Scammed by LFS?????

[Spslvr]

the marble is suposed to be there you have not been scammed, and to all the people bagging out the product.... have you used it? i used this product about ten years ago and can say it most definity works as intended, however it is NOT coraline algae in a bottle and without the presence of coraline in your tank purple up wont do jack, but in a new system with some nice coraline encrusted rock it will most definitly speed up the process..... unless theyve changed the formula in the last 10 years i rate it...

 

[top shelf]

the marble is suposed to be there you have not been scammed, and to all the people bagging out the product.... have you used it? i used this product about ten years ago and can say it most definity works as intended, however it is NOT coraline algae in a bottle and without the presence of coraline in your tank purple up wont do jack, but in a new system with some nice coraline encrusted rock it will most definitly speed up the process..... unless theyve changed the formula in the last 10 years i rate it...

People aren't necessarily bagging on the product itself but the way it's marketed. With a name like purple up and making claims it will increase coralline growth gets the unsuspecting buyer to purchase it thinking it's going to magically make coralline appear in there tank and that's not the case. It's a shady way of making sales when it's nothing more then a calcium supplement. Any of the other calcium supplements are capable of the same thing but aren't marketed that way.

 

[Spslvr]

People aren't necessarily bagging on the product itself but the way it's marketed. With a name like purple up and making claims it will increase coralline growth gets the unsuspecting buyer to purchase it thinking it's going to magically make coralline appear in there tank and that's not the case. It's a shady way of making sales when it's nothing more then a calcium supplement. Any of the other calcium supplements are capable of the same thing but aren't marketed that way.

brightwell, red sea, zeovit, caribsea all have products pitched toward this, you are correct the product is not essential, however in my experience it does acelerate coralline algae growth.....and the O.P has not been scammed by an unscrupulous lfs....

 

[Timfish]

Purple-Up is a Carib-Sea's Aragamight packaged with water. It is a balance supplement with the same ratio of calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate and bicarbonate that's as coral seletons. Criticism against it are it won't dissolve at the pH reefs systems have. Problem I have with this criticism is it assumes the pH is homogeneous throughout a system which it most certainly is not. It also ignores corals ingest calcium and magnesium carbonate crystals directly that are present in systems from fish poop. Notably, the oldest coral farmer in the US has been using only aragamight since the mid '90's.

 

[Mmoreno1368]

Wow thanks for the responses. Nice to hear everyone's insite on the product...I know very much what the product is and how it works...I was just unsure of the integrity of the individual bottle I purchased...wanted to make sure I wasn't going to be adding some random unknown substance into my tank that someone sabataged at some point (basically poisoning my tank). I know it's a product that helps encourage coralline algae growth which for me is very desirable...I am well aware that proper tank conditions and husbandry will ensure great coralline algae regardless...I just don't see any harm in speeding up the process.

 

[homer1475]

The harm is adding more magnesium(which really isn't an issue), and calcium(could be an issue depending on how high it gets, heavy precipitation event) to a tank that may not need it.

I've seen plenty of posts about high calcium numbers where the OP could not figure out why, eventually it was solved and the fault came by the addition of this product.

 

[alton]

If you ever question a product that has not been properly sealed, take it back to the store and ask for your money back. If the store refuses, then find a new store. I had the same issue once with a CFL lamp. Owner of the store stated I used it in a bad fixture, therefore burning out the lamp prematurely. He had egg all over his face when I walked over to the another lamp in a box pulled it out and it was burn't also. And I never went back!
Tough crowd on the Purple Up, being on the shelf for ten years someone must like it?

 

[Uncle99]

The marble is normal....it helps to mix the thick liquid....but yours is dried up so no use.
Return try and water it down with RODI........maintain calcium, Alk, and MG at Correct levels is best....

 

[jlmawp]

Wow thanks for the responses. Nice to hear everyone's insite on the product...I know very much what the product is and how it works...I was just unsure of the integrity of the individual bottle I purchased...wanted to make sure I wasn't going to be adding some random unknown substance into my tank that someone sabataged at some point (basically poisoning my tank). I know it's a product that helps encourage coralline algae growth which for me is very desirable...I am well aware that proper tank conditions and husbandry will ensure great coralline algae regardless...I just don't see any harm in speeding up the process.

I don't think people have an issue with speeding up the process, if that's what you want to do. I think the issue is that the product costs a lot of money for what it does. You can buy straight-up Alk and Calc in other forms and get wayyy more for your money...you just have to pour out of two bottles instead of one. Also, with those, you know exactly what it is you're getting.

This product doesn't speed up the process any more than good parameters would do normally through dosing of Alk and Calc.

Another good way to speed things up is to seed your tank with more coralline scrapings directly to the water column. If you want it to spread more quickly rather than just grow faster where it already is, this is the method to use, trust me. It will explode in growth if your params are decent.

 

[Tnconcept]

Where they scammed you was when they told you to buy purple up.

:lolspin::lolspin::lolspin::lolspin:

 

[djbon]

I am on my fourth year having reef and I don't have super crazy coraline algae growing everywhere. Green, purple, pink, red, cyan and a little blue coraline here and there. You wish it never grow at all when it start growing on every square inches of your tank and kills equipment. It will use up your big 3 which is supposed to be meant for corals.

Additive addition for coraline algae growth is a waste of money IMO. It will grow when condition is right, what you need is a few rocks/sea shells covered with it.

 

[reefmutt]

I have used and continue to use purple up in some systems.. with great success.
My preferred method of using it is in a reverse osmosis make up reservoir. it will saturate the ro water with minerals and when your system is topped off, it provides mineral rich water to the system thus reducing (somewhat) the need for ca reactor, two part or kalk additions.
Op, your bottle sounds fine to me..
In systems where low nutrients is the cause of low corralline algae growth, this product won't help, but if low magnesium (or another mineral deficit) is the problem, it may very well help..
Like any product, it has its applications and should not be just tossed in the tank and "observed".
If used, it should be used in measured amounts and your water should be tested for its possible effects on calcium, magnesium, ph and alkalinity.. and maybe strontium as well..
I don't believe it is snake oil.. It is fairly benign and not very powerful as a mineral addition compared to ca rx, kalk or two part so it is often thought of as useless by reefers who try it, see nothing and then disregard it..

 

[Frogmanx82]

There is not supposed to be marbles in the product.

 

[reefmutt]

There is not supposed to be marbles in the product.

Actually, yes there is. The bottle needs to be shaken very well. When you hear the "˜marble' rattle, you know you have shaken it enough to have all of the product in suspension.

 

[Frogmanx82]

Actually, yes there is. The bottle needs to be shaken very well. When you hear the "˜marble' rattle, you know you have shaken it enough to have all of the product in suspension.

Guess I forgot. I bought that stuff in my early days of the salt tank before I realized it was not the best way to add calcium.

 

[reefmutt]

Guess I forgot. I bought that stuff in my early days of the salt tank before I realized it was not the best way to add calcium.

Back then, there was no marble. I think they only started adding it, in the past couple years..

 

[tkeracer619]

It's fun to watch when you pour it in. Other than it is just an expensive cal and mag supplument.

 

[pblogic]

This thread is so full of bull excrement.

"Nothing but a gimmick that one can achieve on their own"

On their own how exactly? Are you excreting calcium, magnesium, and iodine out of an orifice to dose to your tank?

It's a calcium supplement, like many other calcium supplements. Can you make it yourself? Sure. Does that make it a scam? Of course not. Not any more than a McDonald's hamburger is a scam. You can make that yourself as well, for better, and cheaper at home. That doesn't make it a scam.

Purple up is a simple supplement that, judging by thousands of positive reviews, satisfies the customers that purchase it.

Use it or don't use it, but stop saying stupid things like it's a scam. It's not more of a scam than any other reef product you can make yourself, or any other hamburger you can make for yourself.

 

[albano]

This thread is so full of bull excrement.

"Nothing but a gimmick that one can achieve on their own"…

Unfortunately, your post may fall on deaf ears… of the ~30 members responding, it appears that only 2 or 3 have been on the site in the past year!
I wonder if the makers of Purple Up had anything to do with that?… just in case, let me state for the record, that I love Purple Up, and drink some every day!