Seachem Prime Water Conditioner Review

Seachem Prime Water Conditioner Review

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What Makes Seachem Prime One Of The Best Water Conditioners?

One of my recommended Tools To Clean A Fish Tank is Seachem Prime.

Prime is a water conditioner you can use when setting up a new tank or completing a water change.

Without treating your tap water who knows what you just added to your tank! Tap water can contain some pretty nasty things that you don’t want your fish exposed to.

For instance, Freshlyaqueezedwater notes the following contaminants:

  • Chlorine
  • Fluorine compounds
  • Trihalomethanes (THMs)
  • Salts of:
    • arsenic
    • radium
    • aluminum
    • copper
    • lead
    • mercury
    • cadmium
    • barium
  • Hormones
  • Nitrates
  • Pesticides

Scared yet? I know your fish are.

Best Aquarium Water Conditioners

So What Does Seachem Prime Do?

Prime is a Concentrated conditioner that can be used for both fresh and saltwater.

How concentrated?

Well according to Seachem it’s about 5x stronger than competing brands. This sounds like good peace of mind as you can never be too sure what is coming out of your tap.

In addition to this, Prime can do the following things for your aquarium:

  • Detoxify tap water of any heavy metals  and removes chlorine, chloramine
  • Detoxifies ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate

This is what Seachem says it does:

“Prime removes chlorine, chloramine and detoxifies ammonia. Prime also converts ammonia into a safe, non-toxic form that is readily removed by the tank’s biofilter.”

When To Use It?

You can use prime any time you want but it’s designed to be used during tank cycling to alleviate ammonia/nitrite toxicity.

However, it is also recommended that you use prime whenever you add new water to the tank during a water change or tank maintenance.

Also, because of its ability to detoxify ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, it can be used if you notice a spike during a water test. Of course, this is only temporary (up to 48 hrs) and not something you should rely on.

If you notice issues with your water quality the first and best method is to always do a water change.

How To Use It?

The directions are right on the bottle itself so you can always reference that. But, here are a few instructions:

For a new tank:

Add 5ml (one capful) for every 50 gallons (200 L) of new water.

During a water change:

Adjust the dosage to the amount of water you are adding. 1mL will treat about 10 gallons. On the cap, each cap thread is approximately 1 mL.

However, I always add enough to treat the entire tank volume to be safe.

Note: If you notice a rotten egg smell (Sulfur odor) that’s completely normal.

Proper Usage and Dosing:

How Much Seachem Prime Per Gallon?

As mentioned above, when using the cap each thread is approx 1mL which will treat up to 10 gallons.

Can you Overdose Seachem Prime?

According to this Seachem forum, you can’t overdose prime.

However, they do mention that since Prime is a reducing agent it is possible for Prime to react with and reduce oxygen which can suffocate your fish.

To be safe always follow the dosing instructions on the bottle or visit Seachem if you still have questions.

How Long Does It Take For Seachem Prime To Work?

As soon as you add Prime to your tank or replacement water it works instantly to bind and detoxify the toxins you don’t want in your aquarium.  

How Long Does Seachem Prime Last?

This is a two-sided question.

First: If you’re asking about shelf life, Prime will never expire if stored correctly.

Second: If you’re wondering how long it will detoxify ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate? Well, it can last for about 48hrs.

How Often Can You Use Seachem Prime?

Prime can be dosed every 24-48 hours.

Learn More About Seachem Prime:

Final Thoughts

Whether you are an experienced fish keeper or just a beginner you need a good water conditioner and Seachem Prime is honestly the best one available.

Whether you like it or not at some point you will need to complete a water change and when you do let’s hope you have some Prime on hand.

I think it was Jay Wilson who said, “All you need is Prime & Time”

Seachem Prime Fresh and Saltwater Conditioner – Chemical Remover and Detoxifier 500 ml
  • POWERFUL TREATMENT: Seachem Prime is a complete and concentrated conditioner for both freshwater and saltwater fish tanks, working hard to remove chlorine and chloramine.
  • REMOVER: Seachem Prime immediately and permanently removes chlorine and chloramine, successfully allowing the bio filter to remove ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate while they are detoxified for 48 hours.
  • DETOXIFIER: Seachem Prime effectively detoxifies ammonia, nitrite, and heavy metals found in the tap water at typical concentration levels, providing a ideal environment for your betta, tetra, or other fish.
  • USE: Use 1 capful (5 mL) of Seachem Prime for each 200 L (50 US gallons) of new or replacement water. For best results, add Seachem Prime to new water first. For exceptionally high chloramine concentrations, a double dose may be used safely. For smaller volumes, use 2 drops per gallon.
  • SAFETY: In case of an emergency, the 5x dose of Seachem Prime may be used for both ammonia and nitrite. Use a ½ dose if the water temperature is > 30°C (86°F) and chlorine or ammonia levels are low.
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