How Do You Measure Co2 Levels?

[amagphoto]

Have a 55 gallon fresh planted aquarium.....75% planted, tank is 4 1/2 weeks old, eheim 2217, all water tests good, eco gravel, just put in a Red Sea pressurized Co2 injector system....it seems to be working well so far, been up a couple hours. Question....how do you measure your levels to get to the desired levels of 20-30ppm recommended? Is this just a test strip, or test bottle at lfs? I've read about KH...how do measure for that? The kit has a submersible CO2 monitor but seems like I should still check the co2 levels more precisely.

 

[Themuleous]

Get a good liquid test kit for both pH and KH then measure the tank, then use a table like this one, to work out the CO2 level.

Its can be a bit of an estimate but should give you a rough guide. Alternatively take a sample of the tank water and leave it to stand for 24hrs. Then tests its pH then test the pH of the tank, a difference of 1pH point = 30ppm CO2

You can also get permanent test kits that sit in the tank and change colour depending on the CO2 level but try the above first to get a rough guide as to the CO2 level then get a permanent test kit later if you feel you want to.

Sam