Seachem Fluorite - Super Cloudy/dusty!

[KRiggz]

So I just got a bag of Seachem Black Sand & Seachem Dark, love the substrate, but it turned my tank into a massive cloudy mess! I moved all my stock because I was changing the substrate and figured I'd have a cycle crash dumping all the bacteria in the old substrate. The dust is settled into the substrate so anytime I touch it, it sends clouds everywhere re-fogging the tank after it partially clears up. Thinking about just stirring all the up & siphoning the tank but it hasn't been working well the first time. What should I do!?

 

[Bryangar]

Yeah, that thing is really dusty since it’s clay. it’s usually recommend to rinse almost a million times before adding(not really a million, just exaggerating).

 

[KRiggz]

Yeah, that thing is really dusty since it’s clay. it’s usually recommend to rinse almost a million times before adding(not really a million, just exaggerating).

Yeah... So much for "pre-rinsed" lbs. Idk what to do.

 

[NYFishGuy]

Gravel vac the dust. Looks good but requires a lot of rinsing

 

[Bryangar]

Yeah... So much for "pre-rinsed" lbs. Idk what to do.

I don’t think it says it’s pre rinsed anywhere. You can take it out and wash it in pure tap water. But I wouldn’t add the fish until you’re done.

 

[KRiggz]

I don’t think it says it’s pre rinsed anywhere. You can take it out and wash it in pure tap water. But I wouldn’t add the fish until you’re done.

The back of the bag (directions) says that it's pre rinsed, but since it's a natural product it may still have dust that settles in during transport or something similar to that..

Gravel vac the dust. Looks good but requires a lot of rinsing

How to rinse when it's already in the tank?

 

[WetRootsNH]

So, I've been there on this one...
You say the fish are not in the tank, right?
Remove any decorations/plants,
Add a little water, swirl around by hand, drain water, add water, swirl around by hand, drain water, add water, swirl around by hand, drain water, add water. Repeat.
It'll take forever and hot seemed to help.
Eventually it will run mostly clear.
At least, that's what I did.

 

[Cichlidude]

Fluorite should be washed at least 5 times before adding to aquarium.

 

[NYFishGuy]

plunge gravel vac into substrate 1-2", watch all the dust lift out, repeat 60 times or until bottom of tank has been vac'd

 

[mach6]

I bought a bag a while ago and don't recall it came dusty and rinsed clear pretty quick.

Now the fluorite alternative I got Saf-T-Sorb was so dusty that I gave up trying to rinse it. Even in smaller batches the water never became fully clear.

When I set it up, it was an empty tank so it eventually cleared up and settled overnight. You can try siphoning it but not sure how much you can really get out, good thing the sand is heavy enough to not be sucked away.

 

[86 ssinit]

I bought one 20lb bag of the red flourite to mix with 120lbs of eco-complete. I rinsed it and mixed it in. Thought wow I’m adding clay to the eco this is gonna be great. Tank was orange for about a week!!! Bought polishing pads and added them to all filters changed water daily. Took weeks to get rid of it . Every time I add or move a plant the dust comes up. Every time I vacuume the gravel it comes out red. It been a year now .

 

[ryanr]

Hi,
This is all pretty normal for Flourite. I've had Flourite in my Freshwater Planted for 10+ years, and it still stirs up cloudy if I really get stuck into it with the gravel vac.
IME - rather than digging into the substrate with the vac, I just lightly go in about 1/4 inch (5 mm) just to get the surface detritus out. I still get some cloudiness, but I run a canister with a pretty effective polishing pad, and it only takes about an hour to clear after water changes.

 

[KRiggz]

Thanks guys for the responses. LFS employee said since I just set it up I could take the stuff back out and rinse it really good.

 

[ryanr]

Thanks guys for the responses. LFS employee said since I just set it up I could take the stuff back out and rinse it really good.

If there's nothing in the tank at the moment, I'd turn off all the pumps and let the dust settle back down.
If that's not an option, and it's settled, just a gentle gravel vac (don't dig into the substrate and stir it up).
I've found that rather than drag the vac across the substrate, I place the vac into substrate, let some siphon, then lift vac, move to next place, place vac in, siphon, lift vac, move and repeat until I'm done.

 

[wearinOakleys]

So I just got a bag of Seachem Black Sand & Seachem Dark, love the substrate, but it turned my tank into a massive cloudy mess! I moved all my stock because I was changing the substrate and figured I'd have a cycle crash dumping all the bacteria in the old substrate. The dust is settled into the substrate so anytime I touch it, it sends clouds everywhere re-fogging the tank after it partially clears up. Thinking about just stirring all the up & siphoning the tank but it hasn't been working well the first time. What should I do!?

New Member here. I just purchased 45 lbs. of Seachem Dark. This is how I cleaned the media. I took a 5 gallon bucket and put 1/4 of the substrate in the bucket, and then tilted the bucket about to about 30 degrees. I turned on the garden hose and basically rinsed the fine silt out until the water ran clear. I really soaked the grass in the yard doing this, it took about an hour but everything came out really clear.

 

[ystrout]

I use Flourite Red in the planted part of my tank. Absolutely amazing substrate. Every plant that my gourami and shrimp don't eat thrive.

I rinsed it pretty well before using it. After it runs relatively clear, it's good for use. Since you weren't so fortunate as to do that.... Lol. I wouldn't stir the substrate up and siphon water out. That won't be as effective as directly targeting the substrate. Just gravel vac the tank a few times. I'd focus on one section at a time. You'll know when that section is done when the water you're sucking out runs clear.

Make sure to fill up your tank after removing about 30% of the water so you don't shock your fish when you fill it back up. Then wait 30 minutes before you start vacuuming again to give your fish some time to acclimate to the new water.

It's a pain to get that substrate ready for use, or in your case, clean the substrate so it doesn't keep making a mess. But SeaChem was successful in making an amazing substrate and your plants will do great.

Good luck!

If there's nothing in the tank at the moment, I'd turn off all the pumps and let the dust settle back down.
If that's not an option, and it's settled, just a gentle gravel vac (don't dig into the substrate and stir it up).
I've found that rather than drag the vac across the substrate, I place the vac into substrate, let some siphon, then lift vac, move to next place, place vac in, siphon, lift vac, move and repeat until I'm done.

Agreed.

To add to your advice...

If substrate gets sucked up all the way and won't come out of the end, just squeeze the tube to restrict the water flow. This will cause the substrate to fall back down without you having to remove it from the water and re-start a siphon.

As obvious as this sounds, it took me 3 years in the hobby to discover. Lol

 

[Puffersrock]

A person that does not rinse in advance is definatley going to be in a bad place. I feel like the directions would serve people better if it said take rinsing very seriously for best results or something like that. I just grabbed my second round of 60 lbs of black sand and took a Rubbermaid container and put it in the bathtub. I angled it by placing one edge on the end of the tub angled down towards the drain and ran the shower over it. I took a big spatula and kept turning the sand over and letting the cruddy water run out the lower end of the tilted Rubbermaid until clear-ish. It takes a long time but it’s pretty mindless and doesn’t require a lot of physical work. Bottom line the stuff is brutally dusty. The sand is much worse than the gravel.

 

[ystrout]

I use Flourite Red in the planted part of my tank. Absolutely amazing substrate. Every plant that my gourami and shrimp don't eat thrive.

I rinsed it pretty well before using it. After it runs relatively clear, it's good for use. Since you weren't so fortunate as to do that.... Lol. I wouldn't stir the substrate up and siphon water out. That won't be as effective as directly targeting the substrate. Just gravel vac the tank a few times. I'd focus on one section at a time. You'll know when that section is done when the water you're sucking out runs clear.

Make sure to fill up your tank after removing about 30% of the water so you don't shock your fish when you fill it back up. Then wait 30 minutes before you start vacuuming again to give your fish some time to acclimate to the new water.

It's a pain to get that substrate ready for use, or in your case, clean the substrate so it doesn't keep making a mess. But SeaChem was successful in making an amazing substrate and your plants will do great.

Good luck!


Agreed.

To add to your advice...

If substrate gets sucked up all the way and won't come out of the end, just squeeze the tube to restrict the water flow. This will cause the substrate to fall back down without you having to remove it from the water and re-start a siphon.

As obvious as this sounds, it took me 3 years in the hobby to discover. Lol

Took me 3 years too! Lol. I didn’t realize this until I watched a video and Cory did it. I felt so dumb.