VI5 - Vector | Ion Exchange 5

VECTOR | ION EXCHANGE 5 VI5 — Vector Ion Exchange Micronised filter powder · water quality control · remineraliser A mineral-dense mixture of different clays and aluminosilicate-based molecular sieves — primarily a micronised filter powder and water quality control powder that remineralises as it works. Use it by itself to filter the water while adding back the good things, or mix it with other products to act as a delivery vector for them. 5Modes of Action 150+m²/g Surface Area Min. ✓pH Neutral · Fresh & Marine NEW FORMULATION A micronised filter powder and remineraliser for complete water quality control DUAL FUNCTION Filters and remineralises by itself — or acts as a delivery vector for other products BUILT FOR EVERY SYSTEM Planted aquariums · aquaponics · koi ponds · goldfish · tropical · marine coral & fish ✓ Ion Exchange Capacity ✓ Molecular Sieve Adsorption ✓ Flocculating Action ✓ Remineralising Release ✓ Biofilm Substrate for Beneficial Microbes ✓ pH Neutral Natural Product VI⁵ is primarily a micronised filter powder and water quality control powder. It is a natural remineraliser that works hand in hand with biology — powerful by itself as a complete water treatment, and equally powerful as a vector for other products. It is at home in planted aquariums, aquaponic systems, koi ponds, goldfish tanks, tropical fish systems and marine systems — both coral and fish. Used by itself it filters the water whilst adding back the good things — capturing dissolved heavy metals and contaminants through absorbing and ion exchange while releasing calcium Ca²⁺, magnesium Mg²⁺, potassium K⁺ and sodium Na⁺ back into solution. Mixed with other products it acts as a delivery vector for them: amino acids and foods for corals, or probiotics for all aquatic applications — brew your bacteria with VI⁵ so they grow on the outside of the particles, then dose that into the water. Application Guide VI⁵ Dose Rate Use VI⁵ for direct water treatment or as a mineral transport vector for probiotic and beneficial microbial applications. Baseline application rate 1 g / 25 L One gram of VI⁵ per 25 litres of system water Flexible application: More or less can be used according to your preferences and the requirements of your system. Suitable for ✓ Direct water treatment — dose VI⁵ directly into the water column. ✓ Probiotic application — use VI⁵ as a mineral transport and colonisation surface for beneficial microbes. When using VI⁵ as a probiotic vector, it can be mixed with the microbial product before application so the microbes have an opportunity to contact the mineral surface first. The VI⁵ Difference Why Professionals Choose VI⁵ Most water treatments do one job. VI⁵ does five — and it was engineered around the first one: delivering beneficial microbes where they need to be. 🦠 The Vector Advantage Dosed microbes need somewhere to live. Free-floating cells face dilution, predation and washout. Every VI⁵ particle is a microscopic colonisation surface — microbes attach within minutes, form protected biofilms, and establish from a stable mineral base. 🪥 Molecular Sieve Architecture Precision pore networks at molecular scale. The aluminosilicate sieve fraction captures dissolved organics — tannins, phenolics, odour molecules — within structured pore channels, not just on flat surfaces. ⚡ Exchange While It Works One dose, two directions. Charged mineral surfaces swap their cations with dissolved species: heavy metals are captured while calcium Ca²⁺, magnesium Mg²⁺, potassium K⁺ and sodium Na⁺ are released. Detoxification and remineralisation in the same motion. How VI⁵ Works The Five Modes of Action The 5 in VI⁵ is not decoration — it is the count of independent mineral sciences working in every dose. 1 · Transport Vector Delivery vehicle for beneficial microbes. Every particle is a microscopic colonisation surface. Dosed microbes attach within minutes, form protected biofilms and continuously seed the water column from a stable mineral base. 2 · Absorbing Molecular sieve capture. Aluminosilicate pore networks trap dissolved organics — tannins, phenolics, odour molecules — while iron-bearing surfaces bind dissolved phosphate into stable precipitates. 3 · Ion Exchange Cations swap at charged surfaces. Heavy metals are captured — lead Pb, cadmium Cd, copper Cu, zinc Zn, nickel Ni, chromium Cr, cobalt Co and manganese Mn — while calcium Ca²⁺, magnesium Mg²⁺, potassium K⁺ and sodium Na⁺ are released in trade. Detoxify and remineralise in one motion. 4 · Flocculator & Clarifier Grabs charged particles and sinks them. Charged particles neutralise colloidal suspension charges so silt fines, organics and cloudiness agglomerate into dense flocs that sink to the bottom — where they can be pulled out by mechanical filtration or gravel syphons. If ever stirred up again, they are re-captured the same way. Settled flocs are then organically remineralised by probiotic bacteria for plants. 5 · Remineralising Beneficial minerals released. As ions exchange off mineral surfaces, VI⁵ releases calcium Ca²⁺ for buffering and osmoregulation, magnesium Mg²⁺ as enzyme cofactor, potassium K⁺ for electrolyte balance, sodium Na⁺ for osmotic support and trace iron Fe — mirroring the ion exchange trade in reverse. Powerful By Itself Powerful By Itself. Vector for Anything. The probiotic transport vector was the main design idea behind VI⁵ — but the other benefits it brings are just as if not more powerful. Use it as a vector for anything, or just to polish the water. Micronised Density Particle engineering matters. Milled to a 150–200 micron powder that is micronised even finer, maximising reactive surface area per gram — more exchange sites, more adsorption capacity and more colonisation surface in every dose than coarse mineral products. Skim Resistant Stays in the system. VI⁵ helps prevent removal by protein skimming or mechanical filtration — it sticks around, sinking into the substrate where it keeps working instead of being exported straight out. Washout Proof Survives water changes. Particles settle into the substrate and seed those surface areas with higher specific gravity — pre-colonised zones that persist through water exchange, boosting application effectiveness every time. Predation Protection A safe start for microbes. Particles give dosed microbes an area to pre-colonise before entering the water column — preventing predation straight up and giving cultures a stable mineral base to establish from. Plant Health Support Grows plants as it treats water. Released potassium and magnesium are macronutrients for aquatic plants — plus terrestrial plants in aquaponic systems. Substrate Enhancement Feeds the bed. Settled particles enhance the biological activity and nutrient density of substrates — colonised grains become slow-release mineral banks for rooted plants and probiotic bacteria alike. Water Chemistry What VI⁵ Removes Every target below is captured by one of the five modes of action — ion exchange, molecular sieve adsorption, iron-mediated precipitation or flocculation. Target Class Examples Primary Mechanism Heavy Metals Lead Pb · Cadmium Cd · Copper Cu · Zinc Zn · Nickel Ni · Chromium Cr · Cobalt Co · Manganese Mn Ion exchange + surface complexation Phosphate Dissolved orthophosphate PO₄³⁻ Iron-mediated precipitation Dissolved Organics Tannins phenolics odour molecules Molecular sieve adsorption Colloidal Turbidity Silt clay fines suspended solids Charge neutralization + flocculation Planktonic Algae Green-water single cells Flocculation and settling Bacterial Bloom Cloudiness Heterotrophic blooms Flocculation + organics removal General Environmental Contaminants Air pollution runoff residues Adsorption Ammonium NH₄⁺ Ion exchange (support role) Flocculation acts on suspended cells and particles. Filamentous or matted algae is addressed indirectly through long-term phosphate binding. Remineralising What VI⁵ Adds Ion exchange is a two-way trade. As contaminants are captured, beneficial minerals are released back into solution. Addition Function in the Water Column Colonisation Surface Biofilm substrate for colonisation by beneficial microbes — 150+ m² per gram of powder providing a huge amount of filtration as it contacts the water Calcium Ca²⁺ Buffering and osmoregulation support Magnesium Mg²⁺ Enzyme cofactor Potassium K⁺ Electrolyte balance Sodium Na⁺ Osmotic support Trace Iron Fe Micro-dose remineralisation Trace Minerals Trace levels of other minerals such as nickel Ni, cobalt Co, silica Si, manganese Mn, fluorine F, tin Sn, lithium Li and titanium Ti Not just pulling contaminants out. Not just putting minerals in. Both at once — by design. Dual Collection Fit Built for Two Programs VI⁵ earns its place in both the microbial program and the filtration program — same product, same five sciences. 🦠 In the Microbial Program The carrier that makes every dose stick. Brew or co-dose VI⁵ with any beneficial microbe blend and every litre becomes charged with microscopic settlement surfaces. Microbes attach within minutes instead of washing out. View Microbial Range → 💧 In the Filtration Program The mineral polisher. Ion exchange strips dissolved metals, molecular sieves trap organics, iron surfaces bind phosphate and flocculation settles cloudiness — all while remineralising the water column. View Filtration Range → FAQ Frequently Asked Questions Q How does VI⁵ deliver beneficial microbes? VI⁵ is primarily designed to work by itself — however it will deliver beneficial microbes if you culture it with them. Add your choice of beneficial microbes to the VI⁵ and aerate for the pre-described amount of time for your product, then dose it into your aquarium so it has time to colonise those surface areas. Q What is the best way to use it as a vector? Pre-mixing is best. Mix VI⁵ with your microbial brew or inoculant — or indeed any other product you want it to act as a vector for, whether that be coral foods, amino acids and so on. Pre-mixing gives the microbes time to colonise the particle surfaces first; colonised particles then disperse through the water carrying established biofilms. Q Will it cloud my water? An initial cloudiness after dosing is normal and expected. The more waste that is in your water — the oils, lipids and volatile organics that affect surface tension and the settling rate of the micronised particles — the longer it will take to clear. Generally speaking it will go cloudy, then it will clear. Q Is it pH neutral? Is it calcium carbonate? Yes — pH neutral. You can use it in freshwater or marine systems alike. It is a natural product; it is not a pH boosting product, it is not calcium carbonate and it is not fine calcium carbonate. Q What makes it different from bentonite alone? Formulation breadth. There are many different sorts of bentonite — and whilst bentonite, particularly calcium bentonite, is very good at clearing water and exchanging calcium into the water, there are other different clays and aluminium silicate molecular sieves that do really great jobs at other forms of water purification. VI⁵ brings them together: a mixture selected fraction by fraction for specific modes of action, micronised for maximum reactive surface area, and designed vector-first as a microbial delivery system. Q Can I dose VI⁵ with any microbial product? Yes — any microbial inoculant. VI⁵ works with brewed cultures, dry blends and liquid microbial products alike. Important: VI⁵ is not a microbial product itself — it is purely the transport vector and settlement substrate. It carries no biology of its own. Q Is it safe for fish, shrimp and coral systems? VI⁵ is a natural mineral blend used for water conditioning in aquaculture and aquarium systems. It adds no biological agents, no enzymes and no chemicals — only mineral surfaces doing mineral chemistry. Q Does it replace water changes? No. VI⁵ complements your maintenance program — it conditions the water column between changes by capturing dissolved contaminants and releasing beneficial minerals. It does not replace dilution as a management tool. Not Sure How to Use VI⁵ in Your System? Every system is different — stocking density, feed load, filtration capacity and water source all change the equation. Tell us about your setup and we will point you at the right use rate. Get in Touch Browse All Products Trade & Wholesale Bulk pricing available for commercial operations, hatcheries, installers and resellers. VI⁵ scales from retail tubs to farm-scale program use. Apply for Trade Account