They're Dying ... Help!

[fort384]

Ruh roh. You need to get a selenoid on there. You don't want to have the c02 running full time. It needs to turn off and on, either with a timer or a pH meter. If you leave it on 24/7, you are going to have way too much... especially at night. Plants don't use CO2 at night so adding it to the tank, it will just build up.

You could also just go ahead and turn it off manually when the lights go out, and turn it back on in the morning when you get up, but this is not ideal.

Replacement CO2 Solenoid For CO2 Regulator

Checkout the link. Pretty much any co2 solenoid will work, but this will give you an idea. The cord coming out then plugs into a timer or the ph meter, and when power is shut off to the solenoid, it turns the gas off.

The reason I recommend the pH meter is because wild CO2 swings can encourage a lot of algae growth... unstable CO2 is especially encouraging to the dreaded BBA (black brush algae) which is very difficult to get rid of and very unsightly.

I recommend this meter:
http://www.eseasongear.com/mism.html

[EasternCanuck]

Wow, that's a bit pricey but I suppose I'll need to look at it. My LFS (seeming more and more asinine as I think about them) said it is ok to run the CO2 24/7. Their tanks in the shop, and they have many, seem to work fine and look good but maybe they have a different set up to what they are selling me.

I'll keep doing water changes and see what happens. 2 rams are still alive though they are pretty much hiding all the time and don't move. Poor guys.

I've turned off the CO2 for now and will keep monitoring the PH to see if it starts to come up.

[fort384]

Yeah it will come up pretty quick once the co2 is off. You can avoid going the automated method... just do some testing turning the needle valve on and off at different times of the day and find what gets you close to your target pH.

High tech plant setups can get pricey -- but the automation really is great. You can set it and forget it... don't have to touch the co2 equipment again until 3-4 months later when the tank needs a refill.

Of course if it is on all the time, you will also have to fill the co2 tank sooner.

Your LFS may be aerating/agitating the water more... this will off gas a lot of the co2 that you are injecting, but is counterproductive to adding co2 in the first place. Pretty much everyone who runs a pressurized system that I have talked to uses a solenoid connected to either a timer for low budget but less accuracy, or a pH meter for higher budget but very precise CO2 injection.

[dkpate]

You can get an API Master kit for about $20 from www.drsfostersmith.com

[EasternCanuck]

My PH never came up with the CO2 turned off. Very weird.

The guy at my LFS said that the 'soil' I am using in my tank is what is driving down my PH.

[Blueiz]

An alternative to a solenoid is a bubble strip that you turn on at night to gas off the co2.

[fort384]

With a pressurized system, I wouldn't run aeration -- it is just wasting the CO2 in the bottle at that point. But, it would be a viable alternative I suppose.

If you were injecting CO2 into the tank and any co2 was getting absorbed, and you turned it off, the pH had to come up. What kind of test are you using for pH? Is it still testing 6 or below (so it is off the scale?)

[EasternCanuck]

Hi,

The PH has never come up and has remained the same. Tap water is around 7 and my tank is 6 or below. When I turned off the CO2 the PH did not budge. Before I bought the CO2 though the tank was still 6 or below.

I am now using an API kit as I thought there might be something wrong with my other kit but it is reading the same.

The guy at my LFS says that it is the soil substrate that is keeping my PH down so low. He said I can put in coral chips if I want to raise it.

[fort384]

Ok, understood.

The test kit bottoms out at 6... when you stopped the CO2 the pH had to raise some, but the soil is still keeping it below 6.

That is really low pH for a tank with no CO2 running... coral chips aren't going to raise it a ton. What kind of substrate is it? Is it designed for aquariums? I would seriously consider changing it, which I know is a major PITA.

[EasternCanuck]

It is designed for aquariums, yes. I don't remember the name on the bag now. It looks like little balls of dirt. LFS said it is for planted aquariums and I see they have it in many of their tanks as well.

They've said not to worry about the PH but my KH is low also so I am worried about too much CO2 in the tank, if I have used that CO2 counter properly

Measuring CO2 levels in a Planted Tank