peat plates

[Chris Palma]

Hi.

I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with "peat plates". Big
Al's has them, and they seem like they would be good for my aquarium -- my
water is pretty hard (I soften it by mixing with RO, but it is still
pretty hard) and I'm also thinking of giving them a try because they are
supposed to be good for most live plants. My plants are doing pretty
well, but not so well that they couldn't use a boost.

So... any advice? Has anyone used these? Are they as good as
advertised?

Thanks!

--chris

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Chris Palma > wrote in message >...
> Hi.
>
> I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with "peat plates". Big
> Al's has them, and they seem like they would be good for my aquarium -- my
> water is pretty hard (I soften it by mixing with RO, but it is still
> pretty hard) and I'm also thinking of giving them a try because they are
> supposed to be good for most live plants. My plants are doing pretty
> well, but not so well that they couldn't use a boost.
>
> So... any advice? Has anyone used these? Are they as good as
> advertised?
>
> Thanks!
>
> --chris

They do not do anything for plants really except help add some
reducing power to the substrate initially and it very slowly breaks
down and gives off CO2(not very much,but a little over time).

It's more for fish than plants.
FYI, plants grow better in hard water than soft. There are more
nutrients in hard water and more carbon(as KH).

If your goal is improving plant growth/health, focus on light, CO2 and
nutrients. That's what makes plants grow. Also, consider if you want
to do a non CO2 method vs a CO2 enrichment method.

You'd be better off adding SeaChem tablets under the plants, adding
flourite or CO2 etc if you want improvements with the plants.

Regards,
Tom Barr