# Use Of Flourish Excell In Place Of Co2 Injection



## jestergraphics (May 29, 2007)

Allright so my 20# cylinder is about to run out and I'll need to get it refilled, I haven't found a back up yet and my only shop that fills them moves with a sense of urgency comparable to a drunk snail as they say it usually takes a week to fill cylinders. Soooo, I was curious to know if I could get by dosing excell for a week until I got my tank back? I don't see why not but figured I'd ask incase I'm not thinking of something. Also would you think I'd have to start with the initial saturation dose, which is quite a bit or could I just jump on to the maintenance cycle of dosing. Initial, and after major water change, is 1ml per gallon I believe and the maintenance is 5ml per 50gal everyday or every other day. I have a 125 so with initial saturation 1 bottle should get me 10days.


----------



## Guest (Oct 21, 2011)

Just keep up with your current maintenance dose for the excel. Then add the CO2 when you get your cylinder back.


----------



## jestergraphics (May 29, 2007)

thats why I was asking I don't dose excell, didn't see a purpose of 2 carbon sources. So I wasn't sure if I'd have to start from scratch with the dosing instructions of excell since I've never used it. But I got a reply from seachem so were good, thanks for the reply.


----------



## Guest (Oct 21, 2011)

If you have Vals in your tank, do not use excel as they will melt them.


----------



## maknwar (Jul 16, 2007)

cut your lights waaaayyyy back. When you get the co2, turn them back on again. Run like 1 bulb.


----------



## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

maknwar said:


> cut your lights waaaayyyy back. When you get the co2, turn them back on again. Run like 1 bulb.












makinwar gave you excellent advice. That is what I do, when I can't get my cylinders filled.

It won't hurt any of your plants, and it is the best thing to do by far. Excel can't come close to what pressurized does, IMO

My local welding supply shop has my cylinders filled within 5 mins, unless it needs inspected, and that happens once every 5 years.
Then they just toss me a spare, and keep the one that needs inspected.


----------



## jestergraphics (May 29, 2007)

DiPpY eGgS said:


> cut your lights waaaayyyy back. When you get the co2, turn them back on again. Run like 1 bulb.












makinwar gave you excellent advice. That is what I do, when I can't get my cylinders filled.

It won't hurt any of your plants, and it is the best thing to do by far. Excel can't come close to what pressurized does, IMO

My local welding supply shop has my cylinders filled within 5 mins, unless it needs inspected, and that happens once every 5 years.
Then they just toss me a spare, and keep the one that needs inspected.
[/quote]

I found another source that can exchange me on the spot so were good. I know its a matter of minutes to fill, hell even if it did need its DOT 5yr done- thats just visual, thats what was driving me nuts with my welding shop when they said it would take a week, because I knew it was crap and was actually laziness. Oddly enough a general auto parts store is who's going to help me out.


----------



## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

LOL you should call that welding supply shop, ask for the manager, and ask him how long it should take for a CO2 cylinder fill.
Then tell him what happened.

That guy who told you a week would be either gone, or straightened out. hah.


----------



## maknwar (Jul 16, 2007)

I always get mine filled while I stand there watching. It really isnt that hard to refill them. They just hook it up to a big tank, put it onto a scale and turn the knob to fill it. When it gets to the right weight, they turn the knob off and its done.


----------



## jestergraphics (May 29, 2007)

maknwar said:


> I always get mine filled while I stand there watching. It really isnt that hard to refill them. They just hook it up to a big tank, put it onto a scale and turn the knob to fill it. When it gets to the right weight, they turn the knob off and its done.


yeah that was the frusterating part, I'm in a similar business, propane. Different gas but filling, inspecting, handling all very similar thats why I knew it was just a bunch of crap. No biggie now though all is well.


----------



## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

Hey Jester..

If that tank in your sig is your current one, the plant you have in abundance in there is _Hygrophila angustafoila_, and in the right conditions, it will grow extremely HUGE>

The stem will get like a small tree, and the root system will be extensive. But it is a cool plant, and very resilient from trimming.

You can whack the whole plant down to a stick and 3 leaves and it will be FINE


----------



## jestergraphics (May 29, 2007)

DiPpY eGgS said:


> Hey Jester..
> 
> If that tank in your sig is your current one, the plant you have in abundance in there is _Hygrophila angustafoila_, and in the right conditions, it will grow extremely HUGE>
> 
> ...


why yes, yes it is. Thanks for the out look, since I've been dosing all necessary ferts the damn things are growing daily! hahaha! the vast majority you see are along the back so I'll let them hit the surface, I'm still tossing around some decent mid grounds I can put in there, the Ludwigia repens you see up front by the drift wood I hope continues on well. I've been cutting stems from that and "bushing" them out by the drift wood. Creating a bush out of somthing that isn't simply because I like the dual color green and red. Its cousin the Ludwigia Peruenis is big candidate for my mid ground bushes I'm going to make, or just one big center one once the P's get big enough to where I'll need to remove the drift wood or at least one piece in which case I'll bush out the Peruenis on the opposite side... we'll see how things pan out I change my mind daily sometimes. I'm not going to let the Hygrophila get much bigger by the drift wood, its doing what I want it to now by interlacing in the driftwood tines and making the driftwood to substrate connection look more natural, it'll be complete once my hairgrass carpets the "bluffs" the drift wood is sitting on. Do wish that stuff grew quicker; for some reason I thought hairgrass did grow pretty quick, I'm finding out not so much.

I forsee myself doing what you did not to long ago, basically waking up and deciding you dont like the look of your tank anymore and changing everything around....hahaha! I'm very similar in that way, I can only stare at the same "picture" so long then I got to change somthing.


----------



## DiPpY eGgS (Mar 6, 2005)

lol
About the hairgrass--I think I'm seeing clumps of it.
If so, it will do much much better if you take it apart, in about 8-10 leaf 'plugs' and plant it about 1" apart from each other in the area you want it to carpet.

Also, once it grows in thick, it is extremely hard to get it to look natural, because it grows SOOO thick.
I recommend trimming it by cutting some of it's leaves down to a nub, on an angle in some areas.. But still working on this technique on my own, so I'll let you know how that works lol

I'm not sure if I would remove that driftwood.. Maybe switch it up, but not remove it


----------



## jestergraphics (May 29, 2007)

DiPpY eGgS said:


> lol
> About the hairgrass--I think I'm seeing clumps of it.
> If so, it will do much much better if you take it apart, in about 8-10 leaf 'plugs' and plant it about 1" apart from each other in the area you want it to carpet.
> 
> ...


I'll give that a shot with the hairgrass, for some reason i was expecting the growth I had with dwarf sag. on a another tank, that stuff grew every 10min I swear...but seriously that stuff had my whole aquarium carpeted in 2 weeks off of 3 plants. I may or may not remove the driftwood down the road, I'm talking not till the caribe hit 6-7" mark just so they had more swim room. My past pygos seemed to like that before when they got bigger; there's not much they couldn't get around or through until they hit 10"+ so its not a need by any means to get rid of it any time soon....we'll see in time.


----------

