I need some help! USPS has lost my plant fert.

[CKetchum]

I am waiting on my ACO Easy Green and tabs, the box is currently "lost in shipment".  In order to give my plants, which arrived on the 5th a chance I purchased some Seachem products while I wait for my ACO ferts to show up (tick-tock).  I haven't really invested time into the Seachem products. Can anyone offer advise on "real" dosing of Flourish, Flourish Excel and FE? Are these products ok? 

Red Dwarf Lilly (sprouting), Water sprite (turning brown), Crypt wendtti, Red melon sword, Vall (looks dead), PSO (hanging in there but yellow-light green), Anubuias bartari, Windelov Java Fern (aka Jazz hands), Anubias petite, Java moss, Weeping moss, Salvania (spell?). 

I added some equilibrium 1 tablespoon 2 days ago. Added 4 ml (almost capful) of Flourish, 10 ml Flourish Excel (2 capfuls), 1 capful of Fe today. I also added some dirty betta tank water from when I gravel vac today (hoping for some nitrogen, phosphate), Lighting for 8-10 hours with a Stingray Finnex. 

29 gallon about 2/3rd full. Est volume 20-25 gallons. I cannot test water parameters (testing kit, strips also in said missing box, along with my heater and sponge filter. I have an air wand thingy going to break surface tension to provide some exchange.  Thank you so much in advanced. I am worried about the PSO and Water sprite. 

[Patrick_G]

Flourish Excel is an algae inhibitor masquerading as a carbon source. I use it, but very sparingly because it’s toxic to humans.  I’ll dose the initial dose according to the label and then wait until a water change to add more if necessary. I’ll also spot dose with a pipette if I have a localized algae breakout. 
Flourish is good but it’s weak and doesn’t have much nitrogen vs Easy Green. Your plants should be fine while you wait for the Easy Green. 
 

Are you currently doing a fishless cycle? Your ammonia source would also be a great nitrogen source for the plants. 

[nabokovfan87]

On 7/9/2022 at 12:36 PM, CKetchum said:

Can anyone offer advise on "real" dosing of Flourish, Flourish Excel and FE? Are these products ok? 

Easy Green = Flourish and Flourish Trace.  There is a difference, but those 2 would be the bottles that equate to it.
Easy Carbon = Flourish Excel
Easy Iron = Seachem Iron

I didn't look up or determine exact % for dosing differences, but that gives you an idea of the equivalency in terms of what's in there and what is similar to the other.

To your question,  I wouldn't dose the carbon / iron unless you absolutely had a deficiency showing that demanded it.  I would stick to just dosing Flourish once or twice a week.  If you have Flourish Trace, I'd dose that once a week. I don't think it's worth the effort to go track down seachem's nitrate bottle or anything like that. Phosphorus you're most likely getting from the food you're feeding to the fish / bacteria.

When I used the flourish stuff, this is all I followed.
 

Quote

Use 1 capful (5 mL) for each 250 L (60 US gallons) once or twice a week. For smaller doses, please note that each cap thread is approximately 1 mL.

I'm very certain that using capfuls is not very scientifically accurate, but it's cheaper than providing a pump head.  If you have one of the dosing shot glasses, I would just use that or a syringe or something and save yourself the hassle of spilling it all over the place.

On 7/9/2022 at 12:36 PM, CKetchum said:

29 gallon about 2/3rd full. Est volume 20-25 gallons.

Honestly, even by their own directions you're using capfuls.  I just dose mine for a 29 (i.e. 30G) aquarium dose and it's been fine. If your plants are brand new, be sure to give them 1 week to acclimate before you start dosing the tank with anything specifically to feed them. This was one of the tips mentioned on this video....
 

 

[Patrick_G]

On 7/9/2022 at 1:35 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

On 7/9/2022 at 12:36 PM, CKetchum said:

 

Easy Green = Flourish and Flourish Trace.  There is a difference, but those 2 would be the bottles that equate to it.

I believe Flourish is a comprehensive fertilizer like Easy Green but with a much lower concentration.

Flourish Trace is only micros. You wouldn’t always need to dose both Flourish and Trace together, but might use Trace in a tank that has adequate Macros but some deficiency in micros. 

@Cory , is this correct, or am I getting some details wrong? Also, what’s the Co-op policy for packages lost or delayed by USPS since the original question was about a delayed package? 

@nabokovfan87, sorry to butt in on your reply. Seachem doesn’t do a good job making their product line easy! 
 

Edited July 9, 2022 by Patrick_G

[CKetchum]

This is a brand new tank. Not stocked with fish. Just plants, driftwood, gravel. Worried a bit about nitrogen level being low. 

[Patrick_G]

On 7/9/2022 at 2:23 PM, CKetchum said:

This is a brand new tank. Not stocked with fish. Just plants, driftwood, gravel. Worried a bit about nitrogen level being low. 

As long as you have Flourish and not Flourish Trace I think you should be ok. 

[CKetchum]

Thank u @Patrick_G and @nabokovfan87 for taking time out to comment and help me. I feel a bit better. Hopefully my "box" will be found/show up somehow soon. 

[Patrick_G]

On 7/9/2022 at 3:53 PM, CKetchum said:

Hopefully my "box" will be found/show up somehow soon. 

In my delivery area usps is flaky as heck. They recently lost a 25lb bag of cat food! 

[nabokovfan87]

On 7/9/2022 at 1:56 PM, Patrick_G said:

@nabokovfan87, sorry to butt in on your reply. Seachem doesn’t do a good job making their product line easy! 

No worries at all!

What you said is accurate.  To me what matters is that it's important for people to understand you're not getting away with JUST flourish.

On 7/9/2022 at 3:53 PM, CKetchum said:

Hopefully my "box" will be found/show up somehow soon. 

My favorite is when you call, they say "no, it was delivered" and then "well did you wait a few days"?

Call the local office that had it, talk with the manager. They usually actually can help. Sometimes.