pH and nitrAtes dropping.

[Xzap]

This tank (29 gal) only has about 2 square inches of clay in a planter. The temple plant in it went crazy ! Tremendous growth.. I've seperated and pruned it 3 times at least. All the other plants look great, except for some hair algae and are growing well.

I'll post some more pix in the clay thread in a few

dave

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=57715&highlight=

 

[Xzap]

Hey cz, thanks !
I believe I'll just dry dose a smidgen a day for a week and see where that puts me.

Thx,

dave

8/23
Added a smidgen of k2hpo4, tested 24 hrs later
po4 now = 1.0
dKH 1.0 or 17.9, dKH was 3 about a month ago.

Thx,

Dave

 

[Xzap]

Hey cz, thanks !
I believe I'll just dry dose a smidgen a day for a week and see where that puts me.

Thx,

dave

8/23
Added a smidgen of k2hpo4, tested 24 hrs later
po4 now = 1.0
dKH 1.0 or 17.9, dKH was 3 about a month ago.

Thx,

Dave

8/25/05
pH has risen to 7.6. I still have the cuttlebone in the filter.
nh3 0.0
ites 0
ates 5

Thx,

Dave

 

[czcz]

Are you buffering kH from tap? I do not know why pH is rising while KH is dropping. Perhaps rising pH is because of too low a buffer and dosing PO4, and if so, you can remedy it by dosing baking soda again. The chemistry of multiple buffers is over my head. Hopefully someone will explain the cause and chemistry of your situation.

It looks like keeping P available is increasing N uptake, so keep the KNO3 handy. Good luck!

 

[Xzap]

I'll try that again. I'll go back and look, but I think I used 1 tsp over a 3 or 7 day period.

cz.. I'm not sure what you mena by"Are you buffering kH from tap". Is this something I could do from my tap water?

Thx,

dave

 

[czcz]

Dave, you need to increase KH of PWC water to keep proper buffering. You can still use the equations from earlier in the thread, and replacing total gallons with PWC gallons: The simplified equation is PWC gallons times .01059 equals teaspoons of NaHCO3 (baking soda) needed to raise KH by one degree. If you dose the new water before putting it in the tank, you shouldn't need to do it gradually, as ideally your target dose is to meet tank's KH. I am unsure why the tank's current KH is lower than tap, however.

 

[Jchillin]

Yikes...didn't see this thread...if you use the CC, don't use the baking soda... 8O

 

[greenmaji]

He is using cuttle bone in the tank not exactly CC JC.. but what czcz is trying to say is buffer just the water going into the tank with baking soda as to keep KH steady..