how to raise Kh

[m-man]

my Kh is 2degrees, is that too low, how can i raise it

 

[czcz]

It's probably not too low. The best way to raise KH is with baking soda, more so when injecting CO2. There is a calculator in the fertilization sticky.

"A stable KH is better than a perfect KH."

 

[m-man]

i can understand how adding baking soda would help, however wont that raise Ph in itself?

 

[czcz]

Yes, but all else being equal, raising KH will raise pH. This is true whether KH rises from baking soda or another carbonate. This is good if you want to inject CO2 and fear pH dropping too low, but in application a stable 2dKH with CO2 injection is fine for most (not hardwater) fish. Other members who've done something similar and posted about it include Plantbrain, Zezmo, and sherry.

Why do you want to raise KH?

 

[malkore]

I'm with Czcz, 2dKh is stable enough, even for CO2 injection. you may want a pH controller or a timer for pressurized Co2, more to save your CO2 from being wasted by running 24/7. CO2 will dissolve easier in your setup so you won't need as much.

even with constant slow injection though, you oughta be fine with pH not dipping too low.

If anything, make sure you do your weeky 50% water changes to keep Kh at 2. Co2 will eat away at kh over time...never a problem if you're doing water changes...but if you went a couple months with just top-offs, you'd find your Kh will have dropped if you're injecting CO2 to an 'optimal level'

 

[m-man]

yeah, well i think my co2 is the problem, i run a diy one, however when i do the calculation for co2 , from Kh and Ph, i get only about 4-5ppm co2, so i set up a better system, the co2 comes out into a type of "bubble ladder", where it builds up, and when it bubbles out, it goes into my powerhead where it get blasted out in a million bubbles, hopefully that will help.