Wow.. I never had that happen when I was using their filter media. I would think the Flourish excel had some part in it, but I've never used that so I could only guess at that.
You might want to try using this and cutting it to fit your filters:
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Produc...1&c=3578+4150&
I've found it to be much more durable and just swish it around each week in removed tank water when I do the cleaning and water change. Been using the same pieces in some filters for almost a year now.