Excel as a treatment for BBA? Experiences?

[m.lemay]

Originally Posted by Barbels

Updates?
m.lemay, wantplantsnotwork, anybody, for that matter: Have you guys had many fish losses yet?
Can anyone tell me if they've used Excel at 6.6ml/gal safely with Cardinals, Otos or Dwarf Loaches?
Thank you.

I've used as much with boeseamani rainbows,rasboras, and rams. I did lose 2 plecos,a rubber mouth and a peppermint. I don't know if they both died from the excel because I only found thier carcasses 3-4 weeks after treatment, I also had a high co2 incident in that time period, so I'm not sure what killed them. But none of the other fish seemed stressed. Even the ottos were fine. Be careful and watch the fish.

Marcel

[wantplantsnotwork]

I had a squad of ghost shrimp that up and died, but my bushy nose seem to be eating even more of my swords.
The Angel fish have a new bunch of 'wigglin babys as I type, so the water must be somewhat pleasant for them.

I only add 90 mls to the tank every two weeks or maybe three, at a 60 % wc.

Excel was my magic bullet, but it must be a silver one. The dang stuff is pricey!

[BSS]

I've been dosing Excel at 4 ml/gal (20 ml nightly in a 46g) for close to a month now. It took about three weeks for the Excel to really get the upper hand, but the tank is looking *much* improved now. I've got cardinals, rummy nose, rasboras, assorted corys, 3 varieties of botias and a bristlenose plec. Oh, and I've got glass/ghost shrimp and some red cherry shrimp. The only casualty I've had is to a grossly oversized and pretty lazy SAE. I'm guessing it was just her time. Aside from that, I can't recall any deaths during my extended treatment.

[Lissette]

A very interesting thread. I wish I would have read it sooner.

I've decided to join you guys and do a little testing of my own, so, I've ordered a 500ml bottle from the lfs.

However, I'm not sure how much to dose in my 29 gal. My co2 is at 30 ppm and I still get this stuff on my driftwood. Lately, it's been growing on my hairgrass and it's driving me bonkers. I've prunned the hell out of it, and cleaned up the tank.

How much should I dose? I have shrimps, so I want to be careful.

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Lissette

[Momotaro]

Normal dose would be 1ml per 50G. So, you would dose about 2.5ml for your 29G normally. If you are going to "overdose" you would look to double or triple the normal dose.

My suggestion to you would be to just double the normal dose, about 5ml. I really believe tripling puts fish and most certainly shrimps at risk.

Also, the idea of using the Flourish Excel to battle algae was to use the product for a 10-12 day period to kill off algae. It shouldn't be used as a consistent program.

Mike

[Lissette]

Thanks Momotaro.

I'll follow your advice and see if the Excel works. I certainly hope so. I want to come back and give you some positive feedback on it.

Wish me luck.

Lissette

[BSS]

FWIW, I've just come to the conclusion that though my GH>10, my tank has been Mg starved! I'll start another thread with some of the specifics. But, that could be a contributor to why I wasn't see differing Excel results from others on this thread.

I'd always wondered why my tank just seemed to be 'different'. Hopefully, this will be the missing ingrediant!!
Brian.

[fatbysl]

I know this is an old thread but i just came across it. Anyways im having the same problems with bba as everone else. My concern is killing my sae cost me $7.00 but i had to get them out of town. Anyways here what im going to do i will dose excel 2x the normal dose or can i dose 3x and be all right? I will unplug my uv. and i think im going to dose at night when the lights turn off. Hopefully this get a handle on this nasty stuff. If you see any problems with this let me know.

[Momotaro]

If you are going to overdose the flourish Excel, I'd recommend only 2xs, 3xs is a bit too much.

Mike

[fatbysl]

is it better to dose at night or in the day or does it not matter when you dose?

[fatbysl]

Have bba outbreak and been dosing flourish excel now for five days. I have not seen much improvment was wondering if im dosing the right amount i been dosing 25ml every day i think thats 2x the amount. Just wondering if someone could help.

[mrkho]

2x the amount isnt enough, it is said 5x the amount is best, and or riase your co2 to 30-40ppm

[brad]

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/sh...ad.php?t=20172

[zelmo]

Originally Posted by Rizos

One question: during the 10-12 day treatment period, do you continue with the "normal" water change schedule?

Thanks

I didn't see this question answered. Do you do a normal WC, and if so, do you bump up the dose for that day?

[Momotaro]

The normal post water change dose of Flourish Excel is pretty elevated. I wouldn't triple the already high dose. Do a normal water change and dose the Excel according to the directions for a normal water change. the increase the dosage for the days subsequent to the water change.

Mike