High Tech Planted Questions

[jetajockey]

Hardy fish or not, those kind of ph swings aren't going to hurt them. Some run airstones at night but it's an effort to reduce the co2 levels which is the real concern as far as hurting the fish goes. As long as the tank offgasses the co2 fairly well on it's own there's no reason to add an airstone.

 

[skywhitney]

I have two wands under the gravel (only 1 hooked up) so if needbe i'll turn it on.

How much surface aggitation do i need for good O2 but also maintaining proper CO2 levels?

 

[jetajockey]

During the daytime you don't want to agitate the water much at all, doing so just wastes co2 since you have to match the co2 output to the amount that it's gassing off constantly. Since you already have airstones hooked up, why not just put them on a timer also, make the air pump for them go on about 30 min before the lights/co2 go off and then turn air pumps off 30 min before the lights/co2 come on.

 

[skywhitney]

During the daytime you don't want to agitate the water much at all, doing so just wastes co2 since you have to match the co2 output to the amount that it's gassing off constantly. Since you already have airstones hooked up, why not just put them on a timer also, make the air pump for them go on about 30 min before the lights/co2 go off and then turn air pumps off 30 min before the lights/co2 come on.

So if i point my filter output more mid tank direction then everyone should still be fine during the day? I haven't thought about the airpump on a timer but i am now....

 

[jetajockey]

During the day the co2 level should be dictated by your flow setting on the co2 regulator. As long as its maintaining <30ppm you don't have to worry about the fish getting gassed. The plants in the tank also provide oxygen so you don't have to worry about keeping lots of surface movement.

 

[skywhitney]

During the day the co2 level should be dictated by your flow setting on the co2 regulator. As long as its maintaining <30ppm you don't have to worry about the fish getting gassed. The plants in the tank also provide oxygen so you don't have to worry about keeping lots of surface movement.

How do i know if i've reached 30ppm? (i should already know this i'm sure)

 

[jetajockey]

thats the target color on a drop checker with 4dkh reference solution.

 

[aqua_chem]

Also, you would be amazed what fish can handle if you raise your CO2 slowly. 30 ppm just doesn't cut it for my tank. I'm probably running 60-70 ppm. Any lower and I start seeing adverse effects. Since I worked up to that point over several months, my fish are just dandy with it.

Not saying that everyone should go out and crank the CO2, but just that you should keep in mind that 30 ppm is a recommended level and not some fact of biology. Your necessary level may vary.

 

[Discusapisto]

I'm at 50 ppm and trust me you deff have to take it slow lol! And jeta you know a ph swing in the acidic range would affect certain hard water species say some African cichlids from the great rift lakes or certain live bearers from Mexico. And I've seen plenty of these species in planted aquariums so I wouldn't generalize all fish as safe from swings. Most but deff not all you silly man lol!! J-k!

 

[skywhitney]

so my PH was 6.7 when i went to bed last night and it was only 6.9 when I got up this morning. as of right now i think I'm going to leave it where it is and see how the plants do. I always have time to adjust it further if need be. My plants are used to almost next to nothing CO2 so this should still be a nice change for them.

 

[skywhitney]

The plants are pearling....i'm correct in thinking this is a good thing right?

 

[Discusapisto]

Yes indeed!

 

[Jill]

I'm not sure if I've commented on this thread, but I read every new post every day. Anxious to see your results!

 

[skywhitney]

I'm not sure if I've commented on this thread, but I read every new post every day. Anxious to see your results!

Hi Jill feel free to jump in if you need clarification on something. There is probably a good chance there are others, myself included, that have the same questions you do.

 

[skywhitney]

Yes indeed!

Awesome!

Well the fish are all doing great at a PH of 6.7 so should I turn it down another .1-.2 or just leave it alone for a couple days

 

[aqua_chem]

Leave it for a day or so, then inch in down. What are you at bps-wise?

 

[skywhitney]

Leave it for a day or so, then inch in down. What are you at bps-wise?

There in itself lies another question i have. So i have no idea ow to get the CO2 to flow steadily, it's either 100bps or 0bps. What am i doing wrong here?

Also, i've noticed that i'm shooting a ton of micro bubbles out of the reactor that just float to the surface. Isn't that kind of defeating the purpose? I feel like i have most of the puzzle figured out but a couple pieces just aren't lining up right.

 

[aqua_chem]

It sounds like you have your working pressure on your regulator too high.

Here's how I adjust my regulator when I've lost my setting (refill or something).

1) Completely remove black knob (working pressure adjustment). Regulator should be completely off.

2) Completely open needle valve.

3) Slowly increase the working pressure until you see bubbles coming out. Fortunately reactors work on low pressures, so we can stop there.

4) Slowly close needle valve until you reach your desired bps.

If you don't think you have enough bps with your needle valve all the way open, you can increase your working pressure. A little bit goes a long way.

I generally try to get my bps as close as I can using just the working pressure adjustment, and then fine tune it with the needle valve. YMMV.

 

[skywhitney]

It sounds like you have your working pressure on your regulator too high.

Here's how I adjust my regulator when I've lost my setting (refill or something).

1) Completely remove black knob (working pressure adjustment). Regulator should be completely off.

2) Completely open needle valve.

3) Slowly increase the working pressure until you see bubbles coming out. Fortunately reactors work on low pressures, so we can stop there.

4) Slowly close needle valve until you reach your desired bps.

If you don't think you have enough bps with your needle valve all the way open, you can increase your working pressure. A little bit goes a long way.

I generally try to get my bps as close as I can using just the working pressure adjustment, and then fine tune it with the needle valve. YMMV.

Thank you! I got it to 4bps to start with so hopefully starting tomorrow i'll have a more steady flow. I never thought to adjust with the needle valve so i've just been using the working pressure valve to try to adjust the bps. Up until now it blasted bubbles into the counter when the solenoid is on then it'll shut off for a few hours. When its been on it only goes for about 5 min before the PH monitor shuts it off again.

YMMV?

 

[aqua_chem]

Your mileage may vary.

Is it working for you now though?