Are Flourish and Flourish Excel safe for shrimp?

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octanejunkie

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According to the labels of both bottles, Seachem says both products are safe for inverts, esp shrimp.

However, my LFS told me NO!

What's the experienced consensus?
 
The LFS is wrong. I've used both in all my shrimp tanks before and never had an issue.

Copper is really the only thing you have to worry about fertilizer wise, and neither of those products have it, though I think API Leaf Zone may.
 
No I think flourish has copper

Leaf zone has it too and im not 100% positive on the flourish
 
The Copper in Flourish Complete is minuscule. I also use root caps with Copper. I have CRS that are VERY sensitive. I use normal Ferts in their tank. I do use Half doses of Excel if Im just starting out to get them used to it, then I'll up the dosage gradually.

Fish Meds with Copper will Kill your Shrimpies !
 
The Copper in Flourish Complete is minuscule. I also use root caps with Copper. I have CRS that are VERY sensitive. I use normal Ferts in their tank. I do use Half doses of Excel if Im just starting out to get them used to it, then I'll up the dosage gradually.

Fish Meds with Copper will Kill your Shrimpies !

Yes thats true. Ive used flourish in the past with shrimp tanks and they were fine. No harm done
 
Copper is usually only an issue in some of the water soluble salt forms, such as are used for treating ich or in snail control products.

The amounts in most fertilizers and foods rarely, if ever, causes problems in inverts. Even copper pipes don't cause a problem.

Flourish ferts and Excel are quite safe used as directed for inverts. I've been using them for over a year on a shrimp only tank full of plants too, not a single problem with either one. Just don't overdose, or 'guessitmate' a dose. Measure it properly. Too much Excel can harm some plants that are sensitive to it, such as Vals.
 
Copper is usually only an issue in some of the water soluble salt forms, such as are used for treating ich or in snail control products.

The amounts in most fertilizers and foods rarely, if ever, causes problems in inverts. Even copper pipes don't cause a problem.

Flourish ferts and Excel are quite safe used as directed for inverts. I've been using them for over a year on a shrimp only tank full of plants too, not a single problem with either one. Just don't overdose, or 'guessitmate' a dose. Measure it properly. Too much Excel can harm some plants that are sensitive to it, such as Vals.

Thanks for the reply!

I "consulted" with Seachem to confirm doses of both Flourish and Excel for my tanks of various (small) sizes. Below is what they recommended.

Schedule and dosage as follows:

6G Cyl Tank
0.5mL Flourish Excel, Daily or every other Day (9-10 drops)
0.5mL Flourish, twice weekly

2G Nano Tank
0.12mL Flourish Excel, Daily or every other Day (2-3 drops)
0.16mL Flourish, twice weekly (3 drops)

I'd rather underdose and see plants slow to respond vs. kill livestock, so I will always err on the side of caution
 
Is Excel safe for apple snails?

Copper is deadly for snails. I put my apple snail in a tank (that had Flourish substrate in it) to clean it up, I noticed after a few days they weren't being very active, and they wouldn't touch the bottom of the tank. Then I realized that my substrate has 17%copper in it. I immediately switched them to a tank that had no substrate, after 10 minutes they were up and crawling around. So no it may no kill them, but it sure dose bother them.
 
Thanks for the reply!

I "consulted" with Seachem to confirm doses of both Flourish and Excel for my tanks of various (small) sizes. Below is what they recommended.

Schedule and dosage as follows:

6G Cyl Tank
0.5mL Flourish Excel, Daily or every other Day (9-10 drops)
0.5mL Flourish, twice weekly

2G Nano Tank
0.12mL Flourish Excel, Daily or every other Day (2-3 drops)
0.16mL Flourish, twice weekly (3 drops)

I'd rather underdose and see plants slow to respond vs. kill livestock, so I will always err on the side of caution

I really appreciate that about Seachem- they offer great support tailored to your particular needs instead of reeling off generic advice (y)
I asked them if their sporks can be purchased seperately, because I buy Safe in bulk and you don't get sporks with the buckets. They posted me a spork all the way to Australia. Free of charge :)
 
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