Using Seachem products in aquariums

Hello all,

I'm looking for some advice on putting products into my aquariums.
I currently dose my aquariums with Seachem Flourish, Prime and Stability when doing a water change once a week.

However, my plants recently have started to look limp and brown, leaves are dying and are generally not flourishing as I would like and in one of my tanks I now have green hair algae that I remove almost daily due to it growing so fast.
There are so many things out there like recommended products etc that it confuses me.

Does anyone have any advice please on whether to use any other products like Seachem Excel as well? Or a different combination that works better together? I'm a bit nervous about adding too many products to my aquarium.

Thank you in advance for any tips or advice.

 

Algae is usually due to too many nutrients in your water first, light second. Excess nutrients (nitrate is a nutrient for plant growth) cause algae. If your plants are established, months to years established, then has your light started to need replacing? Or do you need to freshen up the water?
If your plants are newish, weeks to months, then it could be melt or shock or ever burn. Freshen up the water and check your light schedule.
The variables that come along with your question are cumbersome. Start with water tests and go from there.
Good luck

 

• Seachem Stability isn't needed if your tank is cycled.
• I've had good luck with Excel against black beard algae, but it's had no apparent effect on hair algae. Adding more plants along with manual removal has been most effective for me.
• Seachem Flourish doesn't really contain enough of the nitrogen, potassium, etc that plants need. Are NilocG products available in England? If yes, I'd suggest switching to that. If you'll compare the percentages of the ingredients you'll see what I mean.

 

I used Flourish for a while and found it lack luster for plants.

I use API leaf zone. Plant growth is good and I focus on no C02 and low light plants.

My plants are not optimal though as I have Ramshorns in tanks and they munch, munch , munch...

if I could roll back time ( channel my inner Cher) and not get Ramshorns, I would pass on them.

good luck!

 

I use API leaf zone.

This surprises me. Leaf zone is just potassium and iron in water. Thats great your plants are doing good with just that. It is just a supplement to a regular fertilizer usually.

Flourish doesnt have the macros the "all in ones" do. You have to add other things along with it. It doesnt do much at all by itself.

 

Often just iron and potassium are all that are needed, micronutrients just occasionally. A lot of the time in my well established planted tank I only use potassium added weekly. But once in a while I use a complete fertilizer. I have tried a few but have had most success with Azoo Plant Premium. When I used Flourish for a while I started to get algae on the leaves of some plants as well as filamentous algae, I have not had this issue with plant premium, even though it does contain the macronutrients as well as micronutrients. I used this a lot more regularly during the early stages of the tank. I also add this occasionally to my other tanks that all have plants but are not as densely planted, but they do have a lot of water lettuce so nitrates are very low.

 

I was wondering if I could get by with just Iron and potassium. I may have to try it. TClare do you use the Seachem Iron and Potassium or something like leaf zone? I just want to try different things because it seems no matter what I do I have BBA and green spot.

 

I was wondering if I could get by with just Iron and potassium. I may have to try it. TClare do you use the Seachem Iron and Potassium or something like leaf zone? I just want to try different things because it seems no matter what I do I have BBA and green spot.

I have used Seachem iron and potassium (separately) as Seachem products are usually available here. I have also used potassium only in a larger container, which they make up at the local fish shop and is much less expensive.

 

Are you using root tabs as well

 

Are you using root tabs as well

I have used them just once, I put one each under a large Amazon sword, an Echinodorus ozelot and a red tiger lotus, that was 6 months ago. Not really noticed a huge difference since adding them, although the lotus has grown a lot bigger since then.

 

I use 2 a month for my sword made big difference for me (substrates gravel)

 

Algae is usually due to too many nutrients in your water first, light second. Excess nutrients (nitrate is a nutrient for plant growth) cause algae. If your plants are established, months to years established, then has your light started to need replacing? Or do you need to freshen up the water?
If your plants are newish, weeks to months, then it could be melt or shock or ever burn. Freshen up the water and check your light schedule.
The variables that come along with your question are cumbersome. Start with water tests and go from there.
Good luck

Thank you, that is helpful information.
My tank and light is almost a year old, plants have been in since the beginning.
My water tests appear OK when I test fortnightly and I do weekly water changes of about 20%.
Amonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 20
PH 7.2
KH 5
GH 5

This is the first time I am trying live plants, as I've always stuck to fake ones before.

I have used Seachem iron and potassium (separately) as Seachem products are usually available here. I have also used potassium only in a larger container, which they make up at the local fish shop and is much less expensive.

Thank you, I will try iron and potassium, can I just check that these are perfectly safe for fish?

• Seachem Stability isn't needed if your tank is cycled.
• I've had good luck with Excel against black beard algae, but it's had no apparent effect on hair algae. Adding more plants along with manual removal has been most effective for me.
• Seachem Flourish doesn't really contain enough of the nitrogen, potassium, etc that plants need. Are NilocG products available in England? If yes, I'd suggest switching to that. If you'll compare the percentages of the ingredients you'll see what I mean.

Great! Thank you, I'll stop spending money on Stability!

• Seachem Stability isn't needed if your tank is cycled.
• I've had good luck with Excel against black beard algae, but it's had no apparent effect on hair algae. Adding more plants along with manual removal has been most effective for me.
• Seachem Flourish doesn't really contain enough of the nitrogen, potassium, etc that plants need. Are NilocG products available in England? If yes, I'd suggest switching to that. If you'll compare the percentages of the ingredients you'll see what I mean.

Great! Thank you, I'll stop spending money on Stability!