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RE: iron in Kent supplements



> From: "Denney, Richard" <rdenney at MSPO1_MED.UTMB.EDU>
> Date: Thu, 21 Nov 1996 13:33:00 -0600
> 
> All of these estimates are based on the assumption that iron which is
> measurable in the water column (even that added many days before)
> remains utilizable by plants.

I'm not sure if this is a good assumption.  I suspect, based solely on
Dupla's marginal instructions, that iron, even if it's chelated, will
oxidize to an unusable form in a short time.  I believe Dupla drops
are chelated but they explicitly say that they are added daily becuase
the contents are unstable. 

I guess this would be a good test for someone to run.  Take a tank
that does not have plants and dose up the iron to some level.  Measure
the concentration twice daily (maybe more often) to see if the iron
levels remain constant or decrease.  Other experiments could include
the effects of normal light and UV light (UV is supposed to breakdown
the chelation effects and allow it to oxidize).  This is best run on
an established tnak since bacteria use lots of iron when they are
forming the initial nitrifying colonies.

George