References - A Freshwater Plant Iron Supplement
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A Freshwater Plant Iron Supplement

Albert J. Thiel

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Freshwater Iron Supplement is a "diluted" form of EDTA sodium ferric chloride, optimized for easy use and prevention of overdosage, as long as the instructions below are followed correctly.

It does not contain nitrates and/or phosphates and is free of silicates as well. All three of these are plentiful in the tank already. In fact, in many cases there are too high levels of one or more of these present in the water, and hobbyists need to lower them to prevent the growth of micro algae and diatoms.

For plants to do well, they require "food" just as fishes do but they also need a sufficient amount of iron in the tank at all times.

Our iron supplement is safe for all fishes and plants (even the most delicate ones) as long as you do not overdose.

Follow the directions below, which you will also find on the label.

Our iron supplement is sold in 4 fluid ounce bottles, already diluted for easy administration to the tank. Larger sizes are available upon request for use on multiple tanks or store systems.

If you have a heavily planted tank you should add 2 drops per gallon every day. In a medium planted tank you should add 2 drops every other day (per gallon of water in the tank), and in low planting conditions adding 2 drops per gallon twice a week is enough.

You can check whether you are adding enough Iron supplement by monitoring your iron level: it should be around 0.1 ppm and not lower than 0.06 ppm. It should not be over 0.2 ppm. TAT sells an easy to use iron test. It is a yes/no test, meaning it tells you by a color change whether enough iron is present or not. It is real easy to use. It comes in tablet form. All you need to do is add one tablet to 10 ml of water and watch for the color change (explained on the label).

A heavy load of plants is a tank where you have 4 to 5 plants per gallon of water in the aquarium. A medium load is 2 to 3 plants per gallon, and a low load is anything less than that.

If you have any questions regarding this product, please email me and I will be glad to answer your questions.

To contact Albert J. ThielAbout Albert J. Thiel
The original of this article is located at http://www.athiel.com.
Published with permission of the Author.

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