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Re: Composition of Green Light Stump Remover



Don wrote:
"I have been using Green Light for some time now with no apparent ill
effects. I do pre mix it with the aquarium water and let it dissolve first.
As an earlier post stated it is not readily water soluble as it takes a
while to dissolve completely."

That's not really the issue here - lots of people use it, some of us would
just like to know for certain what is IN it. This was the first time I ever
saw it suggested that Green Light Stump Remover was not just relatively pure
KNO3. The "relatively" is the bone of contention.

I can understand Green Light telling a consumer that they don't recommend
its use in an aquarium - they sell it for a totally different purpose and
could leave themselves open to lawsuits if someone used it inappropriately
and caused damage. For its intended purpose - destroying stumps, it probably
doesn't have to be 99.9% pure KNO3.

But call me anal if you wish - I like to KNOW what I'm putting into my
aquarium.

I have a container of "Greenhouse Grade" Potassium Nitrate that I bought
from Homegrown Hydroponics here in Toronto. I also have a box of Wilson's
Stump Remover (a brand that is apparently only available in Canada). The
material inside both containers LOOKS identical - small, spherical white
prill. Neither one has any "coating" which would indicate an anti-caking
agent or other additive. Both, when mixed with water, dissolve completely
with no residue remaining. It does take about 30-60 minutes for ALL of it to
dissolve but I've found charts which indicate that for KNO3 this is normal -
it does take a while for ALL of it to dissolve, but so long as you don't
exceed the saturation point of the solution (by trying to dissolve too much
KNO3 in too little water), it WILL eventually all dissolve.

I'm still waiting for Wilson's to respond to my query regarding the nature
and purity of the material they are selling as Stump Remover. I suspect that
its just pure KNO3 but won't know for certain until they confirm it.

From a web search, I gather that the term "Greenhouse Grade", when applied
to a fertilizer, means that the material is pure and ought to dissolve
completely, with no insoluable residue. I found several references that
stated that "Field Grade" or "Farm Grade" KNO3 has an anti-caking agent
added to it to prevent the individual prills from clumping together and this
extra stuff might not be as soluable as pure KNO3. The "Greenhouse Grade" is
preferred in hydroponics solutions as there is less likelihood of clogging
up the delivery system with insoluable residue.

But is just seems odd to me that it is so difficult to get some companies to
come clean with an honest answer as to what their products actually contain.
Fertilizers are regulated products in the U.S. and they are required by law
to tell consumers what they contain. But sometimes you can't get a proper
answer even by reading the MDS for the product.

James Purchase
Toronto