jonnytens Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 Does dosing with flourish excel work as good as co2 injection? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ishkabod Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 It works really well for some plants(aka H. cuba) but melts others. It'll melt vals and... i can't remember what else. It also is great at killing black bush algae in a double dose. hope this helps. Have a great day L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corrosionjerry Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 It melts Riccia and some other sensitive plants...never had any problems with it hurting vals / otherwise it is a good alternative the problem with it is the cost / your money is better off saved for the purchase of a co2 system... it will save you money in the long run flourish is expensive.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 I use it on 60 gal in my room (too far to run a CO2 line from my main tank). Swords and hornwort are growing like crazy. Val is spreading, but if I overdose, it melts back a bit. I've had it completely wipe out a Riccia mat in a 10 gal dosed just below recommended dosing. I agree with Jerry, tho. Pressurized CO2 will be cheaper in the long run. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonnytens Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 I use it on 60 gal in my room (too far to run a CO2 line from my main tank). Swords and hornwort are growing like crazy. Val is spreading, but if I overdose, it melts back a bit. I've had it completely wipe out a Riccia mat in a 10 gal dosed just below recommended dosing. I agree with Jerry, tho. Pressurized CO2 will be cheaper in the long run. i can get 2 litres of excel for 33.55 from j&l http://www.jlaquatics.com/product/sc-floe2000/SeaChem+Flourish+Excel+Additive+-+2+Litre.html my tank is a 55 gallon planted, so on the high end of the dosing recomendations of approx 1 cap a day (5ml) i would use 1.825 litres a year....and on the low end of the dosing, every other day i would use 912ml a year. So at the most i would use 35 bucks of excel a year dosing everyday or 17.50 dosing every other day. Whearas a new co2 system from J@L is around 300 bucks, i could dose with excel for 8 years at the high end dose and 16 years if i dose every other day. I can't see how it is more expensive at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvision Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 Don't forget dosing 5x more on WC days. Go for it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 Don't forget to add tax, handling and shipping. It ends up being closer to 50$/jug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corrosionjerry Posted November 28, 2010 Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 c02 systems usually have a Solenoid that is controled on a timer plus they have bubble counters to control amounts of co2 expelled / Not to mention the convience of not having to lift a finger till the co2 is finnished in the bottle that lasts a year or so depending on the size of bottle and amount being used. I use to use flourish till I realized after reading how effective pressurized systems are... now I only use excel on small tanks You should be able to find a pressureized system quite cheap used or new online for around 200dollars if you decide to go that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonnytens Posted November 28, 2010 Author Report Share Posted November 28, 2010 c02 systems usually have a Solenoid that is controled on a timer plus they have bubble counters to control amounts of co2 expelled / Not to mention the convience of not having to lift a finger till the co2 is finnished in the bottle that lasts a year or so depending on the size of bottle and amount being used. I use to use flourish till I realized after reading how effective pressurized systems are... now I only use excel on small tanks You should be able to find a pressureized system quite cheap used or new online for around 200dollars if you decide to go that way. are there dosing pumps out there that can drip as low as 5ml a day??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishclubgirl Posted November 29, 2010 Report Share Posted November 29, 2010 there's always the low tech CO2, the nutrafin systems. 2 would work on a 55 gallon and your only costs after that are sugar, baking soda and yeast. Given my little DIY knowledge, I'd probably blow up my condo with pressurised CO2. I run 5 nutrafins and they work great for idiot savants like myself.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gBOYsc2 Posted November 29, 2010 Report Share Posted November 29, 2010 i can get 2 litres of excel for 33.55 from j&l http://www.jlaquatic...+-+2+Litre.html my tank is a 55 gallon planted, so on the high end of the dosing recomendations of approx 1 cap a day (5ml) i would use 1.825 litres a year....and on the low end of the dosing, every other day i would use 912ml a year. So at the most i would use 35 bucks of excel a year dosing everyday or 17.50 dosing every other day. Whearas a new co2 system from J@L is around 300 bucks, i could dose with excel for 8 years at the high end dose and 16 years if i dose every other day. I can't see how it is more expensive at all. Flourish Excel is a great product, don't get me wrong. But personally I would rather invest in a pressurized system. If you are going to spend 300 on excel over 8 years IMO you may as well spend 300 and have pressurized setup last prob 20 years+ . I got my first pressurized at the beginning of 2010 and it is the best peice of equipment I have ever invested in. No more headaches! No more wondering why my plants aren't doing so good and wondering why I am having all types of algae. I am no scientist but I don't think excel is a complete replacement for pressurized CO2, however it has been stated to work wonders for some people. I dose excel with pressurized co2 , macros and micros. If money is an issue excel is definitely a good temporary solution but if you plan on being in the hobby long term I feel it is a good investment to go with pressurized. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewels Posted November 29, 2010 Report Share Posted November 29, 2010 I have been following this thread with great interest. , , , I am still waiting for someone to 'whip it out' Ya' know - " hey: look what I did with excel " I am still curious in regards to the original question Does dosing with flourish excel work as good as co2 injection? What does the manufacturer claim ? I have never used the product. C02 in the aquarium yields carbonic acid {?} Is this the action of excel ? Can I make it at home ? Gluter, , , what is this stuff? Why does it work? I am no scientist but I don't think excel is a complete replacement for pressurized CO2, . This statement rang true for me - I would lean this way. Yet, I know not why I have seen some stunning photo's of non-C02 aquariums are they on steroids excel ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jewels Posted November 29, 2010 Report Share Posted November 29, 2010 Can I make it at home ? Gluter, , , what is this stuff? ? Aqueous solution of polycycloglutaracetal Yes, you can brew 'yer own Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corrosionjerry Posted November 30, 2010 Report Share Posted November 30, 2010 The problem with brewing your own is..... from experience I can say the following Hard to control / the c02 generated from diy drops off over a couple of weeks DIY is ok if watched closely for small aquariums.... can you imagine trying to keep 3 or 4 of these going on a 50-60 gallon aquarium and having a replacement ready to go all the time... not for me All said if one is very dilligent and checks PH levels constantly and likes to tinker constantly it is possible .......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vallisneria Posted November 30, 2010 Report Share Posted November 30, 2010 I used to have DIY on my 58g planted and I used a LOT of sugar. I had 2 4l jugs and each used 4cups of sugar, every 2 weeks or so. Even with 2 jugs the plant growth wasn't that great and I found it hard to keep it constant. IMO diy co2 works best on <30g tanks. Also when i used excel on my planted tanks the growth wasn't much when compared to when i bought my CO2 unit. The plants did ok with the excel but i didn't have the weekly growth i do now. I also sometimes had problems with melting if I added to much. I've melted vals, elodea and riccia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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