Is Purple Up okay for inverts?

[cherubfish pair]

Mostly concerned about my urchins. It contains Iodine which isn't needed as water changes takes care of that. I know Iodine supplements aren't good for ornamental shrimps.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I personally wouldn't add it, not knowing how much of what is in it. I generally don't favor cocktails of additives that are put in without knowing if you need them or not.

 

[Anemone]

<i>This thread has been moved to the current forum</i> at thread orignator's request.

Kevin

 

[cherubfish pair]

Can anyone search for a thread on this stuff?

 

[BeanAnimal]

Randy's answer was about the best your going to get.

You will find people that use it and people that refuse to use it. Some say it works, some say it is a waste of money.

Reality is that you don't need it to get coraline. Coraline will grow just fine in a healty tank that has proper CA and ALK levels.

Bean

 

[The steven liu]

I think purple up is best used with a new tank where you need to build up coraline algae quickly. But if your tank has been set up a while then coraline algae should be in full blossom everywhere as long as you keep your calcium level high enough. Thus purple up really serves no purpose. One side note, coraline algae will not grow if your tank is "too" bright" it's kind of tricky.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Some of the ingredients are wasted. The aragonite, for example, does nothing when simply added to seawater. Contrary to a variety of manufacturer claims, it does not supply calcium, alkalinity, or anything else that coralline might use.

 

[BeanAnimal]

Now come on Randy.... it adds a few microns of depth to your SB.

Bean

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Yes, that it does.

 

[cato]

I used it in my new set up no more than once weekly and not consistently in hopes it might jump start coralline growth. Many told me it takes ~6 mos for coralline to grow in new tanks. At about the 4 mos mark I had tons of pink, purple and burgundy all over the place.
All that said..I can't absolutely say it was a result of the Purple up I put in and not other factors such as pristine H2O conditions.
Also I have shrimp and other inverts too but not any urchins. Doesn't seem to bother them at all.

 

[frontosa_man80]

i lost 2 shrimp and one matrix crab when i started using it. i no longer use it and now i have no problems. it did seem to make my fuge explode with purple and pink.

 

[BeanAnimal]

I think the point is that there is no need to take the risk. The product does not list it's ingredients and coraline will grow without it. Snake oil or not, you don't need it.