# Best root tabs?



## EntoCraig

I like the Seachem Flourish root tabs.

http://www.seachem.com/Products/product_pages/FlourishTabs.html

They dont dissolve, (that I am aware of)


----------



## OverStocked

Seachem tabs and flourish are the same thing... and I have never heard of "jungle val root tabs".... My brand(rootmedic) aside, you missed several others--pfertz, ferka, Tropica, nutrafin, aquariumplants.com, aquariumfertilzer.com, aquabotanic.com... 

I won't offer my opinion, as it should seem obvious, but I think you will find that from forum to forum and from person to person, they will have very different opinions. People tend to be passionate only about the things they spend money on... 

My recommendation, try some out and see how they work for you.


----------



## jmowbray

RM by far!!! I have purchased the Seachem tabs and placed them in the sub. before and seen what seemed to me, normal plant grow. After they were done I put in RM and holly s%^&!!! I can't believe that I used to think that the plants were growing before I used these.


----------



## Nate McFin

Rootmedic are my choice as well. Check the numbers for NPK and compare to any other brand. Rootmedic wins hands down.


----------



## Fallen_angel42

Yeah, i checked the RM and find that they are the best around, i think I'll order some =) thanks yalll


----------



## Franzi

I like the aquariumplants.com root tabs. I've seen the best results using those. The others I've tried are Seachem and those really horrible Jungle brand ones you get at PetCo.


----------



## DavidZ

did anyone do a cost comparison?


----------



## mattycakesclark

I used Flourish, but I got some RM on the way, excited to try um.


----------



## Centromochlus

!!!!


----------



## Tex Gal

Franzi said:


> I like the aquariumplants.com root tabs. I've seen the best results using those. The others I've tried are Seachem and those really horrible Jungle brand ones you get at PetCo.


These are my favorite too. I get their TOTAL pellets. They have phosphates in the too. They are cheap and work great. I just use my tweezers and stick them right down in the substrate.


----------



## OverStocked

> did anyone do a cost comparison?


Hahahaha.... cost... 

Sent from my ADR6300 using Tapatalk


----------



## barbarossa4122

$ 0.28/tab if you got the 3 for 1 deal.


----------



## happi

Fallen_angel42 said:


> Okay, so I have a sand substrate, and to give my plants an extra boost I wish to give them some root tabs, what's the best in yalls opinion? I've heard of...
> Flourish Tabs
> DIY Root tabs
> Seachmen root tabs
> Jungle Val root tabs
> 
> Someone told me the Seachmen are the worst and the DIY probably cost more to make than to just go out and buy some. Is this true?:bounce:


i would rather buy it from over_stocked 

you can get 75 root tabs for $21 and this will last you for year and half.


----------



## blackwidow

i have used Seachem Flourish & RM, they are about the same, but you cant beat the price w/ RM


----------



## fresh.salty

I like to spread them out more than most. So anything that's in a tablet allows me to break it up in to 3-4 pieces so the nutrients aren't so localized. I have Seachem & Pfertz. In my 90g I'm using some capsules from Ferka that GLA carries and they work great under some hungry plants. Tried those in my 3g and couldn't keep them in the shallow substrate.


----------



## herns

I have a good growth with DIY Osmocote plus. One bottle can make thousands rootabs at a cheap price.

There's sellers in the power seller section that sells already made capsules for you to try.


----------



## Dini

I have been using Sea Chem for years and have had no complaints at all. Find they work well...I can usually get 40 tabs for roughly $20.00.... give or take a couple bucks. I really only use them for my swords and crypts so I don't really go through that many. When I do use them I find it is only a matter of days and the swords are sending up flower stems.


----------



## ktownhero

I used RootMedic tabs and they seem to do a good job (I've never tried anything else). I got a crazy buy one get one deal so I got enough tabs to last me 2 years for like $20!


----------



## HD Blazingwolf

root medic tabs FTW.. their lifespan is really what sets them appart from the competition


----------



## fresh.salty

ktownhero said:


> I used RootMedic tabs





HD Blazingwolf said:


> root medic tabs


Are these tablets or capsules?


----------



## Daximus

(Don't tell anyone, but these work well in *dirt* tanks. I don't know that I would trust them in a different substrate though. I'm whispering because if people find out I just use plain old plant spikes and not something labeled "root tab" I will be in trouble. Shhh)


----------



## wkndracer

hahaha Dax! The palm formula has been mumbled / whispered about for years.

Last thread I remember reading about 2 weeks after chopping up and placing the spikes the OP did a re-scape moving rooted plants. Without knowing it they uncovered several of these then wondered why they had a parameter spike. Buried deep many have had good results using these with sand too.


----------



## Daximus

wkndracer said:


> hahaha Dax! The palm formula has been mumbled / whispered about for years.
> 
> Last thread I remember reading about 2 weeks after chopping up and placing the spikes the OP did a re-scape moving rooted plants. Without knowing it they uncovered several of these then wondered why they had a parameter spike. Buried deep many have had good results using these with sand too.


Yea, got to bury them good, not for water column dosing, lol. I push mine down to the glass. I'll add this to the list of things you _shouldn't_ do to an aquarium, which is pretty much my whole setup. :icon_mrgr


----------



## Kathyy

Okay I will come out of the closet too. I spiked my 180 gallon tank with Jobe's that weren't even the palm food formula 2 months ago and so far no 4 eyed fish or purple algae or anything. Used a whole package broken into 1/3s and they were pushed to the bottom of the tank.


----------



## Daximus

Kathyy said:


> Okay I will come out of the closet too. I spiked my 180 gallon tank with Jobe's that weren't even the palm food formula 2 months ago and so far no 4 eyed fish or purple algae or anything. Used a whole package broken into 1/3s and they were pushed to the bottom of the tank.



/off topic...I think you have one of the coolest tanks ever. :thumbsup:

/resume debate...


----------



## herns

Here's a good reading from barrreport.

"Rootabs are they worth using and which ones are the best".


http://www.barrreport.com/showthrea...-they-worth-using-and-which-ones-are-the-best


----------



## blackwidow

i have used rootmedic, Seachem, diy Osmocote plus, to be honest i "feel" they are the same. I myself make diy osmocote plus to use and giving free, it's much better price/performance for long run, one bottle of osmocote can make... "lots" of root tab, and they work as good as any brand name.
i bought osmocote plus bottle around $20, dont remember exactly how much for the gel cap, i would say $10 or $15 for 1000 or so, total cost around $30+, you literally have unlimited access to root tab....


----------



## roadmaster

herns said:


> I have a good growth with DIY Osmocote plus. One bottle can make thousands rootabs at a cheap price.
> 
> There's sellers in the power seller section that sells already made capsules for you to try.


+one for Osmocote.
Can try Osmocote "pot shot's" too. 
I found the latter at ACE hardware in plant fertilizer and lawn section.


----------



## ktownhero

HD Blazingwolf said:


> root medic tabs FTW.. their lifespan is really what sets them appart from the competition


Their life span is both a blessing and a curse. It's a bit of a curse if you are new to planted tanks, like myself, and like to move things around and try out different plants fairly regularly. Even 6+ months after having put the tabs in, I still pull pellets out of the substrate


----------



## wkndracer

ktownhero said:


> Their life span is both a blessing and a curse. It's a bit of a curse if you are new to planted tanks, like myself, and like to move things around and try out different plants fairly regularly. Even 6+ months after having put the tabs in, I still pull pellets out of the substrate


That's not the ferts lasting so much as the packaging. The spheres never dissolve or breakdown.That's my only complaint with this type delivery system. The empty spheres rolling around in the current between the plants later drive me to distraction. Once in the tank the empty spheres are the only thing harder to be rid of then Lemna minor.:hihi:


----------



## chiefroastbeef

I too will never get the Osmocote style fert tabs again. They pop up after a while, and it is very annoying, I actually threw those fert tabs away. I am now using mud nutrient balls by JBL. Plants love it.


----------



## n00dl3

Have anyone tried this recipe? DIY Root Tabs


----------



## ktownhero

wkndracer said:


> That's not the ferts lasting so much as the packaging. The spheres never dissolve or breakdown.That's my only complaint with this type delivery system. The empty spheres rolling around in the current between the plants later drive me to distraction. Once in the tank the empty spheres are the only thing harder to be rid of then Lemna minor.:hihi:


Oh really? I didn't know that! These orange-ish pellets on my substrate drive me nuts, I guess I will start pulling them out or popping them.


----------



## blackwidow

chiefroastbeef said:


> I too will never get the Osmocote style fert tabs again. They pop up after a while, and it is very annoying, I actually threw those fert tabs away. I am now using mud nutrient balls by JBL. Plants love it.


if you put them deep enough into the substrate, the gel cap cant pop up to water's surface due to the weight of substrate


----------



## dundadundun

blackwidow said:


> if you put them deep enough into the substrate, the gel cap cant pop up to water's surface due to the weight of substrate


this is not always the case. i put mine all the way down to the glass with a syringe. the prills do pop up from time to time. i just vacuum them out during tank maintenance. no biggie.


----------



## ktownhero

blackwidow said:


> if you put them deep enough into the substrate, the gel cap cant pop up to water's surface due to the weight of substrate


That's not what I've seen in my experience. I push all my tabs all the way down to the glass, and yet they do surface over time. All larger particles tend to surface over time.


----------



## chiefroastbeef

blackwidow said:


> if you put them deep enough into the substrate, the gel cap cant pop up to water's surface due to the weight of substrate


I do that of course, but they pop up anyways by themselves, or when I replant/plant.


----------



## blackwidow

wow really guys? I have like little over an inch of mr.aqua soil, not so deap but all the gel cap doesnt seem to move at all. Or maybe because of the gel-cap its self, I use pure gelatin capsules size 00.


----------



## PlantedTankLover

I know this is a really old thread but I learn a lot form it. I'm trying to fine RM and can't find it anywhere online. Anyone know where I can get it?


----------



## ua hua

Rootmedic is no longer. You can make your own using this recipe, or contact hydrophyte and get some of his gro-soil tabs. I have a ton of the clay tabs that I made some time ago that I no longer use since I switched to Aquasoil but may use some again when I feel that the nutrients have run dry in the Aquasoil. 

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=187077


----------



## PlantedTankLover

Well that blows! And I'm too lazy to make my own. lol


----------



## ua hua

PlantedTankLover said:


> Well that blows! And I'm too lazy to make my own. lol


If you don't feel like trying to make your own you can always find a seller that is selling osmocote tabs. I myself never liked using them because the little balls will eventually end up all over as they work there way out of the substrate but they are an option. What size tank do you have?


----------



## PlantedTankLover

46 gallon.

I've been using Seachem Flourish tabs, but not that impressed. They work well for a few weeks, then nothing.


----------



## kreesdqban

OverStocked said:


> Seachem tabs and flourish are the same thing... and I have never heard of "jungle val root tabs".... My brand(rootmedic) aside, you missed several others--pfertz, ferka, Tropica, nutrafin, aquariumplants.com, aquariumfertilzer.com, aquabotanic.com...
> 
> I won't offer my opinion, as it should seem obvious, but I think you will find that from forum to forum and from person to person, they will have very different opinions. People tend to be passionate only about the things they spend money on...
> 
> My recommendation, try some out and see how they work for you.


I always appreciate honest advice like this from a vendor. Thanks


----------



## RCB

I noticed that when I switched from Seachem tabs over to Nilocg Thrive Caps, the plants seemed to like them better.


----------



## Discusluv

This is an older thread, but it makes me think... maybe I should try different brands to see how they work. I have just been buying Seachem Brand routinely for the past couple years without evaluating if there are better ones to use. What are some that others have used ( thanks for the previous suggestion on Nilocg Thrive caps) that they were able to make comparisons with other brands. In other words, you have used more than one brand of root tabs to be able to make a comparison.


----------



## Letsfish

blackwidow said:


> i have used rootmedic, Seachem, diy Osmocote plus, to be honest i "feel" they are the same. I myself make diy osmocote plus to use and giving free, it's much better price/performance for long run, one bottle of osmocote can make... "lots" of root tab, and they work as good as any brand name.
> i bought osmocote plus bottle around $20, dont remember exactly how much for the gel cap, i would say $10 or $15 for 1000 or so, total cost around $30+, you literally have unlimited access to root tab....



I am about to venture in the same direction. I purchased a 8# bag of Osmocote plus and 1000 size 0 gel caps,so I will see how that works out,so far I got about $30 invested and even if the Osmocote doesn`t work out in the aquarium there are plenty other uses for it in the garden.


----------



## Asteroid

If your dosing the water column with macro/micro the root tabs really are a waste. Even Seachem will tell you that.


----------



## Discusluv

Bump: Anyone have any recommendations?


----------

