pH drop / pH profile

[LMuhlen]

Drop checkers have their issues as well, nothing is really that straightforward...

Darrel mentioned the checker collecting CO2 bubbles, but it can also collect air or O2 bubbles, which would make it go wrong to the other side. Heavy CO2 users may have considerable amount of O2 bubbles swimming around. I've seen fishes "drinking" from the drop checker air chamber... Floating plants getting stuck and unstuck from there.

Which are all minor issues, of course. But the difficulty to read is more relevant, and the uncertainty as to when to change the reagent is also relevant, especially for lazier aquarists like me who tend to postpone this kind of things.

And of course, using a drop checker you'll never get the precision you may think you are getting from pH readings, regardless of the real uncertainties involved. Maybe that is a good point, with the drop checker you are plenty aware of how imprecise the reading is, while with the pH probe you may be mislead into believing it is very precise.

 

[foxfish]

This is only my personal opinion but, pushing known limits close to where fish are likely to suffer is not something that appeals to me.
I cant imagine sitting at home trying to relax knowing my tank is pushing the boundary's and my fish are in Jeopardy every hour of the day,
Of course I can understand why some people like pushing fert and C02 levels in an attempt to grow underwater plants, as without folk experimenting we would all struggle to gain knowledge and understanding but ….. adding fish to said environments is not something I would like to do (although I probably have done so in the past armed with only more basic info than we have now)
However, looking at an aquarium is often ‘not’ enough to satisfy the owner who wants to really indulge in the hobby and get hands on activity.
So some folk love to tinker and have as much fun and enjoyments from their hobbies as possible (like myself).
Measuring the PH drop is without doubt far more hands on and entertaining than watching a drop checker, you can even extend the pleasure by writing about it on this forum and even make new friends in the process!
So on that basis, I think testing PH drop is great fun….. just dont forget to use a drop check for more accurate results!

 

[LightingBamboozled]

So on that basis, I think testing PH drop is great fun….. just dont forget to use a drop check for more accurate results!

The drop checker is not more accurate, because it relies on the interpretation of a narrow part of the yellow green spectrum, through glass, near bright lights, green plants and often blue tank glass. And if you're not aiming for 30ppm, where the colour change is most noticeable, that gets even harder. So you have a thoroughly imprecise reading of what the CO2 was about 2 hours ago in one location of the tank. The reliability of the system (ignoring the water splashes, bubbles & critters etc getting into the drop checker) doesn't mean much when the precision is that wide.

Whereas using a decent kH and pH test you can get precise numbers with reasonable reliability from various areas of the tank in seconds. If you were put in a room with a tank you hadn't encountered before you'd have a more accurate understanding of the CO2 in the tank with the pH/kH method than looking at the drop checker in the tank.

 

[John q]

Drop checkers have their issues as well, nothing is really that straightforward

Yes they can have issues, including a build up of film at the air/water boundary.
Picture courtesy of Jaypeecee.

Measuring the PH drop is without doubt far more hands on and entertaining than watching a drop checker

Indeed, there's nothing more rewarding than spending 8hrs on your day off taking half hourly ph readings for the ph profile.

Personally I use both methods.

 

[Zeus.]

The drop checker is a great ongoing measure,

👍

but for setting up and making adjustments there's nothing quite like pH measuring.

Yes and No. IMO/IME the actual pH is irrelevant and as long as you have a least a little kH and gH.
The accuracy of the pH meter (or pH papers) isn't important either IMO
I even stopped calibrating my pH meters ( if using a pH controller there is a need to calibrate it as there's a target pH for the device- which is tank dependant)
Its the pH change the pH device is good for and checking the pH stability from lights on for first 4 to 5 hours
The DC is a ideal device which is independent of the tanks water chemistry which easily shows when a 30ppm [CO2] is achieved even if it takes a couple of hours. After all one thing we can all agree on is a stable pH is ideal, so if its stable for 4hrs thats plenty of time for the DC to change colour the DC confirms the relative pH drop which should be checked daily IMO for both folk using pH controllers or other means

 

[John q]

Premonition or something stuck in my subconscious mind?

Came home tonight to find this.

For reference the DC is a bit darker than it usually is.
😆

 

[Andy Pierce]

Came home tonight to find this.

That does happen. Actually, thinking about it, it would be nice if someone made a square or cube-shaped drop checker rather than round so you could read a more consistent colour. Anyone ever run across such a thing? A quick online search didn't turn up anything.