Need some fert suggestions

[chocological]

Hey all, so I'm planning out a more planted approach to my tank, and needed some fert suggestions.

Here are the plants I have/am getting. Some I have already, some are coming.

2 bunches of anacharis narrow leaf
a potted cryptocoryne wendtii
potted pygmy chain sword
1 java fern (still small)
couple bunches of bacopa caroliniana
And some java moss of course, on driftwood.

I have a 20g tank. I also have a fixture coming this week.. it will give me a total of 48w, putting me in mid range I believe for light requirements.
I have regular gravel, but plan to replace it with eco complete in the coming weeks. So, any fert tips? I've read that excel will melt the anacharis, but that's all I know.

[dragoonwoman]

PlantedAquariumFertilizer.com

I've been using their dry PMDD mix for about 2 years and my plants are all healthy and growing. I mix it with water before adding to the tank (although it can be used dry) and my 46 gallon bowfront takes 1/2 teaspoon, my 25 gets 1/4 teaspoon, and one betta tank gets 5 drops, each 3 times a week. I also dose with Flourish Excel at the same time, as I don't run CO2.

My other betta tank gets a tiny smidgeon (1/16 teaspoon or so) of the dry powder once a week, added to the filter so it dissolves thoroughly.

I bought 2 1-pound packages and haven't even cracked into the second one yet. VERY economical to use, you can get the individual components if you want to mix your own blend, and they ship very quickly too. I highly recommend them.

[chocological]

That site is not working for me.. :(
I've read that excel will melt elodea, but I've seen people that does every other day have success.. Im just mixed on whether to dose or not.

[Lady Hobbs]

Several plants die when dosed with Excel. Vals, anacharis and I believe it didn't do my moss much good. I use Excel "very" sparingly and do not overdose with it.
I have also lost fish due to using it. My albino corys but not the other corys. Not sure what that was about. I also lost all my mountain minnows after one dose.

I just see no reason to add poison to your tank all the time. I put the fish before the plants. If I have a plant that seems to be a problem plant that just loves to attract the algae, I get rid of the plant. To me, it just isn't worth it.

http://www.oscarfish.com/article-hom...hem-excel.html

I use Leaf Zone most of the time. Also have used Flourish Comprehensive. One works as well as the other, I think.

[~firefly~]

Interesting article. I've read similar things about EasyLife EasyCarbo (for god's sake don't spill any on your skin!). I was quite worried when I started using EasyCarbo as I'd heard it can affect some plants (like vals) badly and cause them to melt, but to date I've not seen any issues or any changes in water parameters. It might affect different water types differently perhaps? No idea.

At the moment I'm dosing 4ml in a fairly heavily planted, low-tech, 120 litre tank (filter probably holds 10 litres). +ferts +macro nutrient day drops

I've no real idea what I'm doing but following the instructions and advice on here seems to be ok in my pitifully-low-lit tank.

[chocological]

Excellent point Hobbs. No need to poison the fish. I would place the fish before the plants as well. Besides, a little algae is good for the pleco. Excel is probably unnecessary for my setup. Flourish comprehensive is something I will look into.
Do you guys know of any other co2 supplement besides excel? Preferably one that doesn't contain a known algaecide as an active ingredient?

[~firefly~]

The only other one I'm aware of is the one I mentioned in my post above. EasyLife EasyCarbo. I'm fairly sure it has algaecide in it, although I still grow enough for my otos to stay well fed. Depends on the levels of your other elements (light and nutrients).