Thanks for the detailed response Tom.

For a newbie like myself, it is hard to determine what is the best way to go. There seem to be a few camps of thought on the best way to go when using the ADA substrate system when starting a new tank. The ADA only dose potassium camp and the dose everything from the start camp. It seems both camps have success. Its harder to determine who has the better way of doing it. I like most newbie planted hobbyists just want to try to keep the algae down as much as possible while getting good plant growth. When a newbie has virtaully no "experience" to go on, it is very hard to know what is best. For me, that is defintely the case. Maybe I should try both and see for myself what gives the best results? Try the ADA way on this startup, and at the end of the year try the dose it all at startup.

My limited experience in growing plants in my 20 gallon has proven to me that EI has worked (albeit it was not from the startup of the tank that I used EI). I was able to take a algae infested tank and virtually eliminate the algae and have good growth in a overstocked tank. For me personally, that 20 gallon tank has been my most successful planted tank.

To me, it seems the ADA substrate system is a bit different than the flourite only 20 gallon tank I have. I can't say I understand the ADA substrate system either. Being a newbie, I suppose I have to "trust" the maker of the product in their recommended way of doing things.

I also wanted to try the ADA fertilisers. To me, it seems to be a simple dosing schedule - a few squirts of 2 bottles of stuff. No measuring. Whenever I go on a business trip or vacation, the person looking over my tank feels the fertilizer regime is way too complicated. If I can just say make 4 squirts of this and 4 squirts of that, it can't be any simpler than that. What I think is very easy to do is not easy for somebody else to do (especially somebody who is not an aquarium hobbyist).