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Aquarium Plant Food UK Closing Down

You can continue to follow the APFUK recipe if you wish, and just source the salts from elsewhere:

Magnesium Sulphate (MgSO4)

Potassium Phosphate (KH2PO4)

Potassium Nitrate (KNO3)

All those links are for APC Pure who I know have good products and service, but you can probably find them cheaper on eBay, and there will also be options from Amazon or other online sellers.
 
Any thoughts on micro suppliers ?

Managed to get an order in of macro's to Aquarium Plant Food before they closed, but no micro's in stock.
 
ian_m said:
Any thoughts on micro suppliers ?
Click to expand...
Apfuk is still for sale on ebay if you want the same packaging.
I opted for the one in darrels link above, for the extra £3.50 you get an extra 750g.

www.ebay.co.uk

Aquarium Plant Food UK Original EI Trace REFILL Aquarium Plants -- Fertiliser | eBay

Using dry salts to feed your plants is cheap. How many bottles will one APFUK Ei kit produce?. Aquarium Plant Food UK Original Ei Trace REFILL. All the Ei Dry Salts are supplied in re-sealable foil bags for maximum freshness.
www.ebay.co.uk
 
Wookii said:
You can continue to follow the APFUK recipe if you wish, and just source the salts from elsewhere:

Magnesium Sulphate (MgSO4)

Potassium Phosphate (KH2PO4)

Potassium Nitrate (KNO3)

All those links are for APC Pure who I know have good products and service, but you can probably find them cheaper on eBay, and there will also be options from Amazon or other online sellers.
Click to expand...
Thanks.
I took a quick screenshot of the APFUK instructions just to make it easy for myself and have managed to source the salts.

What I am having trouble with is the micros. It seems like the Solufeed is mostly recommended on here as best bang for buck. Is it as simple as mixing the Solufeed at the same amount as the chelated trace mix from APFUK (1tsp per 500ml), or would there be a different ratio for Solufeed to get a APFUK equivalent fertilizer?
Thanks
 
NorthernDan said:
Thanks.
I took a quick screenshot of the APFUK instructions just to make it easy for myself and have managed to source the salts.

What I am having trouble with is the micros. It seems like the Solufeed is mostly recommended on here as best bang for buck. Is it as simple as mixing the Solufeed at the same amount as the chelated trace mix from APFUK (1tsp per 500ml), or would there be a different ratio for Solufeed to get a APFUK equivalent fertilizer?
Thanks
Click to expand...

Yes, just use it in the same way. The APFUK micros are likely rebadged Solufeed anyway,
 
This is such a shame, I've seen apfuk going for years, I wish John all the best in future.
Im a chemist at bonnymans, working with ALL chemicals, I have all the necessary dry powders a plenty (not for resale on the site) as we have pallets full of everything, I can work out cost price if anyone wanted any..... No profit just the cost (purchase price) for us? Or I could pass the info onto a ukaps sponsor?
 
ScapingScotsman said:
This is such a shame, I've seen apfuk going for years, I wish John all the best in future.
Im a chemist at bonnymans, working with ALL chemicals, I have all the necessary dry powders a plenty (not for resale on the site) as we have pallets full of everything, I can work out cost price if anyone wanted any..... No profit just the cost (purchase price) for us? Or I could pass the info onto a ukaps sponsor?
Click to expand...
I think this is a great idea
 
ScapingScotsman said:
This is such a shame, I've seen apfuk going for years, I wish John all the best in future.
Im a chemist at bonnymans, working with ALL chemicals, I have all the necessary dry powders a plenty (not for resale on the site) as we have pallets full of everything, I can work out cost price if anyone wanted any..... No profit just the cost (purchase price) for us? Or I could pass the info onto a ukaps sponsor?
Click to expand...

Perhaps it could be UKAPS administered and branded somehow with the profits going to the forum?
 
Wookii said:
Perhaps it could be UKAPS administered and branded somehow with the profits going to the forum?
Click to expand...
That sounds like a fantastic idea. I can do branding anyway should the need be for it, but very happy to help the forum out in anyway and everyone along with it.
Any powders, glutaraldehyde etc.
Im in no way advertising to sell on my part but I know how hard it can be or expensive to purchase this stuff. When I fact its very very cheap to buy at cost and In monstrous volume
 
Hi all,
Wookii said:
Perhaps it could be UKAPS administered and branded somehow with the profits going to the forum?
Click to expand...
If we did want to go down that route the easiest option would be to rebrand an existing formulation. I would have some ethical issues with this. We (semi-seriously) <"looked at a UKAPS substrate a few years ago">.

cheers Darrel
 
dw1305 said:
Hi all,

If we did want to go down that route the easiest option would be to rebrand an existing formulation. I would have some ethical issues with this. We (semi-seriously) <"looked at a UKAPS substrate a few years ago">.

cheers Darrel
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These would be raw salts Darrel (apart from the micro mix) - so not rebranding as such on those. Or is it the micros you are referring to? If so, there would be no harm in including the actual manufacturer details on the front of the micro mix label too I guess?

The reality with this is the initial raw salts starter pack with the bottle, measuring spoons and straight forward mixing and dosing instructions that APFUK sold, has proved invaluable to hundreds or new planted tank owners making the move from pre-mixed expensive water to mixing their own ferts with dry salts. However once they've made the jump to dry salts, I'd wager most people go on to replenish their salt supplies from other cheaper suppliers.

As such the starter pack is a great gateway product to help new planted tank owners, but not a great business model for ongoing business - presumably a factor leading the John closing down APFUK.

That's why I figured a starter pack offered by UKAPS would fit fairly neatly as a more charitable affair, which would help out new members whilst making a few quid for the forum too.
 
Hi all,
Wookii said:
These would be raw salts Darrel (apart from the micro mix) - so not rebranding as such on those.
Click to expand...
I understand that, it is not the technical difficulties that concern me. I've often made up <"plant nutrient solutions, from scratch">, in the past.

You could do it as a DIY activity, but as soon as it becomes a commercial operation things change.

The issue would be that, using salts, would entail a lot of paperwork and storage issues (KNO3 is an explosive etc.), mixing and packaging would need to be done in a premise with extraction, a flammables vault, a poisons cupboard etc. Costs would soon mount up.

As an example of what I mean, <"I have a colleague"> who looks at pharmaceutical usages for food products (anthocyanin in Cranberries etc.). Developing a new drug is incredibly expensive, but a food product has already passed a lot of those regulatory requirements.

That would be the advantage of re-branding an existing fertiliser mix, it is already a "food product".

cheers Darrel
 
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Hi all,
Wookii said:
The reality with this is the initial raw salts starter pack with the bottle, measuring spoons and straight forward mixing and dosing instructions that APFUK sold, has proved invaluable to hundreds or new planted tank owners making the move from pre-mixed expensive water to mixing their own ferts with dry salts. However once they've made the jump to dry salts, I'd wager most people go on to replenish their salt supplies from other cheaper suppliers.
Click to expand...
I'd guess that that is the issue, you really need to draw in new customers all the time, and you are talking about a small pool of possible consumers.

That is actually one of the ethical issues I have as well. Once some-one knows <"an ion is an ion is an ion"> you are reliant on either persuading them that "ease of use" makes it worth paying a premium, or finding a celebrity endorsement that convinces people that your product offers some advantage over other non (or differently endorsed) products.

cheers Darrel
 
dw1305 said:
Hi all,

I understand that, it is not the technical difficulties that concern me. I've often made up <"plant nutrients, from scratch">, in the past.

You could do it as a DIY activity, but as soon as it becomes a commercial operation things change.

The issue would be that, using salts, would entail a lot of paperwork and storage issues (KNO3 is an explosive etc.), mixing and packaging would need to be done in a premise with extraction, a flammables vault, a poisons cupboard etc. Costs would soon mount up.

As an example of what I mean, <"I have a colleague"> who looks at pharmaceutical usages for food products (anthocyanin in Cranberries etc.). Developing a new drug is incredibly expensive, but a food product has already passed a lot of those regulatory requirements.

That would be the advantage of re-branding an existing fertiliser mix, it is already a "food product".

cheers Darrel
Click to expand...

Ah ok, fair enough, I didn't realise there was a lot of paperwork associated with selling the salts.

I understand the point on the repackaging and the H & S in handling salts, but I had assumed here that @ScapingScotsman 's company would be sending everything pre-packed and labelled in sealed foil packets, so the operator on the UKAPS side would just put a bag of each salt type (KNO3, MgSO4 and KHPO4) in a shipping box with the bottles and spoons, and ship onwards. No other 'mixing' would be required.

I don't think there would be any point in re-branding a pre-mixed fertilizer - if there was a suitable one available that can be kept in a solution and meets EI target, we could just point new users to buy that?
 
Hi all,
Wookii said:
I understand the point on the repackaging and the H & S in handling salts, but I had assumed here that @ScapingScotsman 's company would be sending everything pre-packed and labelled in sealed foil packets, so the operator on the UKAPS side would just put a bag of each salt type (KNO3, MgSO4 and KHPO4) in a shipping box with the bottles and spoons, and ship onwards. No other 'mixing' would be required.
Click to expand...
That would work.
Wookii said:
I don't think there would be any point in re-branding a pre-mixed fertilizer - if there was a suitable one available that can be kept in a solution and meets EI target, we could just point new users to buy that?
Click to expand...
Yes, and when you factor in that we've ( I'm taking no responsibility for this, blame lies entirely @Zeus. & @Hanuman's door) have already muddied the water by giving away <"all of our commercial secrets"> in <"their spreadsheet">, it becomes more difficult again.

cheers Darrel
 
dw1305 said:
That is actually one of the ethical issues I have as well. Once some-one knows <"an ion is an ion is an ion"> you are reliant on either persuading them that "ease of use" makes it worth paying a premium, or finding a celebrity endorsement that convinces people that your product offers some advantage over other non (or differently endorsed) products.
Click to expand...

I don't think we're suggesting being the next Tropica or ADA here, it was just an idea to help new starters to the hobby. Try directing a new starter who has never even heard of a dry fertiliser salt to a website and telling them they need to buy some potassium nitrate, some mono-potassium phosphate and some magnesium sulphate, and most are going to be so bamboozled they're simply not going to bother, and instead buy another bottle of expensive water.

Charging £20 for a pre-packaged set of salts with the kit necessary to mix it as APFUK did is a bargain in my opinion given it gives you tens of litres of mix to make up and last years. I don't really see the ethical issue to be honest - in fact it works in the opposite way, and stops people being ripped off by the mainstream expensive waters.
 
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