Fluorite - How much rinsing ???!!!

I picked up two bags of fluorite for my 25G. The instructions on the bag say
rinse before use to wash off the dust. Well I rinsed for over an hour in a
22L bucket and the water is still brown.

It seems that warm/hot water get dirtier than cold(er) water. Am I simply
washing off the fines, or am I forcing some of the active ingredients into
solution? The bag says the material is chemically inactive.

Thanks

On Mon, 2 Feb 2004 23:16:31 -0500, "Nemo" wrote:

It seems that warm/hot water get dirtier than cold(er) water. Am I simply
washing off the fines, or am I forcing some of the active ingredients into
solution? The bag says the material is chemically inactive.

Nothing is dissolving. You are possibly creating more fine dust by
excessive rinsing.

The best method I've found for rinsing Flourite is to get a piece of
window screen material, form a basket/net with it, fill the basket
with about 1/3 of the flourite bag, rinse for around 5 minutes, and
you are done. The screen allows the fine stuff to wash away easily.
Pour that basketfull into the tank, and rinse the next 1/3. It goes
very quickly, with minimal work.





Chuck Gadd
http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua

"Chuck Gadd" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 2 Feb 2004 23:16:31 -0500, "Nemo" wrote:

Nothing is dissolving. You are possibly creating more fine dust by
excessive rinsing.

Thanks Chuck. Do you "rub" the grains together when you rinse or just let
the water percolate for few minutes?

When you place the fluorite in the tank, do you get cloudy water?
For how long?
Are fish affected by it?
Should I expect a haze from the substrate everytime I plant a new planting?

Thanks again

On Tue, 3 Feb 2004 09:24:33 -0500, "Nemo" wrote:

Thanks Chuck. Do you "rub" the grains together when you rinse or just let
the water percolate for few minutes?

I just stir the flourite a few times while letting water flow thru the
basket.

When you place the fluorite in the tank, do you get cloudy water?

A little, but not as much as when I tried rinsing the flourite in a
bucket.

For how long?

Usually can't see the back of the tank for a few hours. Takes about
24 hrs before clearing completely. Plan on changing filter pads
several times during the clearing.

Are fish affected by it?

Nope, and it doesn't case any algae problems.

Should I expect a haze from the substrate everytime I plant a new planting?

No, the really fine stuff will settle down to the very bottom, so it's
unlikely to get disturbed.


Chuck Gadd
http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua

Nemo,
I didn;t even wash my Fluorite. I just dump the
whole damn thing in the tank, fill the tank 2/3 way
and let the filter run and some of the fine dust to settle.
I changed the water 2 times over 10 hour period and voila, it is
reasonably clear. There is still some cloudiness but I could see
the back of the tank now.
In a week, the tank is absolutely crystal clear,
like other tanks that use that dustless Dennerle gravel.


"Nemo" wrote in message
...
"Chuck Gadd" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 2 Feb 2004 23:16:31 -0500, "Nemo" wrote:

Nothing is dissolving. You are possibly creating more fine dust by
excessive rinsing.

Thanks Chuck. Do you "rub" the grains together when you rinse or just let
the water percolate for few minutes?

When you place the fluorite in the tank, do you get cloudy water?
For how long?
Are fish affected by it?
Should I expect a haze from the substrate everytime I plant a new
planting?

Thanks again

"Nemo" wrote:

I picked up two bags of fluorite for my 25G. The instructions on the bag say
rinse before use to wash off the dust. Well I rinsed for over an hour in a
22L bucket and the water is still brown.

In addition to what Chuck said, bottom line with Flourite is that it's
very dusty stuff, and almost impossible to rinse completely clean.
Give it a couple of solid rinsings, then tank it. It'll cloud your
water some at first, but that will all settle out within a day or two.

It just bees that way


--
www.ericschreiber.com

On Tue, 03 Feb 2004 11:33:51 -0600, Eric Schreiber
wrote:

In addition to what Chuck said, bottom line with Flourite is that it's
very dusty stuff, and almost impossible to rinse completely clean.

Part of the problem is that when you aggresively try to rinse it, you
are causing the pieces of flourite to rub together, creating more
fine dust!




Chuck Gadd
http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua

"Eric Schreiber" wrote in message
...
"Nemo" wrote:

I picked up two bags of fluorite for my 25G. The instructions on the bag
say
rinse before use to wash off the dust. Well I rinsed for over an hour in
a
22L bucket and the water is still brown.

In addition to what Chuck said, bottom line with Flourite is that it's
very dusty stuff, and almost impossible to rinse completely clean.
Give it a couple of solid rinsings, then tank it. It'll cloud your
water some at first, but that will all settle out within a day or two.

It just bees that way


--
www.ericschreiber.com

I'm swaping out sand for flourite in a 55, one bag a week starting on one
end. I clear out the sand in a section, cut the end of the bag, submerge it
to the bottom and carefully dump. Clean the filter add Accurel-F and the
tank is relatively clear in a couple of hours, clear by bed time. No
problems out side of having to clean the filters again that night. The next
day I vac the tank gently to pick up what settled rather than got caught in
the filter.

Half done, no problems.

Can't move the fish, the angels (a pair) would (have tried to) kill the
angels in the other tank.
Bob

I just a couple of days ago set up my 55g, and I didn't really rinse it, I
poured a bag into the bucket, poured water into that bucket and let it over
run the bucket, stuck my hand in and stirred up a bit, poured out the water,
put the flourite in the tank... did this 3 times, and had a brown water
mess.... filled the tank, turned on the filter, let it run for 3 days,
turned off filter, cleaned the media, put it back in turned on and now 5th
day, it's as clear as a bell...not cycled, but clear..

--
RedForeman ©®




"Nemo" wrote in message
.. .
I picked up two bags of fluorite for my 25G. The instructions on the bag
say
rinse before use to wash off the dust. Well I rinsed for over an hour in a
22L bucket and the water is still brown.

It seems that warm/hot water get dirtier than cold(er) water. Am I simply
washing off the fines, or am I forcing some of the active ingredients into
solution? The bag says the material is chemically inactive.

Thanks

"RedForeman ©®" wrote in message
...
I just a couple of days ago set up my 55g, and I didn't really rinse it, I
poured a bag into the bucket, poured water into that bucket and let it
over
run the bucket, stuck my hand in and stirred up a bit, poured out the
water,
put the flourite in the tank... did this 3 times, and had a brown water
mess.... filled the tank, turned on the filter, let it run for 3 days,
turned off filter, cleaned the media, put it back in turned on and now 5th
day, it's as clear as a bell...not cycled, but clear..

Following Chuck's advice, I used a fine sieve to wash small batches of
fluorite over a bucket using *COLD* water (warm-hot water seems to cause a
lot of fines to become suspended in the water). I didn't handle the material
aggressively so it ran reasonably clear. I did a final rinse in the bucket.
It was a little cloudy but not much. I then placed the gravel in the tank,
put a plate on top, and filled the tank using an empty milk jug letting the
water pour slowly over the plate. I got a little cloudiness, but I could see
every detail in the tank; It just looked like a little fog. When I got up in
the morning, it was ~50% settled.

Now I have to watch for a mini-cyle. You should see the black water/waste I
took out from the bottom of the tank when I removed the previous aquarium
gravel.