sorry

"Rocco Moretti" wrote in message
...
Justin wrote:
Rocco,

Here is where I sourced the Chlorine from...
http://www.nutri-tech.com.au/hints.htm#NO3
The article is as follows....

Dump Muriate of Potash:

Muriate contains 50% microbe-killing chlorine. Sulfate of Potash may be
more expensive, but most Queensland soils are sulfur deficient, and this
benefit should be factored into the cost difference.

I wouldn't put much weight into what "Nutri-Tech" says (especially after
reading about the other products they have for sale)- it likely arises
from a fundamental misunderstanding of chemistry.

We label atoms based on what's going on in the nucleus (# of protons) -
but the nucleus is always surrounded by electrons. Unless you're a nuclear
physicist, it's primarily the number & layout of electrons which determine
how a given substance acts. Chlorine has 17 electrons, and due to the way
the electrons are arranged, it *really* wants one more, so it will grab
electrons from practically anything it can. Chloride (from "muriate of
potash") has 18 electrons - it's happy. In fact, since reactivity is
governed by electrons and not the nucleus, it's more like the tremendously
inert Argon than it is like chlorine.

Chloride (as opposed to chlorine) is also not particularly microbe
killing. In fact, biologists *routinely* add chloride (as NaCl - "muriate
of sodium") to bacteria cultures in quite high amounts (10g/L) - far from
being inhibitory, the NaCl is required for good growth.

That said, sulfur is also necessary for life, so adding K2SO4 adds two
nutrients instead of just the one. A big plus if your soil/tank is sulfur
poor.

Just though I would mention it as chlorine is not that good in aquaria,
but maybe it's different here in Australia...

I don't think chemistry changes that radically as one crosses the equator.