# How to use Excel correctly?



## gbb0330 (Nov 21, 2015)

i have a 40g tank and I dose 1/2 cap excel every few days. I also dose 1/2 potassium, iron and micro nutrients, alternating days.

I was dosing full caps in the first couple of weeks. its not an exact science you will have to try and see what happens. 
taking pictures of the tank once a week helps determine if your actions are good or bad. if the tank looked better a month ago you need to change something, if the tank looks better now, keep doing what you are doing.



I also have amano shrimps and some of them died, cause of death: unknown.

since you have algae, dosing less than recommended is a good idea, you can always increase the dosage later.


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## Manami (Sep 29, 2015)

Ok. I can start adding half of the dosage every other day and see how the shrimps react to it.


I read on the internet once that excel can be toxic if inhaled. Should I be worried since the 40g tank is inside my bedroom? Sorry for the silly question. :icon_eek:


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## Hoppy (Dec 24, 2005)

The best way to dose Excell (or Metricide 14 day) is to dose it every day, at 2 ml per 10 gallons of water. Don't ever use the Seachem recommended starter dose of 5 ml per 10 gallons. That is very hard on some plants like vals, but the 2 ml dosage did no harm to my vals. The Seachem recommended 1 ml per 10 gallons doesn't seem to be enough - I saw a big change when I switched to 2 ml. This is a very low dosage so it doesn't harm fish or, as far as I have heard, shrimp. You dose every day because its life in the tank is about a day - after a day most of it is gone.


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## gbb0330 (Nov 21, 2015)

Manami said:


> Ok. I can start adding half of the dosage every other day and see how the shrimps react to it.
> 
> 
> I read on the internet once that excel can be toxic if inhaled. Should I be worried since the 40g tank is inside my bedroom? Sorry for the silly question. :icon_eek:


there is a warning on the label, and the cap is childproof, so its definitely not good for you, especially if you are exposed to it every night. if you have allergies or other health problems you should be worried.


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 4, 2008)

Manami said:


> I read on the internet once that excel can be toxic if inhaled. Should I be worried since the 40g tank is inside my bedroom? Sorry for the silly question. :icon_eek:


It will be fine, considering that you are diluting the Excel significantly upon dosing it into your aquarium.

That being said, do not sniff the bottle of Excel directly, and keep it sealed when not in use, and you will be fine.


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## bereninga (Mar 18, 2006)

I'm sure that it's toxic if inhaled at a very high concentration. If it's already in the aquarium you wouldn't have to worry about that.


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## kevmo911 (Sep 24, 2010)

Here's the MSDS for it if you're interested.
http://www.seachem.com/support/MSDS/FlourishExcel.doc.pdf


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## gbb0330 (Nov 21, 2015)

kevmo911 said:


> Here's the MSDS for it if you're interested.
> http://www.seachem.com/support/MSDS/FlourishExcel.doc.pdf


SECTION VI: HEALTH HAZARD DATA answers the question.


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## Manami (Sep 29, 2015)

Wow! Great info.! Thanks you all!


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## Kubla (Jan 5, 2014)

> Q: Is Flourish Excel a replacement for CO2 in a planted aquarium?
> 
> A: Yes and no. It provides the same benefit as CO2, i.e. it provides the plants with a source of carbon for growth just as CO2 provides them with carbon. However CO2 by itself will give you quantitatively more growth than Excel by itself, although Excel does provide a substantial amount in comparison. If CO2 is a 10, Excel is a 6-7. *Using both together provides additional benefit.* One of the advantages of the Excel is no up front equipment costs and complexity of valves, hoses and regulators, etc.


I found this in the Q&A section for Excel. Most of the answers are fairly well detailed until the get to the advantages of using Excel and CO2 together.


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## Manami (Sep 29, 2015)

Ok. But that is if you want to use both, I suppose. They just want you to buy more of their products...haha.

I'm going to experiment using excel first. My light is medium light and I'm buying supposedly hardy, less demanding plants. My only worries are the vals, but I'll keep an eye on it.

If I use excel daily, will I still need to use flourish comp? I only use it 2 days a week.


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## ccar2000 (Sep 3, 2011)

Kubla said:


> I found this in the Q&A section for Excel. Most of the answers are fairly well detailed until the get to the advantages of using Excel and CO2 together.


"Flourish Excel™ is a source of bioavailable organic carbon. All plants require a source of carbon. This is typically obtained from CO2, but, may also be derived from simple organic compounds (such as photosynthetic intermediates). The use of either CO2 injection or Flourish Excel™ does not necessarily negate the use of the other. Because the processes of producing photosynthetic intermediates and building onto them occur simultaneously, one can derive a substantial benefit with the use of Flourish Excel™ either alone or in conjunction with CO2 . The combination is particularly ideal for situations when continuing to add CO2 could result in dangerously low pH levels. Flourish Excel™ also has iron reducing properties which promote the ferrous state of iron (Fe+2), which is more easily utilized by plants than ferric iron (Fe+3)."

In short Excel is good for folks that receive already low pH tap water.

I am currently using both CO2 and Excel. My aquarium degassed water pH comes in at 7.2 to 7.4.
In order to achieve 30ppm of CO2 it is recommended that a pH controller using CO2 be set one full degree below a degassed water sample.
I figured out last week that setting the controller to 6.2 to 6.4 is detrimental to my plants and snails (dissolves their shells) I now have my controller set to 7.0 and am using Excel at approximately 1.25x the recommended rate, feeding every other day.


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## randym (Sep 20, 2015)

I'm hesitant to use Excel in my shrimp tanks because they don't seem to like it. They don't keel over dead (unless you overdose it), but they don't seem happy. They are less active, hide more, and breed less.

I am currently using half-doses in my non-CO2 shrimp tanks.


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## sevendust111 (Jul 15, 2014)

I dose 2x recommended dose of excel daily on my low tech. I agree with everything Hoppy said.


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## Freemananana (Jan 2, 2015)

Take your bottle of excel and toss it out the window and buy a CO2 setup. haha. Teasing. Really though, Hoppy is who I got my original recommendation for. All I can add is to dose in the morning. Excel has a life span in the aquarium that is short and your plants won't get to use it if the lights are out. So dose in the morning before or as the lights come on. I was doing it in the evening and noticed a decent change when dosing in the AM instead.


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## Manami (Sep 29, 2015)

HAHA, funny = p.

Ok. Cool. But now I'm a little worried about the PH! X_X

I have high PH. If excel lower it too low or too fast, will it affect/kill my fish?


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## roostertech (Oct 27, 2015)

Manami said:


> HAHA, funny = p.
> 
> Ok. Cool. But now I'm a little worried about the PH! X_X
> 
> I have high PH. If excel lower it too low or too fast, will it affect/kill my fish?


Excel doesn't mess with your PH. It is not real Co2, just stuff that can be broken down to CO2.


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## BMueller777 (Feb 5, 2008)

Excel will not effect your pH. A pressurized CO2 system will.


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## Manami (Sep 29, 2015)

Ok. Thank you!


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