Seachem Iron

[Metalhead88]

A co worker gave me a bottle of flourish and seachem iron. I already use flourish but am not familiar with what iron would be used for. I haven't done any research on this yet so I figured I'd start here.

What is this normally used for? Is it something I can make use of? Hold on to? Or just toss?

My plants are doing good. Not amazing, but I have healthy growing plants. Some plants I have are Java fern, crypts, anacharis, Amazon sword, bacopa, jungle Val, and anubias.

 

[Colin_T]

iron is a plant fertiliser. you get the iron level to 1mg/L (1ppm) and the plants use it.

don't let the iron level go above 1ppm or you can poison the fish.

use an iron (Fe) test kit to monitor the iron levels in the water.

 

[Byron]

Do not use iron alongside Flourish Comprehensive Supplement. Iron is a micro-nutrient, and Flourish Comprehensive contains all that is needed in balance with the other nutrients.

Aquatic plant nutrients must be in a relative proportion to each other. There have been scientifically-controlled tests to determine this. Flourish Comprehensive has the ingredient nutrients in this proportion. Brightwell Aquatics' FlorinMulti is the same. Adding any of the nutrients beyond this proportion can cause issues for plants, let alone fish and bacteria. Remember that iron is one of the heavy metals, and these are toxic to life in excess which is why most water conditioners detoxify them--and why liquid plant fertilizers may be best added the day following a water change.

Studies have also proven that an excess of iron causes plants to shut down assimilation of some other nutrients. External signs of a deficiency can be identical to signs of an excess, making it difficult to determine which it actually is. Excessive iron has been shown to reduce tissue manganese levels in some plants [Walstad, Ecology of the Planted Aquarium, p. 104]. Several years ago, acting on advice that my red-leaf plants would benefit from iron beyond what is in Flourish Comprehensive, I added Flourish Iron to the tank, at the dose indicated on the label. Within just a few weeks, my floating Ceratopteris began melting. Since additional iron was the only change I had made, I discontinued the iron. Within another few weeks, the plants that had survived began to show new growth. The red leaf plants (Red Tiger Lotus) also melted but re-grew. There is really no benefit in overdosing individual nutrients.

Iron in excess (= beyond what the plants actually require or assimilate) can encourage algae issues.

Testing the water for iron is not conclusive, and likely leads to an inaccurate assumption. Diana Walstad writes,

The fact that iron is being rapidly removed from the water in your tank does not mean that you need to add iron. Plants quickly take up iron from the water, even though the substrate can provide the iron they need. Therefore, I would not feed your plants iron based on what you measure in the water. [Ecology of the Planted Aquarium, p. 169]​

 

[Metalhead88]

Do not use iron alongside Flourish Comprehensive Supplement. Iron is a micro-nutrient, and Flourish Comprehensive contains all that is needed in balance with the other nutrients.

Aquatic plant nutrients must be in a relative proportion to each other. There have been scientifically-controlled tests to determine this. Flourish Comprehensive has the ingredient nutrients in this proportion. Brightwell Aquatics' FlorinMulti is the same. Adding any of the nutrients beyond this proportion can cause issues for plants, let alone fish and bacteria. Remember that iron is one of the heavy metals, and these are toxic to life in excess which is why most water conditioners detoxify them--and why liquid plant fertilizers may be best added the day following a water change.

Studies have also proven that an excess of iron causes plants to shut down assimilation of some other nutrients. External signs of a deficiency can be identical to signs of an excess, making it difficult to determine which it actually is. Excessive iron has been shown to reduce tissue manganese levels in some plants [Walstad, Ecology of the Planted Aquarium, p. 104]. Several years ago, acting on advice that my red-leaf plants would benefit from iron beyond what is in Flourish Comprehensive, I added Flourish Iron to the tank, at the dose indicated on the label. Within just a few weeks, my floating Ceratopteris began melting. Since additional iron was the only change I had made, I discontinued the iron. Within another few weeks, the plants that had survived began to show new growth. The red leaf plants (Red Tiger Lotus) also melted but re-grew. There is really no benefit in overdosing individual nutrients.

Iron in excess (= beyond what the plants actually require or assimilate) can encourage algae issues.

Testing the water for iron is not conclusive, and likely leads to an inaccurate assumption. Diana Walstad writes,

The fact that iron is being rapidly removed from the water in your tank does not mean that you need to add iron. Plants quickly take up iron from the water, even though the substrate can provide the iron they need. Therefore, I would not feed your plants iron based on what you measure in the water. [Ecology of the Planted Aquarium, p. 169]​

Thank you. Lots of good info here.

Is there any reason to keep the bottle? It was free so I don't feel bad tossing it.

I normally dose flourish the same day after water changes. Ill now dose the following day. That makes sense to me.

 

[Byron]

Thank you. Lots of good info here.

Is there any reason to keep the bottle? It was free so I don't feel bad tossing it.

I normally dose flourish the same day after water changes. Ill now dose the following day. That makes sense to me.

I poured my Flourish Iron out in a corner of the back garden; don't like dumping stuff like this down the drain as it can end up in the ecosystem.

 

[seangee]

My plants are doing good.

In that case don't mess with your formulae. If it aint broke...

 

[Metalhead88]

In that case don't mess with your formulae. If it aint broke...

Truth.

 

[Stan510]

Flourish is one thing and Seachem Iron is another. Flourish has an algaecide and that can also kill off plants sensitive to its ingredients. Seachem Iron is something else..just liquid concentrated Iron gluconate...not like what you buy at Home Depot for yard plants..stay away from those,I suspect them especially with additives like zinc to be toxic to fish.
Stay with a company that sells products MADE FOR AQUARIUMS. Safest way possible.

You can go all Tom Barr,but be super dedicated to ordering large amounts as required by sellers...then mix dry powders of a half dozen ingredients with no chelation. For Tom who has a roomful of high tech tanks with hardest to grow plants AND runs a maintenance company for those tanks?,it's worth it. For one tank and its 30 gallons?..Seachem is best.