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CO2 Measurements & BBA again
>I currently have a 65 gallon tank with a wet/dry filter and pressurized C02
>being fed at 15mg/ltr, according to the gauge. I understand the
>relationship of pH, dkH, and C02. My pH is 6.8 and my dkH is between 3 and
>4. I also have peat in the substrate, which Tom Barr informs me will negate
>the pH, dkH, and C02 equation. So, my question is; if I test with a C02
>test kit what readings will indicate adequate C02 in the water column?
>Also, what exactly are these readings telling me?..i.e what readings show
>too low C02, or too high C02? My plants are doing extremely well, but I
>only see pearling on the upper most leaves of my plants. It makes me wonder
>if more C02 might be helpful. However, when I have gone higher than
>15mg/ltr, the pH gets too low.
I am interested in information on this also. My tank measures between 2 and 3
dKH and I began running a CO2 low-tech bottle today. (My battle on
beard?/brush algae) My pH dropped from between 6.8 and 7.0 (where it usually
sits, unfortunately, I didn't test before setting up CO2 bottle), to 6.4 and
continued to drop. At that point, I realized I needed some way to regulate
it, and used a t-valve from an airline flow control kit I had laying around.
Nobody looked particularly distressed but calculated readings reached in the
40 ppm range, which I realize is too high. The only pearling I saw going on
was the beard?brush? infested sword which was bubbling quite a bit (but not
the algae). I would have expected some of the fine-leafed plants to bubble,
such as ambulia, but no cigar. I filter water through peat in a power filter.
Can't figure out how peat would throw off calculations as it is supposed to
soften and acidify water (which would affect pH but KH? or GH? I never
actually checked this.
The black hairy stuff has now spread to a hygrophila plant, peculiarly (and
profusely) on one leaf only.
Sylvia