# Metricide 14 vs Seachem Excel



## doubleott05

ok so you see this is a poll 

what do you prefer.....

i would appreciate it if..... you dont have experience with either of these products please dont vote... but feel free to comment

Metricide 14 (twice as strong at Excel has same ingredients as Excel).... cheaper than Excel

Excel (organic carbon) ..... always reliable and great for beginners.... fantastic as an algae combatant

both are same product.

Thanks


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## doubleott05

I myself will not vote... because i dont have any experience with M14. 

i just ordered some tonight and i will post my findings on here one week after i start dosing. 

thanks


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi Elliot,

I didn't vote either, I liked Excel and now I mix my own using 50% Biological Grade Glutaraldehyde.


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## doubleott05

how long have you been using your own mix and how do you like it?


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## Bert H

I've used them both, and have found no difference. I voted for the metricide strictly on the price differential.


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## doubleott05

thanks for your input bert. if this is the results i am to expect i think i will be buying it based on the price as well.


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## khanzer22

I haven't used Metricide 14 yet but would like to know, when it's already mixed with RO/DI for your solution, does it have the same smell like the Excel? Same with the Biological Grade Glutaraldehyde mixture... Just curious...


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## doubleott05

ill find out when i get it and post it on here......unless bert has an answer


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## Seattle_Aquarist

@ Elliott - I have been using it for about 18 months. I make my mix @ 1.5% concentration so I can dose it the same as Excel. It works exactly the same and costs about $1.67 per liter / $6.32 per gallon including freight and Hazmat.

@khanzer22 Yes, it smells exactly the same as Excel.


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## bigstick120

Mertcide isnt twice as strong, its 1.5 times stronger. Where did you see it was double?

I prefer metrcide as I have seen it work better in my tanks. The price break is also nice.


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## Franco

Where do you get Metricide? I have been looking for a local source with no luck.


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## khanzer22

@Seattle Aquarist - Thanks for the confirmation!

@Franco - Where are you from? If you can't find a local seller in your area, you can order online from here.


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## doubleott05

how did you get it for about $7 per gallon. 

i bought mine where khanzer got his and totaled about ummm 27$ 

if i could buy it for $7 a gallon i would buy 4-5 gallons.


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi Elliott,

If you are asking me; again I don't use Metricide. I mix my own using 50% Biological Grade Glutaraldehyde.


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## AquaBard

I used excel for a time when I started out, but then someone informed me that I could make the same thing just cheaper, I switched to Glutaraldehyde. I can't tell much difference between the two other than price myself (even the shrimp don't seem to mind). I buy the 25% to avoid the haz. mat. charge and mix it down to 1.5% and dose the same as I would excel.


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi AquaBard,

You don't have to pay a HazMat on the 25%??!! That is great info; I'm buying the 25% next time!

BTW, thanks for the Glut speadsheet calculator....sure beats doing the calcs by hand!


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## khanzer22

Seattle_Aquarist said:


> BTW, thanks for the Glut speadsheet calculator....sure beats doing the calcs by hand!


Where can we find/download this spreadsheet calculator?


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## AquaBard

Hi Seattle_Aquarist,

Of the 3 times or so I have ordered I was only charged about $6 S&H total, granted it is usually colder months as I heard in warm months it has to be packed on ice or something funny. And you guys are welcome for the sheet, it makes life easy and it finally gave me a way to give a little back to a community that has benefited me so much in the hobby.

Hi Khanzer22
The spreadsheet should be in this link from the fertilizing sub forum.
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/fertilizing/74784-making-excel.html


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## khanzer22

Very cool... Thanks AquaBard!


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## doubleott05

mis understood you seattle. i see your using 50% Biological Grade Glutaraldehyde.


i might stick to metricide cause its 2.7% and i dont need to dilute it. 

thanks everybody for your input


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## spypet

when you prepare a diluted solution of water : 25%Glutaraldehyde
must you buy distilled water from the drug store, or can you get
away with filtered tap water. here in NYC, I only need filter out
a bit of chlorine & chlorimides, but the filtered water still has a bit
of nitrate and is mildly soft and acidic - yeah, I tested it all out.


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## bigstick120

I assume you guys by the biological grade 25% solution? I may have to try mixing my own. I think I paid about 17.00 for a gallon of the 2.5%


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## Seattle_Aquarist

@spypet - I use distilled water from the store but only because I use the diluted Glut mix as a perservative in my fert solutions (iron & CSM+B) to prevent fungus growth at room temperatures.

@bigstick120 - I dosed Excel at 2X daily dose as an algacide and also for supplemental carbon and it worked great but after the second tank it started getting pretty expensive.


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## doubleott05

EARTH DATE: 07/12/2010
LOCAL TIME: 1700 CT
CURRENT STATUS: I AM SICK WITH 100.1 DEGREE FEVER

ok my M14 came in today 

it is :
2.6% Glutaraldehyde
97.4% inert liquid

use is effective 5 min after ups dropped it off. 

i currently have one corner of my tank covered in BBA. 

initial use is twice Seachems recommended dose for initial use or after waterchange. 

tank size is approx 17 gal

more to follow at a later time. 

out


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi Elliott,

Did you remember that the Metricide is 2X the strength of Excel? How much did you dose in that 17 gallon?


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## doubleott05

yes i sure did. i dosed about twice the recommended amout that seachem recommends. i dosed about 7ml

if it were excel i would have dosed 10ml

so in excel terms i dosed 14ml equivelant (sp?)

thanks


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## spypet

is there any special handling required when working around 
25% Glutaraldehyde while making your own Excel'like solution?


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## Tex Gal

Using the Metricide 28. I'm cutting it down to the strength of Excel. I use my R/O water to dilute it. It works great! So much cheaper. Everything is fine in the tank. BBA is dying. (Tank went bonkers when I was gone and CO2 went up.)


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi bigstick120,



bigstick120 said:


> Mertcide isnt twice as strong, its 1.5 times stronger. Where did you see it was double?
> 
> I prefer metrcide as I have seen it work better in my tanks. The price break is also nice.


First of all I apologize, I missed the quoted post above. I was wrong; per the MSDS in found online the Metricide 14 is 2.6% glutaraldehyde; Seachem Excel is 1.5% (see the Wed Apr 12, 2006 9:09 pm post). 0.026/0.015 = 1.73333 times stronger. Therefore, a gallon of Metricide 14 will make 1.73 gallons of 1.5% concentration. Sorry for my error; for some reason I thought the Metricide 14 was 2.8% but it is not.

-Roy


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## doubleott05

i just rounded up to the nearest hole number. sorry for the confusion. i keep things stupids simple.


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## theaznguy808

doubleott05 said:


> I myself will not vote... because i dont have any experience with M14.
> 
> i just ordered some tonight and i will post my findings on here one week after i start dosing.
> 
> thanks


same, but I do use the excel. (I didn't order, just didn't vote).

The Excel works pretty well though.


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## doubleott05

EARTHDATE: 09/12/2010
LOCAL TIME: 0900CT
STATUS: WORKING STILL SICK

two days later there is no change to the tank. 

tonight i will conduct a water change 70% and then i will add more M14 double the recommend seachem amount. 


out.


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi All,

So we were having a discussion about Glutaraldehyde verses Metricide on the GSAS member chat. One of our members brought up something interesting about Metricide....if it is 2.6% Glutaraldehyde, what is the rest of it?



> yeah, but you have to be careful about WHAT ELSE is in the metricide...
> 
> COMPARATIVE CHEMISTRY
> MetriCide OPA Plus Solution and Cidex OPA Solution are stable, one-component
> ready-to-use high-level disinfectants. The active ingredient in both solutions is
> ortho-phthalaldehyde (OPA), an aromatic dialdehyde (Figure 1). In addition to
> OPA, both products contain phosphate buffering salts, a corrosion inhibitor,
> chelating agents, a dye and water (Table 1). MetriCide OPA Plus Solution contains
> 0.05% more OPA than Cidex OPA Solution; thereby enhancing its ability, to
> achieve an increase in equipment treatments during the recommended 14-day use
> period, especially in large volume endoscopy centers. Both products exhibit
> excellent stability, antimicrobial activity, materials compatibility and rinsing
> properties throughout their use life. Shown below are the respective ingredients
> listed on each product's label.
> 
> http://www.metrex.com/cms-filesystem-action?file=/whitepaper-77-1194-1.pdf
> 
> So..definitely adding extra phosphate, HEDTA (I know EDTA chelates irons and metals so that would deplete that in the tank).
> 
> Metricide is an agent designed to be used to disinfect endoscopy and other medical things.


I found it interesting; there is a lot more in Metricide than just glutaraldehyde; the phosphate buffering salts, corrosion inhibitor, and dye surprised me! I don'k know if that is the Metricide 14 with the "activator" added or not.


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## doubleott05

geez im a bit lost. i understand taht MetriCide OPA Plus Solution and Cidex OPA Solution are acceptable substitues for excel. 

M14 says 2.6Glutaraldehyde and the rest of it is inert solution.

thats what it says on the bottle. 

are you trying to say there is something harmful in there? or undesirable? i read the entire bottle.

thanks
Elliot


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi Elliot,

I honestly don't know. It has been a lot of years since I majored in Chemistry but an "inert solution" is basically a solution that is "Not readily reactive with other elements; forming few or no chemical compounds." Just because a solution is not "reactive" doesn't mean the ingredients are benign. Maybe we can get a little more information on what is in the "inert solution"?


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi Elliott,

I was wrong; the information I needed was in the MSDS for Metricide 14:



> 2 - COMPOSITION INFORMATION
> Ingredients
> 
> Glutaraldehyde; 0.05 ppm; 2.6%
> Water; 97.4%


Basically just glutaraldehyde and water.


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## Tex Gal

People have been using this stuff at least since 2006. That is evidenced by the chatter on the forums. There would have been some visible side affects posted by now. While we might not know about long term exposure to fish that live longer than 6 years, I'd say that's seems pretty safe.


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## spypet

Seattle_Aquarist said:


> Basically just glutaraldehyde and water.


which commercial product were you referring to, Metricide?


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi spypet,

Yes, Elliott and I were discussing Metricide 14. I edited post above for better clarity.


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## doubleott05

wooo hoo you scared me there for a min seattle. ok so i am good witht the M14 

excellent buahahahaaaa!!!!

more updates to come. now i must go finish my wifes spice rack. 

later


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## doubleott05

sorry for not updating i have been getting progressively more sick 

i think i got at flu or something. 

anyway

the BBA that is in my tank is now bright red and dying off . even better now that its dying off the blue rams in there are eating it right off the plants..... never seen them do that before. plants seem to be a bit greener 

end of update
thanks for reading


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## doubleott05

sorry it has been so long since my last post. 

as far as im concerned the M14 is the same as excel

once difference PRICE
and i like the way it is almost twice the strength. 

all algae is gone. water is clearer. overall tank health is improved. i am using it daily in conjunction with co2 gas. 

thanks for reading


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## doubleott05

oh and now im gonna cast my vote


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## wet

Seattle,

Just FYI for that GSAS member, the quoted bit about Metricide OPA (not Metricide 14) having dye and additives makes me think it's like Cidex Plus's "Activator Vial":

Cidex Plus is 3.4% Glut./96.6% water and comes with a second bottle, the contents of which have a dye and is labelled as the Activator (for the purposes of a disinfectant).

doubleott05, case you're shopping:

The bottle for Cidex Plus I bought last year looks like this: http://twitpic.com/3l45cq Again, the big bottle is just 3.4% Glut. and water. The little bottle is bad.

These guys are selling it for $3.88 plus shipping: http://www.amazon.com/Johnson-CIDEX-PLUS-28-JNJ2683/dp/B00286GY8G

I don't know if the stuff in the link has the "Activator" crap mixed in though.


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## doubleott05

holy smokes 4 bucks plus shipping im gonna buy like 4 right now.


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## spypet

I don't understand...
why get excited over a cheap 3.4% alkaline glutaraldehyde solution
when you can buy 25% glutaraldehyde shipped safely through the mail,
and dilute that for an even cheaper per quart yield to get an excel% equal.


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## wet

Hey spypet.

Is there a really cheap source for 25% Glutaraldehyde? In goog shopping, the cheapest I found was this, which is 100mL of 25% Glut for ~$19 plus the $25 hazmat cost plus shipping: http://www.bldscience.com/GLUTARALDEHYDE-25-AQ-100ML-p/l-328370.htm

That will only make a little more than 3/4 of a quart of 3.4% Glut., which is ~$4 per quart at the Cidex link doubleott is excited about.

It takes ~$60 for a 500mL bottle plus shipping before 25% becomes close (these guys require a $25 hazmat cost at this point): http://www.bldscience.com/GLUTARALDEHYDE-25-AQ-500ML-p/l-328371.htm

Is there another more affordable 25% Glut supplier?


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## joshvito

Subscribed;
I'd also like to know if there is a 25% Glutaraldehyde solution for sale online w/o hazmat fee.


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## doubleott05

probably not. i looked but it could be out there


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## spypet

AquaBard posted a link to a 25% seller
I just can't locate it at the moment.
50% requires hazmat charge, not 25%.
winter is the best time to ship this.


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## joshvito

in the chain of links through APC, I found this place
http://www.emsdiasum.com/microscopy/products/chemicals/glutaraldehyde.aspx

Has anyone ordered from there?

Here is my cost analysis.
This is mostly for my own benefit, but maybe it will save others some headaches.

I used the calculator listed elsewhere in this post.
If I were to order 450ml of biological grade 25% solution, I could make the Excel equivalent of 7500ml. (1.5% glutaraldehyde)
This would cost about $32 total.

Online retailers(Bigalsonline) sell Excell for 4000mL for $67 (1.5% glutaraldehyde)

Cidex Plus from Amazon will make 2200mL of (1.5%) and cost $10
Cidex Plus from Amazon will make 6600mL of (1.5%) and cost $31

Where is the advantage to buying a higher %?
It seems that the Cidex Plus is pretty close to the 25% solution, if it safe for the aquarium. (i.e it is only glutaraldehyde and water)
...and slightly less hazardous. I did notice that the 25% solution does have 0.5% Methanol.
Is this bad?
Also, the information on the product at the top of the page, makes it seem as if the longer the product is stored, the less effective it is.
If this affects its use in the aquarium, I am unsure. I just know that if I bought the 25% solution at 450ml's, I wouldn't want to make 7.5L of Excel all at once. Thats a lot of space it will take up.


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## spypet

yeah, that looks familiar - probably where Aqua buys and get's it shipped cheap.
my point is you can get five times as much Excel for the same money using that
25% solution as you can that cheap 3.4% solution discussed earlier. obviously
greater care must be taken in handling and mixing that higher percentage stuff.


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## joshvito

@spynet,
Agreed, You get about 1000ml MORE with the 25% solution.

You could sell it to hobbyists at $15/L and double your money.??


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## wet

Inspired by AquaBard and joshvito: http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumapc/fertilizing/74784-making-excel-3.html#post572968


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## spypet

joshvito said:


> the longer the product is stored, the less effective it is.


that is an important consideration, and why it may still pay to buy the 3.4% stuff.

_it's the same reason why I don't buy fish food from Ken's. it would take me years
of feeding shrimp and nano fish to ever go through a pound of pellets and flakes,
and fish food loses it's appetizing appeal and full nutritional value after a while._

no need to worry about "storing 7.5 liters of excel" nobody says you have to dilute 
and make the 25% to 1.5% solution right away, just keep most of it stored at 25%.


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi joshvito,I store my 50% concentration in the downstairs refrigerator (properly marked of course), and no problems with potency after over a year. I believe I read that it "breaks down" when exposed to strong light and heat.


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## joshvito

i was mainly concerned about this paragraph from
http://www.emsdiasum.com/microscopy/products/chemicals/glutaraldehyde.aspx



> EM grade aqueous glutaraldehyde, stored in volumes greater than 100ml, with repeated defrosting and recapping, will polymerize in time, producing an absorption peak of 235nm rather than the 280nm of pure EM grade. The presence of polymerized glutaraldehyde greatly reduces its efficiency as a cross-linking agent, preventing proper fixation. For this reason, we provide 10ml ampoules and 100ml bottle quantities for larger applications.


I'm not sure how the plants in our aquariums use the glutaraldehyde. 
@Seattle_Aquarist, thank you for the info.
you keep it in the fridge, I'm not sure this has the same/similar effect as "repeated defrosting and recappin".
Also, who knows how long "in time" is? :/
Any Chem majors out there?


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## barbarossa4122

Price. Excel is a very good product if you have only one tank.


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## barbarossa4122

I wonder if Metricide 14 looses it's strength if you do not dilute it.


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## doubleott05

i dont dilute anything i just put it in the tank as is. never had any problems with it. 

i would not buy 25% like that and do it cause i dont wanna dilute it. im lazy , i like things simple stupid. 

weather its 2% or 3.7% its still cheaper than excel and i dont have to dilute. 

which means money in my pocket and one gallon of 2.4% is gonna last like a year. so i think im good and i only paid $20 for it. 

thanks for the activity on this thread. 
elliot


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## wwh2694

How many cc or ml do u put on your tank?


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## doubleott05

your question needs to be more specific.... and who are you addressing? 

cc's of what?

thanks


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## wwh2694

Sory i figured it out.


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## doubleott05

ok


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## wwh2694

Wow this is great coz everyday i work i use metricide for our equipment. I just didnt know it till now thanks alot for the info. No wonder everythime i use excel its smells familiar.


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## doubleott05

Rofl


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## Snefru

Double, 

Are you going to stick with the Metricide 14 or are you going for the Cidex plus 28 for 4 bucks a shot?


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## doubleott05

im gonna try the cidex plus


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## wwh2694

I bought 1 gal of cidex for $15 bucks here. The name is just cidex (activated dialdehyde solution) Gluteraldehyde 2.4%.


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## spypet

cidex and cidex plus
difference please?
does one simply come with a separate activator bottle and the other
one does not? or is the activator premixed into one, and not the other.
the activator being the junk you do NOT want in your fish tank...


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## wwh2694

The one I bought. Activator is separate. I dont know about cidex plus.


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## joshvito

Google god has the answer.
Cidex data sheet
Cidex Plus Data sheet

The Cidex Plus seems to have Polyethylene Glycol, whether or not this is in a separate bottle is unknown from the data sheet. At $10 shipped, I think I may order and see if there are ingredients on the bottle.


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## doubleott05

you dont use the activator


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## spypet

doubleott05 said:


> you dont use the activator


we all know that ](*,)
we just don't know is if both products keep it separate or premix it in.
and if both keep them separate, then why make 2 different versions.


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## Snefru

I ordered the Cidex Plus from Amazon.com It appears that Cidex is good for 14 days and Cidex plus is good for 28 days. I believe that all Cidex products come with a bottle of activator, otherwise the product in the bottle would only be good for 28 days. I will post when I get it to let you know!


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## doubleott05

cidex plus is 3.4% i think gelrudahyde

however you spell it.


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## wet

joshvito said:


> joshvito
> Re: Metricide 14 vs Seachem Excel
> Google god has the answer.
> Cidex data sheet
> Cidex Plus Data sheet
> 
> The Cidex Plus seems to have Polyethylene Glycol, whether or not this is in a separate bottle is unknown from the data sheet. At $10 shipped, I think I may order and see if there are ingredients on the bottle.





spypet said:


> we just don't know is if both products keep it separate or premix it in.
> and if both keep them separate, then why make 2 different versions.


This is upthread, but Cidex Plus bought in 2009 looks like this and comes with a second activator bottle:










That big bottle says it is only 3.4% Glut. and 96.6% water.

When I mentioned being unsure whether the stuff is mixed earlier, it's because the very cheap product link on Amazon (which looks like my bottle above) does not include a picture of the activator bottle. In thinking about this I realize that's a silly fear since, if anything, the cheap one would omit the activator bottle and not open and mix them.

Interested if this is confirmed in Snefru and doubleott05's shipment.


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## doubleott05

i never got an activator bottle....


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## Snefru

For the Metricide or the Cydex?


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## doubleott05

met14. waiting on cidex


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## spypet

looks like Amazon finally caught their price mistake.
Cidex (+) quarts are back up to $15-$20 shipped.


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## doubleott05

darn....


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## herns

Does anyone here mix their Metricide 14?

1 gal on ebay sells for $21 shipped. They just recently jack up the price to $22.99.


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## doubleott05

mix it with what?


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## barbarossa4122

herns said:


> Does anyone here mix their Metricide 14?
> 
> 1 gal on ebay sells for $21 shipped. They just recently jack up the price to $22.99.


I use it straight. You can buy it here:
http://www.dealmed.com/Products/Surface-Disinfectants/Metricide-14-Day-1-Gallon


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## doubleott05

i use it straight too.


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## barbarossa4122

Hi Seatle_Aquarist,

I received my 450ml bottle of 25% bio grade glut the other day ($26.00 shipped) and would like to make a double strength (3%) Excel like solution. Will 120ml of Glut to 1L bottle do it ?


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## barbarossa4122

Seattle_Aquarist said:


> Hi AquaBard,
> 
> You don't have to pay a HazMat on the 25%??!! That is great info; I'm buying the 25% next time!
> 
> BTW, thanks for the Glut speadsheet calculator....sure beats doing the calcs by hand!


Hi,

I am looking for that calculator........can you point me in the right direction please.


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## joshvito

here is the post for the calculator


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## barbarossa4122

Thanks a lot joshvito.


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## Tex Gal

Just ordered Metricide 14 - 1 gallon for $16. Ordered two of them and paid just $10 shipping. SO cheap!

http://www.dynamicdental.net/metricidegallon.aspx

I mix mine so I can spot dose. Also mix it so I can use in really small tanks. I mix 475ml of metricide in a 1000ml container and fill with R/O water.


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## doubleott05

i still have my gallon from a few months ago and its not even half empty


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi Tex Gal,

Don't add any "activators" that may be included with the product. Also, remember that it is a stronger strength than Excel; watch your dosage!


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## doubleott05

oh ya def second Seattle


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## noved

I use the metricide 28 and it seemed to loose it strength significantly after about a month. I would have to dose about 3 to 5x as much. By the end of the second month, I still had over half a bottle and it had become so week that the remainder was useless.


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## doubleott05

Hmm well the m14 dosent seem to do that


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## Tex Gal

Yes I don't use the activator. We did the math and I dilute it to the Excel strength.


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## Aquaticz

Tex Gal said:


> Yes I don't use the activator. We did the math and I dilute it to the Excel strength.


Did you mix with distilled water? Care to share the math you used? Thx Tex gal


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## doubleott05

i add straight from the bottle and just dose half the amount to make it meet

well half or 2/3


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi All,

I use this handy calculator (see post #10) that AquaBard posted here on APC in a different thread. It allows me to input my desired concentration(1.5%); the total amount of finished mix; and the concentration of Glut I am using, and the calculator tells me how much Glut solution and how much water I need to use. Easy peasy...lol

I have read that Glut breaks down with light and heat. I keep my concentrated Glut container (clearly marked at *"POISON" *and sealed in a plastic bag) in our downstairs refrigerator where it stays cool and dark. I only mix up about 500 ml at a time and store it in an old Excel bottle.


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## lipadj46

noved said:


> I use the metricide 28 and it seemed to loose it strength significantly after about a month. I would have to dose about 3 to 5x as much. By the end of the second month, I still had over half a bottle and it had become so week that the remainder was useless.


metricide 28 has surfactants in it so you probably don't want to use it anyways. Did you add the activator by any chance? That is the only reason it would degrade that quickly.


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## pat w

Metricide 14 for me.

Glut in some form is mandatory for me. I mix stock solutions that I autodose over a one month period. Without the Glut both the macros and traces would be fungus ranches and my Gemini IV infusion pump/autodoser would be a faulting screeching nightmare. I just add half of one month's dose to each bottle and I can dose problem free.

Pat


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## doubleott05

i do the same thing pat w. works very well . i just about 1/4 glut per bottle


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## herns

Bump for metricide!


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## Aquaticz

I see your BUMP and add one more BUMP
METRICIDE is Awesome and worth every penny saved


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## herns

Just ordered 1 gal from Amazon for $27 shipped.

My 1st Gallon lasted for more than a year.
Great product and way cheaper than Excel.


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## wet

Shameless plug: 1.5% Glut (same as commercial brands) clone calculator: http://rota.la/glut

But it's only been tested with modern Google Chrome. It's also open source, 'case you want to make it better: https://github.com/flores/glut


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## f1ea

I've used both, and prefer Metricide. Basically, for the cost. Especially if you are dosing large tanks, or many tanks. From what I was able to notice, they provide the same very good results. I'd probably use Excel if I had a small tank.

Also, it's important to say (from reading some of the previous posts), that you can't really "stock-up" on Metricide, because it expires; in fact, it's important to keep in mind the exp date, as a full gallon can last way over a year depending on how much water you are treating. It is also advisable to store it properly and safely; which means the big container is kinda more risky to keep (getting it tainted, children playing with it, a spill etc) than the smaller Excel bottles. 

I would say this comparison is kinda similar to "bulk" ferts vs product line ferts....


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## Requality

Metricide and excel are both composed of glut, but why would anyone go buy the less concentrated one for a more expensive price? The only reason Metricide isn't sold in aquarium stores is because its advertised as something else. Metricide #1


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## Kensho

Is there any sit or wait time for the mix to wait before adding to the tank?


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## Seattle_Aquarist

Hi Kensho,

I'm not sure I understand your question. If you are asking if you need to wait after diluting it with water the answer is no.


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## herns

Requality said:


> Metricide and excel are both composed of glut, but why would anyone go buy the less concentrated one for a more expensive price? The only reason Metricide isn't sold in aquarium stores is because its advertised as something else. Metricide #1


I think newbies are more reluctant to use metricide 14 because the product is a non labeled aquarium use. unless someone they knew would convince them to try.

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## Farmboy

I understand that there are a few plants that don't seem to like glutaraldahyde, has anyone experienced any ploblems with glut in their bucephalandra populated tanks?


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