421 (Feb 2, 2012)

bump for the morning crowd


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## Monster Fish (Mar 15, 2011)

Pool filter sand and root tabs would be easier. You wouldn't have to deal with the initial water softening.


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## discuspaul (Jul 27, 2010)

Go with PFS as you have done all along. You know how to deal with it and you won't need to worry about creating any mess.
I've kept PFS in all my tanks for years, including discus tanks, and wouldn't do without it.
Easy to keep clean, looks good/natural, and plantings do well in it, even with just root tab ferts.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Jun 15, 2008)

Hi suds1421,

Î like Safe-t-sorb #7941. The first cleaning is difficult but with the high CEC if i miss dosing ferts for a few days my plants don‘t suffer.

75 gal with Safe-t-sorb #7941


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## Diana (Jan 14, 2010)

STS removes carbonates. KH. 
Replacement with potassium bicarbonate or sodium bicarbonate works OK. 
Replacement by dusting the bottom of the tank with dolomite sand: I got a hard water tank. Just a little bit over did. 

Next time, I will place the dolomite in the filter. Then I can adjust the dose. 
In the mean time, my Swordtails have bred in the hard water tank!


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## suds1421 (Feb 2, 2012)

With how SafeTSorb strips out the hardness is there any room left in it for fertilzers? 

If you put it in with crushed coral, does it suck up all the coral with no room left for the main advantage, sucking up fertilizers?


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Jun 15, 2008)

Hi suds1421,

I did not add crushed coral to my tank because I like to have some control over the nutrients being added. Instead I added some bicarbonate of soda (baking soda / NaHCO3) and some equilibrium to the first rinse of the STS and that resolved the reduction of dKH and dGH. Diana's suggestion of adding it to a filter sounds like a workable idea as well. Substrates with a high CEC (cation exchange capacity) are constantly absorbing nutrients from the water column and releasing them to the roots of the plants in the root zone so they seldom become 'saturated' with nutrients.

10 gal with STS #7941


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## Juliek (May 17, 2014)

Roy where you able to find safe t sorb online or locally? I think this is what I am going to use in my 75 gallon I am setting up.

Julie


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Jun 15, 2008)

Hi Juliek,

I ordered my Safe-T-Sorb #7941 from WW Grainger a 40# bag is $12.65; the closest one to you is FIFE Branch #755; 2802 Pacific Hwy. E.., Fife, WA 98424-1021. I pick it up from their store so there is no shipping charges. I use 1/8" hardware mesh (cloth) to screen the Safe-T-Sorb and remove most of the dust and 'fines' ( I lose about 1/2 the bag but the cleaning is easier and the water does not stay murky longer than about a day or two). I believe I used 2-1/2 bags to get a substrate depth of about 2". After screening I added chemicals to increase the hardness as well as some of the Macro nutrients. Here is a thread of my 75 gallon build. Hope this helps!


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## caique (Mar 16, 2012)

Hey suds,

Have you looked into turface? Great stuff, its what they use on baseball diamonds. Its made of baked clay. Cheaper than safeTsorb.

Here is what it looks like in my 120 I used 75 pounds and its about 4 inches thick. Cost about $20


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## Juliek (May 17, 2014)

Thank you Roy......I will try and pick up some this week!


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## Diana (Jan 14, 2010)

Tractor Supply carries Safe-T-Sorb.
Irrigation supply types of stores carry Turface. Ewing, Horizon, John Deere and others. 

I like the multi-colored effect of STS better than the mono-color of Turface.


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## suds1421 (Feb 2, 2012)

What is the weight difference between Turface and STS? 

The other disadvantage I've read with STS is that it can be heard to plant in and snails like to unroot plants because it's so light.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Jun 15, 2008)

@suds1421,
I have used various heat treated Montmorillonite clay substrates over the years, Soilmaster Select charcoal (discontinued), Turface Pro League grey (grey discontinued), and now Safe-T-Sorb #7941. IMO STS #7941 is heavier than Turface Pro League; the Turface Pro League size has smaller grain size than the Turface MVP product. BTW, it looks like there is a new Pro League color out there...the Champion Brown looks interesting.

STS #7941 is definitely lighter than gravel or Flourite, more like the weight of ADA Aquasoil products. I would plan on at least 2" of substrate so newly planted stems stay in place. I don't have snails in any of my tanks so I cannot address your concerns in that regard.

@Juliek,
WW Grainger is likely not to have the STS #7941 in stock; call the store first and have them order the STS #7941 into their location; they will put it in "Customer Pick Up" for you.


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## barakainus (May 15, 2009)

Use Turface. It's smaller grain, way better color (get Heritage Red or Brown) and cleaner. It's best not to wash it at all. I tried washing it and it was always dirty but once you put it in the tank, the water clears ina day and even unrooting doesn;t make the water cloudy.
No, I usually put it in the tank dry, slowly fill with water and it's done. There will be bubbles going out of the ground for few days or weeks but it doesn't hurt anything.
I used Oil-Dri (the same stuff as Safe-T-Sorb) in one tank, but the washing was horible and even after two years, unrooting brings the fine dust in the water. Yes, I still have the tank but always thinking about switching to Turface as my other tanks.
btw, I set up 9 tanks with Turface in the past 1.5 years. They all do great.


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## Jnad (Aug 17, 2012)

Hello!

Interesting thread, i am using Kitty Litter (just burned red clay).

Will the lowering of KH stop over time or will it just continue?
If the lowering of KH always will go on, burned clay is only for those who dont mind always add biocarbonate to the tank.

Jnad


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Jun 15, 2008)

Jnad said:


> Hello!
> 
> Interesting thread, i am using Kitty Litter (just burned red clay).
> 
> ...


Hi Jnad,

The lowering of dKH will decrease over time; typically for me a takes 3 months or more unless I pre-load the Montmorillonite clay.


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