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On a 125 litre tank with 8 hours per day of CO2, I can't get decent results unless I use 25-30g of CO2 per day. That is with PAR of 30-40 and 'easy' plants such as Staurogyne repens and 'Monte Carlo'. I use an inline Up atomiser. I recently tried a Tropica in-tank diffuser but I got terrible...

Tropica mention in the instructions to let the diffuser soak for 24 hours without any CO2 going through it. If you ignore this advice, big bubbles will escape from the edge of the ceramic which is a bit wasteful. However, this stops after about 1 day. P

Lots of people here have had success with the Tropica 3-in-1 diffuser. It's cheap and works really well. P

Never had this happen to me so can't advise. How do you know the water is in the cylinder? P

You could just use a normal diffuser (or more than one) in the sump. The trouble is you need to try and seal the sump so that CO2 doesn't escape easily via gas exchange at the water surface. Overflows can degas CO2 a lot. Perhaps it's possible to tune it to run at a full siphon and not to...

Only with the appropriate reducing adapters (which will also reduce flow). P

Hi, This happens with high working pressures (> 2 bar) and the effect is worse with the metal on-regulator bubble counters which have a smaller volume to hold water. Do you have an inline atomiser (on the filter outlet tube)? i think this makes things worse as when the CO2 comes on, the gas...

There are some threads about it on the Barr Report. IIRC it's pretty much just a pH probe but encapsulated in a solution of something or other... P

Sorry, the project has already failed apparently due to 'insurance problems'. Maybe someone else can tackle this one day. P

Burp, burp, burp with the E701GL! Up in-line atomiser on inlet side. P

http://www.thekrib.com/Plants/CO2/test-kits.html Yeah, seems like a very old idea with a major Achilles Heel, especially when it comes to aquariums. Way to go JBL! P

Yes yes I know test kits officially 'suck' but I noticed on the website below a 'direct' CO2 test. They claim it isn't simply measuring pH but CO2 itself somehow by titration http://microsites.jbl.de/ProScape/en/testlab/ Googling, I found this which seems to be the type of test used here: -...

Hi Ian, Haven't got scales yet so I just (sort of) followed your above advice... I have an in-line Up atomiser so I took the CO2 tube and bubble counter off the regulator and put fresh tube onto the needle valve (SMC push fitting). I dipped the other end of the tube into a pint (of water!) and...

These are the ones I think I'll get: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Salter-Aquatronic-Kitchen-Scale-10/dp/B002IPHBK2 P

Thanks, gotta be worth a try and if it doesn't work, they go to the kitchen! P

Hi guys, I'm thinking that it could be a relatively cheap investment to get some digital kitchen scales that I can put my CO2 system on and measure daily CO2 usage/watch out for leaks. If you consider the weight of the bottle (a 2kg system), CO2 and regulator, would a 10kg set of scales be...

As far as I'm concerned EOTD = regulator not fit for purpose. P

Name me a user-friendly, effective reactor that you can buy (no DIY please). P

I hate the 7 Up look and it's such a pity that my tank looks like it until 8 in the evening. If I could get away with turning the CO2 off earlier it would be great. At the moment CO2 = 12:00 to 20:00 (8 hours) Lights = 14:00 - 22:00 (also 8 hours). P

I'm sure I read here that it EOTD shouldn't happen with quality single stage regulators. My old Lunapets regulator never had an EOTD. This company is now defunct but I bought this one instead: -...

Thanks, I'm gonna try this. P

No, I've had plenty of BBA in the past, despite mist. P

Recently, I've been getting though a 2kg bottle every month! That's on a 125 litre aquarium. Something's very wrong here but can't find any leaks using the usual methods... P

Hi Tug, Thanks for your help, good food for thought. Unfortunately, I nearly gassed all my livestock today thanks to an 'end-of-tank dump'. I've never had this before but it's a new regulator so I need to see what the supplier says about this. P

Is there any consensus on how we measure the pH drop? By measuring the initial pH in the aquarium itself. By measuring a water sample that has been left to stand? My results: - pH in aquarium before CO2 injection = 6.92 stable pH during CO2 injection = 5.65 (difference = 1.27) pH of...

Bingo. I'm thinking about getting an ATO for this reason. Just need to work out how much water I lose per week through evaporation... P

2 bps? I don't get it. I have KH 4 and I get a 1 pH drop with uncountable bubble counts! :confused: P

The skimmer aerates the water well because the water falls down the hole at the top. I think it is here that the gas exchange happens as there is a high surface area to volume ratio. P

I have a stainless steel inlet tube with a built-in clear acrylic surface skimmer. Was expensive and they aren't on the market any more. So I can only recommend the Eheim Skim 350 which I used before and now use on another smaller aquarium. It isn't too expensive and it gives consistent...

Seriously, I think the best way to get consistent surface agitation (and no surface film) is an Eheim Skim 350. The 1 pH drop can't be taken as gospel because CO2/pH varies so much throughout an aquarium, and we most likely measure pH somewhere near the surface of the water (where CO2 levels...

I don't like the lemonade look but if you can get CO2 so both plants and fish are happy that's 90% of the battle or maybe 99%! P

Whether high light or low light I think CO2 injection needs to be stable. P

Maybe a Maxspect Gyre would do the job? P

Hi, With the disposable JBL kit you linked to, again it's only a 500g bottle that will need replacing a lot and it ain't cheap. For £130 you can get something that will last you as you grow in the hobby. Plus the 'Tornado' diffuser in that kit is a real eyesore. Be patient, save and look at the...

What's your budget? If you really want CO2 those 88g kits are not worth it. At a push they're OK for Nano tanks but even then you will be buying replacement bottles very often. For 200 litres you should have a 2kg bottle or larger with a decent regulator and in-line atomiser. I recommend...

Right... weekly! Surely I can't be the only one not to see whether Tom Barr's 5-30 ppm NO3 is per single dose or per week (3 doses)? The aquariumplantfood.co.uk recipe that I use currently results in 15.3 ppm PER WEEK. So I can increase each dose a little to get maybe 20-25 ppm. LOL :-)

When you say 20/25 ppm do you mean with each dose or the total sum of 3 doses? If the former than my numbers in the previous post still stand. snapshot1 by pepedopolous, on Flickr P

Thanks Hogan, I thought I was already dosing 'unlimited' ferts and all problems were due to CO2. I have reduced light to <30 PAR and increased CO2 to the max I can manage with livestock. To get 20 ppm in my 125l aquarium I would need to dose 80ml of my current solution daily or make a new...

Hi guys, My plants are unhealthy, dosing '2xEI' is said to be unnecessary. However, my EI mix, following the manufacturers recipe, provides only 5.1 ppm NO3. Now I've maxed-out CO2 to the best of my ability, should I increase NO3 to 30 ppm? Totally confused! P

Hi guys, EI can mean NO3 concentrations of anything from 5-30ppm and PO4 concentrations of 1.0 to 3.0ppm. According to the nutrient calculators, the EI recipe I use (from aquariumplantfood.co.uk) gives 5.10ppm NO3 and 1.56ppm PO4. With such a wide range of concentrations for NO3 in...

OK Parotet, Can you quantify your mix of PO4 in teaspoons? I used 4 teaspoons of KNO3 and 1 teaspoon of KH2PO4 in 500ml of water. Then when I got some problems with GSA/GDA on my Staurogyne I increased the KH2PO4 to 2 teaspoons and I haven't stopped using this mix even though the GSA/GDA has...

Thanks for the replies guys. I think I'll try some PFTE tape on the joint between the solenoid and needle valve. If that doesn't help... new reg!

Hi there, Recently I've noticed that the working pressure on my German-made (Lunapets) pressure regulator fluctuates between 2 and 2.5 bar every 10 seconds of so. It seems to affect the bubble rate in the bubble counter. It only happens when the solenoid is on and if the needle valve is open...

Ow! If what you're saying is true then my tanks are screwed! The pH is 7 before CO2 comes on and drops to around 5.8/5.9. I've already artificially increased the KH from 0 to 4-5. Cheers, P

Personally, I think your tank is looking a lot better. :-) Staurogyne is hard to grow sometimes. Mine was suffering from GSA until I doubled the phosphates in my EI mix. Just when it was looking good again, I went on holiday for a week, leaving the lights and CO2 off and with no ferts. This...

Who's afraid of the big bad Clive? ;-)

Hi again. My current pH profile (I've checked this several weekends in a row). KH = 5, Drop checker = always yellow I've also reduced the light intensity by 50% and given the filter a good clean. 09:00---6.92 (CO2 ON) 10:00---5.88 11:00---5.72 12:00---5.65 (Lights ON) 13:00---5.65 14:00---5.65...

Hmm. I've pulled out half the media and all the filter wool from my Eheim 350T. Surely that wasn't all for nothing (no flow increase)? P

1650 litres per hour for a 65 litre tank seems like overkill to me? Flow is super important and I have no way of knowing what would happen for sure, but I think such a filter might make your tank like a whirlpool! P

With a 1.3 drop in pH (6.9 to 5.6), I had Amano shrimps jumping out of the tank and the fish not too happy either! So rather than increase CO2 injection, reduce the lighting! P

Sure there's lots of other things that can lower pH but if you start injecting CO2 at say 8:00 and by 10:00 the pH has decreased, you can be pretty sure that the change was caused by the CO2 only. This will be confirmed by the pH increasing after CO2 is switched off. P

I started to suspect my drop checker fluid but I've changed it recently and it went yellow again and stayed that way. The drop checker in my other aquarium (with fluid from the same bottle), doesn't go quite as yellow, but starts out each day green and then changes to yellow by lights on...

What about if your drop checker is continuously yellow? P

Don't think so. Surely those bubbles break the surface and are in fact wasted CO2. P

Thanks for this info. I'm gonna get one ASAP!

I seem to be stuck between a rock and hard place with this aquarium. On the one hand, the crypts seem to be recovering with a few new leaves appearing. On the other hand even some of the Java Fern is melting now and some of the new Marsilea growth as well. If I increase the working pressure...

Wish I had the answer! P

FYI I use the JBL KH test which is also using dropwise titration. No idea how it compares to other brands.

Thanks Ceg. It's damn disheartening to see the plants melt away but I don't dare buy more plants for fear of wasting money. I think the Hemianthus glomeratus is 90% gone and the Crypts too. The Marsilea is fine and the 'Monte Carlo' is hanging on. I have tonnes of 'Monte Carlo' in my other tank...

Doesn't the 1-2 unit pH drop for an ideal pH profile assume that all CO2 is degassed overnight? I angled the spraybar upward last night to create more surface disturbance. When I got up at 7:00 the pH was 6.90 rather than the 6.43 of the previous morning. I put the spraybar back to the normal...

Here is the profile for today with increased KH so hopefully the pH meter readings are valid. KH = 4 Time ----- pH 09:00 --- 6.43 CO2 ON 09:30 --- 6.10 10:00 --- 5.93 10:30 --- 5.83 11:00 --- 5.78 increased CO2 11:30 --- 5.66 12:00 --- 5.58 Lights ON 12:30 --- 5.52 13:00 --- 5.48 13:30 ---...

The only baking soda I could find at short notice (Dr Oetker!) also contains 22% corn starch and a mix of both Sodium Bicarbonate and Monosodium phosphate. I think I'll wait until I can find some pure stuff or just buy some aquarium re-mineralisation salts like JBL Aquadur.

I'm off to get some. It says in the link below to use 1/2 teaspoon per 100l http://fins.actwin.com/mirror/begin-chem.html#altering

Ceg, I have ready-made drop-checker solution. http://www.aquasabi.de/co2/co2-dauertests/aqua-rebell-co2-check-250-ml If I add some to a sample of aquarium water right now it goes yellow. I'm guessing that if that happens at the time before the aquarium lights go on my CO2 is OK?

Yeah, I know the DC can't help with a pH profile. I just mean that if I can't get a valid pH profile at the moment, the DC is all I've got to tell me that the CO2 might be sufficient (or maybe not...)

OK, thanks. There's no point having a pH meter if it can't do its job. So until I can raise the KH, I can only use the drop checker to indicate the CO2 levels? I've moved the drop checker just above the substrate at the front and it still is yellow.

Thanks for your reply. Right now the pH is 4.92 so it's got a bit below 5. I'm not sure what you mean. What will the substrate saturate with?

New day, no water change. I've propped my pH meter on the spraybar and left it switched on. I tested the KH using a JBL test kit (titration). According to that the KH is 2. CO2 on 8:30, lights on at 11:00 Time ----- pH 08:30 --- 5.80 CO2 ON 09:00 --- 5.50 09:30 --- 5.17 10:00 --- 5.10 10:30...

Cheers ceg, that makes perfect sense. I'm onto it!

Thanks for your reply Ceg. I thought that daily water changes are necessary when starting a planted aquarium. I've no intention of getting any fish until I nail the CO2, however long that takes. I know you said in other threads that plants can get used to high levels of CO2, adapting to...

Thanks, I think I'll stop it before the lights go off then. My reason for the extra time was to keep the level up so that even though much is lost overnight, it would be quicker to get to the correct level once the CO2 comes on again. However, I think this is a moot point as I can't do a real...

Thanks for the reply, I don't have any livestock.

Hi there, I'd just like some advice on my CO2 injection. I set up a 40cm cube aquarium 6 days ago and I'm doing 50% water changes every morning at about 9:00. CO2 = 9:00 - 20:00 (I guess I could finish earlier???) Light = 12:00 - 17:00 I'm not sure if I'm injecting enough CO2 because I'm...

OK thanks. I have the 350T which has black plastic tubes in the bottom tray.

Hey Sorry to butt in. By 'noodles' do you mean the black plastic tubes? P

I see you keep your filter nice and clean. I've just found out how important this is as I've had an outbreak of BBA. I think I'd just forgotten how fast the flow used to be until I cleaned my filter the other day for the first time in more than a few months! On the same note, if your filter is...

I second the pH readings idea! Also have you got any livestock? If not all the more reason to pump in loads of CO2! Unless you have really really hard water, keep increasing the bubble count each day until you have a 1pH unit drop before lights on.

Nice find! Maybe one day we'll all have these- death to drop checkers/pH testing! Can't afford to be a tester on this but I think I might contribute a Canadian dollar or two!

I'm not sure that this is anything to do with your regulator being dual stage. I'm sure most people have single stage regulators. I do and I've never had an EOTD. CO2Art are a great shop but I think that EOTD is unlikely if you have a decent regulator and needle valve.

Even with CO2 off, the extra lighting on photo shoots causes massive pearling which can look really good.

Hi, The champagne or maybe 'lemonade' ;-) look is something you have to put up with using in-tank diffusers and in-line ones such as the UP in-line atomiser. One possible way around it is to use an in-line diffuser on the filter inlet rather than the outlet as usual. This should mean that all...

I agree with this. I don't think your soil would reduce the pH so much on it's own. P

Have you seen this? Tropica Aquarium Plants - Rådgivning - Tekniske artikler - Vandplanters biologi - Interaktioner mellem lys og CO2 Less scum means better gas exchange and more stable CO2. You may even be able to increase the CO2 without harming the fish which can mean only good things for...

Hi, I've been using a Lunapets system for about 3 years now. It was a real bargain compared to the big brand names, it's a shame they're not around any more. There is another German CO2 system supplier quite similar to lunapets: - US-Aquaristik

Hi, If you use proper drop checker solution the GH and KH of the aquarium water is irrelevant. The bubble of air in the drop checker means that only CO2 from the aquarium water can diffuse through into the drop checker solution. The colour change is as a result of CO2 reducing the pH of the...

Honestly, the 'normal' Up atomisers are much less trouble than the 'super' ones. You can take the super ones apart but putting them back together again so that they don't leak is difficult.

Thanks for the replies. Will do this later.

Hi folks, Just wondering if when you use a CO2 bottle, you should open the tap all the way? I haven't done this so far and haven't had any problems with it but the instructions for my gear were pretty vague.

You can put it in a glass of water and position it so the air escapes and the water goes in. Or a quicker way is to attach a bit of tube to the top, stick the end of the bubble counter in the water and suck the water in!

The bigger 'Super' one which you can take apart (looks like a plastic beaker) is newer. However, the normal one, even though you can't take it apart, is better. I don't think any one would disagree. It's really fiddly to put the 'Super' back together and keep it leak-free. If you need to clean...

Have you tried cleaning your UP atomizer? You can use a brush or soak it in bleach and then dechlorinate it. This could fix the problem with the mist. I don't think many people here have tried the ISTAs. TMC sell practically the same thing but I think there was a catch: even the large model...

I really want this to be true but using an UP on the intake, my filter burps all the time (well, not all the time but daily especially by the evening!). I'm thinking of going back to putting the UP on the outlet and I'll just have to get used to the bubbles... Still, at a couple of quid for...

Thanks. I'm glad it works for you! However, I realize now that the fittings are for 12mm tubing only and this rules it out for me.

I'm wondering if this reactor could be 'the business'. I have an UP at the minute but I hate the mist and more importantly the fish do too. Also the nuts for securing the filter tubing are dodgy as far as I'm concerned. I know I can use Jubilee clips but the nuts on other products (my JBL...

Hi guys, I've been running my current aquarium for 5 months and recently some plants (Staurogyne) have started to lose their lower leaves. I'm guessing that CO2 demand could have increased due to the increased plant mass over time. I was wondering if other folks here find this to be the...

The second one looks very much like the Sera CO2 reactor.

If you search this forum for 'lunapets', you'll see that they come highly recommended and are cheap (even bearing in mind postage). They sell systems with 2kg reuseable bottles. I have this one: http://www.lunapet.de/co2anlage_glasreaktor_magnetventil_2000g_flasche-p-118.html (use Google...