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CO2 Testkits & Plant Sales




I've had a heavily planted 42 gal hex tank for over a year and have
become very enthusiastic about planted aquaria since finding the
archives on the Web.  I made a big mistake by adding Tetra Hilena
D substrate additive to my Discus community tank and now the pH
keeps creeping too high.  Oh, well - live and learn <sigh>.

Also, since then the plants have stopped growing and algae is
increasing.  I've been using Kent plant fertilizer, 3 caps/wk, and
recently invested in CO2 and Phosphate test kits (the iron test kit
is on backorder).  The phosphate was over 3.0 ppm, the maximum
on the Red Sea Fish Pharm kit, and I couldn't get a reading on the
CO2 kit (same brand).  I took water from the aquarium and immediately
performed the test following the directions exactly.  The tests were run
at different times, one morning and evening, to see if there were any
differences.  I gave up on the first test after I reached a CO2 level of
40 ppm without a positive reagent reaction.  I figured the fish would
be dead at this point.  According to the results,
the clear liquid should turn pinkish when I reach the correct ppm value.
The water never turned color.  The same thing happened on the
second test, but I stopped at 20 ppm value.  Does this mean I have
0 ppm?   I've read the postings on pH - KH - CO2 relationships, but
believe the CO2 values are maximum potential rather than automatic.
Is this a correct understanding?  My pH is 6.5-6.8, KH is ~ 30 ppm,
temp 84 F and I run a Magnum 350 with single biowheel.  Nitrite is 0
and nitrate runs from 0 to a trace.  Plants are various amazon swords (5),
onion plants(2+babies) and a brand new green hygrophelia and  java fern.
Fish are 2 juvenile Discus, 2 cardinals, 4 glowlite tetras, 1 cory and 1 
otto.

The archives had postings last November about interested people
wanting to do plant exchanges.  Then I found another message about
an "auction."  What happened to these ideas?  Is there a plant exchange
or auction section that I missed?  I'm interested in finding folks in the
Atlanta, Georgia area who are interested in this type of activity.
You-hoo!  Is anybody around here interested?

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Rochelle Williams
williaro at ftmcphsn-emh1_army.mil
Air Pollution Environmental Engineer
Avid Gardener and Aquarist
Atlanta, Georgia - Home of the gold medal for worst Olympic traffic jam.
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