Flourish Excel - question

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flyjawn

Aquarium Advice Activist
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Nov 18, 2006
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right now i'm using Flourish Tabs (in the substrate) and Big Al's Multi Purpose Plant Supplement (came with tank kit). I have 65 watts of broad spectrum lighting and the tank is about 50% planted (maybe slightly less).

I'm concerned about some fuzz algae that's growing on some of my plants and I'm wondering if Excel would help this situation. If so, my understanding is that I would have to dose the tank every day? This sounds like a potentiall expensive endeavour...lol...

anyways, would my tank benefit from Excel?
 
If you have 65watts over 20 gallons you need a carbon source. You are running a high light system. Your algae is only going to get worse. I would run the lights for no more that 10 hours a day and add more plants if possible.

At that size excel should not be that expensive. You other choice is DIY CO2 or a pressurized system.
 
Yes, you would need to dose every day.
Potentially expensive? Depends on tank size. Small tanks it's cost effective, but larger tanks, like 55G, 75G, etc, it becomes expensive, and CO2 becomes more cost effective.
Benefit? Yes....
 
Adding carbon to any tank will help the plants. Once you start adding C, you will have to start dosing other fertilizers. The additional C will make your plants grow faster and consume more nutrients, therefore you will have to add them back in.

With that much light and not having C for the plants, I can understand why you are having algae issues.

EDIT: wow, there wasn't a reply when I started typing this. :lol:

You guys are quick.
 
sorry i'm always forgetting some piece of information...

i do have a CO2 system running (DIY) but it's only been in for just over a week so i think its too early to see the effects.

i agree about the lighting, i need to get a timer so that i can make sure i only have it on 10 hours. right now my reminder to turn on/off is my 2 year old wake up and bed time. lol...

thanks!
 
it's not really DIY - i just can't remember the actual name of it. it's that Hagen system, but i used my own recipe for the mix. what can i do to increase the CO2 output?

and thanks for the help. :)
 
While the Hagen system is rated for upto a 20 gallon tank, the target level of CO2 that they are basing this on is much lower than you will find recommended around here. I would recommend making a couple of extra 2 Liter CO2 generation bottles and running these along with your existing setup. You can use a airline T to connect them with your existing setup.

You CO2 levels are awefully low even with that system. Are you by chance running an airpump, using a biowheel filter, or a filter that has a lot of splashing when returning water to the tank? All of these will gas off extra CO2, making it harder to attain good CO2 levels.
 
purrbox- i'm using a penguin biowheel 150. should i try to move the CO2 as far away from the filter as possible?

i will add a second CO2 bottle this weekend - i just have to find a place to put the bottle. my tank is on an antique desk with no hiding spaces!

i never imagined that there was so much to know when i started this aquarium! you guys have been so helpful. thanks!
 
rich311k said:
Remove the biowheel. You do not need it and it is gassing off your CO2.
Click to expand...

can you explain why i don't need it? i'm scared to take it out... lol.
 
It is all hype. You will find that your tank is just as stable whether you have it running or not. You have plenty of bacteria in your gravel and in the sponges and on all of your decorations and plants. The agitation it is causing is gassing off all your hard earned CO2. If it worries you that much float the wheel in the tank for a week or two before taking it out.
 
rich311k said:
It is all hype. You will find that your tank is just as stable whether you have it running or not. You have plenty of bacteria in your gravel and in the sponges and on all of your decorations and plants. The agitation it is causing is gassing off all your hard earned CO2. If it worries you that much float the wheel in the tank for a week or two before taking it out.
Click to expand...

Hey now, I got dogpiled last time I called it hype ;). I think I used the term marketing gimmick, but that's neither here nor there.

I found that the hagen system couldn't keep my 10g tank over 15 ppm consistently. I would get in the 20 range when it first started up and then it would slowly drift down. It's an ok system meant for low light tanks, it just doesn't cut the mustard when you put a lot of light over your tank.
 
physicsdude, thanks for the link. how are the CO2 levels going for you now?

i've taken out my biowheel for the time being and i'm going to add another DIY bottle of CO2. Hopefully that will help me out.
 
well, i just replaced the bio-wheels today. I went to petsmart today to pick up the filter, but was sad to see that they had no flourish excel. so, perhaps later next week ill pick some up to start. although, i might just do a diy co2- dunno, when final exams are over, im gonna decide. i did though move the airstone back to the center of the back wall flanked by a powerhead and the aquaclear 70.

how did you do a diy co2 flyjawn?
 
mine's not really DIY - it's the hagen natural CO2 system. i just mix my own yeast formula. i will be adding a DIY bottle to the Hagen system though to up the amount of CO2 output.
 
Instructions for Building DIY CO2

The concept behind biowheels is quite solid, but apparently it's impossible for it to work correctly in the small size used for our tanks. There was a post a while back by an engineer that explained the concept that biowheels are based on and why they just don't work when scaled down so much. So while not entirely hype, biowheels certainly aren't necessary. Most don't even see a mini cycle when removing them. You also need to keep in mind that your live plants will help to act as a part of the filter too.
 
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