[nutbags]

I just put Flourite in a 10 gallon tank last night, didn't wash it, as I thought that washing it would remove all the nutrients from the substrate. Now I see that others have completely washed theirs. Is it ok to wash it, and will it remove all the nutrients like I thought? The way it is now, it's like I dumped 5 pots of coffee into the tank. There's a lot of fluorite dust in the tank and you can't see anything. I bought a new HOB filter to see if it would help remove some of it but it doesn't seem to help all that much. Should I just take it out and put it through a strainer till the water is clear? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Fluorite is inert it holds no nutrients at all however it has a high cation exchange capacity. Meaning the ferts you add to the water column will be drawn into the fluorite substrate as a source for plant roots to draw nutrients.