fluctuating CO2
- Thread starter Cliffz
- Start date
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7Enigma
Aquarium Advice Addict
Cliffz,
Check one of the stickies in here about making a CO2 drop checker. For a little bit of work and a couple bucks you can have a relatively accurate value of CO2 in the tank.
The problem with the pH/KH relationship is that its only accurate in a perfect system. The truth is we have a lot of dissolved solids and chemicals in that water that can change/buffer the pH. So when you do the pH/KH chart from Chuck, you might be wayyyyy off.
The idea of the drop checker is to have a reference solution in the tank that you know is a set KH, with no actual contact to the tank water. No fish food, ferts, poo, or other chemicals can get into this solution. This creates that perfect system that the pH/KH chart is meant to describe, and gives you a very good estimation of CO2 levels.
HTH
Check one of the stickies in here about making a CO2 drop checker. For a little bit of work and a couple bucks you can have a relatively accurate value of CO2 in the tank.
The problem with the pH/KH relationship is that its only accurate in a perfect system. The truth is we have a lot of dissolved solids and chemicals in that water that can change/buffer the pH. So when you do the pH/KH chart from Chuck, you might be wayyyyy off.
The idea of the drop checker is to have a reference solution in the tank that you know is a set KH, with no actual contact to the tank water. No fish food, ferts, poo, or other chemicals can get into this solution. This creates that perfect system that the pH/KH chart is meant to describe, and gives you a very good estimation of CO2 levels.
HTH
