Ei Or Flourish Ferts? Also Liquid Co2?

[phantomlink]

Right now I'm using a generic liquid fert but the bottle should be running out in the next two weeks or so.  Originally I was going to buy a bottle of Flourish because of everything I've read about it ( I cant seem to find that NT/NT+ stuff you Euro people talk about in Canada ) then I read up on the EI dosing and the guy I got my plants from sells everything you need for making an EI fert
http/www.theplantguy.org/Dry-fertilizers_c_27.html ( If I got this route, which is the best one(s) to buy? )
 
My plants are all low tech plants and I use CFL lighting.  My watersprite is doing amazing but the rest is so-so atm.  I read about adding Flourish Excel because I'm not going to mess with pressurized Co2 anytime soon but do I really "need" it without high tech/demand plants?  I would like to give my plants the best they can get and if the liquid co2 supplement will help I'll get some.  I do have some itialian vails and read mixed things about liquid co2 melting them though

 

[Lunar Jetman]

If you have Vallis then you need to be careful with any liquid co2 supplements as it has been known to melt. I have seen reports of people using it sparingly and not having problems with Vallis but you need to be careful and get the mix right. Having said that, a low enough dose that doesn't cause Vallis to melt may not be enough for the rest of your plants.

I use EI so I would recommend it. You can either dry dose, that is just put the powers straight in your tank or mix them up with cooled boiled or RO water.

The good thing about EI is that you can mix up as strong or as weak as you like. I worked out how many gram/teaspoons of each I needed for the month, put it in my 500ml bottle with the cooled boiled water and then calculated how much I needed per dose to last the month. Simple as that.

You'll find plenty of people swearing by the various different liquid ferts you can get and whilst I'm sure they are perfectly good enough, all you're buying is the the same stuff you will buy in dry form. So you end up paying a premium for the water these companies mix their ferts in!

I spend £20 ($30 at the current exchange rate!) on my dry powders and I've calculated it will last the best part of a year. If you can buy liquid ferts for the same price that will last a year then by all means try that but I don't think you can beat the powders for cost, plus you get to have more control over what you put into your tank and in what dose. So you can increase or decrease a certain chemical depending on your requirements. True you may not be quite ready for that just yet but the option is there.

 

[phantomlink]

$13 for a 500ml of SeaChem Flourish which is used at 5ml per 60 gallons once a week, or 0.7ml a day using daily dosing as I've read people do.
 
Just in my 40g tank alone a bottle will last me ~100 weeks and I cant always do my WC on my desired day because of work and free time with 12 hour shifts.  Think the Flourish will be the best choice?

 

[frapadoodle]

I use Fllourish in a low tech/low light tank and my plants have thrived.
A bottle costs me $9 and change. Dose once a week, the day after a waterchange.
I have read thaf Excel also puts Anacharis in a bad way.