Re: seachem's equilibrium

["David A. Youngker" <nestor10 at mindspring_com>]

> Date: Wed, 11 Dec 2002 20:05:57 -0500
> From: Jeff vamos
>
> I was reading the label on the bottle of equilibrium and it
> says that if you use the recommended dosage, then it will
> raise the potassium level by 65mg/l. If I remember correctly,
> mg/l is the same as ppm. Is this the level seachem
> recommends for K?  I thought K should be between 20-30ppm.

Equilibrium wasn't designed _strictly_ for planted tanks, Jeff - they have a
whole range of supplements for that. Don't mix apples and oranges.

If memory serves me correctly, when Equilibrium was introduced about the
only things SeaChem had out were their buffers, reef supplements and only a
couple of products for the planted aquarium - Flourish obviously one of
them. Since Dr. Morin joined the List, however, it's been fun and
enlightening to "watch" the entire Flourish line appear to give us
aquascapers a "leg up". But that's the key, Jeff - look for that "Flourish"
somewhere on the bottle if you want something made *specifically* with
planted aquaria in mind.

Equilibirum fills a primary niche in the aquatic hobby by providing one of
the finest blends of trace elements, in what has got to be one of the most
naturally-occuring ratios, available for _reconstituting_ or _enhancing_
water in general. And even *its* formula was adjusted after Greg had been
with us for a while. It's formulated with a few salts of potassium in order
to limit the _sodium_ input, as we usually try to recreate *fresh* waters
and not brackish, and the label is simply stating an end result.

Check the labels on even their Flourish line - there's none that I've
noticed which gives you a *recommended* dosage. They all tell you what the
end result of using "X" amount will be so that *you* can make a more
informed decision as to how much to add. Since potassium is the focus here,
a quick glance at the label of Flourish Potassium tells me that if I add 1
ml to 40 ml water I'll have 1 ppm. Now _I_ have to decide how many ml are
proper for my own conditions. If I'm using Equilibrium to reconstitute RO or
DI water, then I'll probably figure out that at particular levels I won't
even _need_ a potassium supplement if I'm shooting for Tom Barr's
recommended 30 ppm.

Same type of deal if I try to use something like their "Reef Calcium
Supplement" to add calcium to a freshwater tank over, say, my own calcium
chloride or calcium carbonate. Or if I use Fleet enema to provide my tank
with phosphates.

To steal a line from Frasier:
"Copernicus called to say that [we're] *not* the center of the universe!"
Translation:
Not everything put out by SeaChem is designed specifically for planted
aquaria.

> Maybe Dr.Morin can elaborate on this.

He most likely will because he's that type of person, but if you stop to
think about it - it's not really necessary...


-Y-

David A. Youngker
nestor10 at mindspring_com