The following product information is provided by "CaribSea"
Since 1972 CaribSea has provided hundreds of thousands of aquarists, public aquariums, and Mari culture facilities with millions of pounds of the highest quality marine substrates. Now, as we approach the new millennium, CaribSea substrates have become the cutting edge marine systems with a miracle mineral called aragonite. CaribSea, in an exclusive contract with the only aragonite mine in the world, supplies aquarists with 10 grades of aragonite to choose from, even an aragonite "crushed coral". Now every hobbyist, from beginner to reef keeper, can enjoy this revolution in aquarium keeping.

Aragonite is a naturally occurring mineral, precipitated when cold ocean water saturated with calcium carbonate comes in contact with the warm Gulf Stream waters of the Grand Bahamas Banks, or when sea creatures like corals, shells, and coralline algae's use aragonite to build their skeletons. When these material, settled to the ocean floor over thousands of years, they formed an aragonite island, a real "reef sand", in an unusual and mine able situation, and its environmentally responsible too.

So what makes aragonite the perfect marine substrate? When the pH in your aquarium falls below 8.2 (the pH of natural seawater), aragonite snaps into action, breaking down into calcium (great for coral growing and for water hardness), carbonate (your buffer), and various beneficial trace elements like strontium and magnesium. Your pH comes back up, and the tank stays healthy, all without ever adding a single chemical. Other types of calcium carbonate don’t react until the pH is in the mid 7’s. In fact, aragonite holds the highest pH of any gravel or sand, and has up to 30 times the buffering capacity of dolomite, calcite (‘crushed corals") or oyster shell.

Now that we know a little bit about aragonites chemical performance, let’s examine how it helps your biological filtration. Aragonite is extremely porous, and about 20,000 square inches of surface area per cubic inch! Imagine the beneficial bacteria population you can maintain. This is why aragonite is unsurpassed in reducing nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia, allowing a bio-load many times greater than other substrates. Plus unlike ordinary substrates, aragonite never needs replacement, the performance goes on and on.

CaribSea aragonite really is a remarkable piece of equipment; it’s a calcium reactor, a buffer that works when you need it, a trace element additive, an nitrite and nitrate reducer, a high capacity bio-filter, and oh yes, a spectacular and natural addition to any marine aquarium. So go ahead and enjoy your hobby and let us handle the details

[Home]  [Saltwater Department]  [Aquarium Installation] [Contact Us]