# seachem Flourish Excel Overdose



## jlennonw (Jan 1, 2012)

On Sunday 2/2/14 I realized I overdosed my Tank with Seachem's Flourish Excel in my 125 gallon, planted tank. During my adventure I figured I would take some notes in order to educate anyone in the future who has the misfortune of this event.

-In no way do I want to bash of slander Seachem or their products. I am very happy with their products and if I fallowed directions and was more careful I would not be in this situation.-

How did I OD my tank:
I hooked a Tom Aqua Lifter AW-20 Vacuum Pump on a digital timer. I had one end of the pump in a bottle of Seachem Flourish Excel and the outlet in my 125. The timer was set to run for six minutes, with the amount of head and the length of hose turned out to deliver est. 10 ml of liquid to the tank. I worked out this equation over a course of a week. When I was ready to set the timer to come on 45 minutes after my HO lights and dose the 10 ml for six minutes daily I changed the timer but I set the timer to run for twelve hours and six minutes. Needless to say the bottle emptied and the pump continued to run until I turned it off. 
My best guess of the amount of liquid dumped in my 125 was anywhere from 10ml to 300ml.

Effects on the fish observed during Excel OD:
*dead fish
*patches of scales that were pale(ammonia burn), 
*eyes cloudy, 
*fins were clamped, 
*fins were tethered, 
*chaotic swimming,
*lethargic 
Effects on the tank observed during Excel OD:
*film on water surface,
*cloudiness,
*adverse effects on biological filtration(destroys BB),
*algae blooms(multiple colors),
*plant melting

Recommended steps to fix the issue:
*At least 75% water change within the first 12 hours, 
*continued large w/c for the next 24 hours(replace it as fast as you can condition it),
*limit the amount of light,
*add activated carbon to the filtration,
*be aware of Chlorine and Chloramines,
*have a good amount of beneficial bacteria on hand,
*treat tank with antibacterial remedy to heal open wounds & abrasions and something to promote regrowth of damaged fin rays & tissue. I recommend Melafix 5%.

These steps have not been proven as of yet. I have lost a total of six fish, and the plants are TBA. I wanted to get this information out there dealing with a large excel OD. When I did my searches all I found was BBA treatment, and OD in a couple ml cases.

Here are some links:
http://www.oscarfish.com/article-home/equipment/114-buyer-beaware-seachem-excel.html

http://www.seachem.com/Products/product_pages/FlourishExcel.html

http://www.seachem.com/support/FAQs/FlourishExcel.html

http://www.seachem.com/support/MSDS/FlourishExcel.doc.pdf


----------

