Kh Ph ?

[rubberdoofa]

right, finaly i have decided on a co2 system i can hear my plants banging their leaves on the tank crying out co2 co2.acctualy they are all going yellowy on the ends .Well what need to know is how the heck do i work out my ph to kh to co2 ratio!!!! i have searched all over google and can only find realy scientific gargon which to be truthfull leaves me way behind!!! Ive just built my diy co2 kit and plan to have it going tomorrow ..............all things going well ie the kids stay at school and work dont call me in and hubbie dont go in to another diabetic coma!!!!!!! all i need to know is or so im told from reading the sites is to know my kh/ph ratio so i know my c02, guess in laymans terms that means how much to add? please correct me if im sooooooo off the ball hear
i have 2x 2ltr pop bottles they will be linked together with the air line with none return valves on each then joined to one line via a T junction thingie which will be led in to the tank ....eventualy to a makeshift Bell which will be an upturned plastic see through beaker i hope to sucker on to the side of the tank ...not too sure on where to possition it as im warned about surface adjitation so some advice on that one would be welcome
so what does my kh have to be and my ph so i can work out my co2.
ang on im confused!
kh/ph isto calculate how much co2 there is, therefor isnt this a test i should be doing when ive started adding co2 or been adding it for some time???
Ive just done a kh test its 6-0d on those test strip things( forgot i still had those) my ph is 7.2
so whats that mean?

 

[craynerd]

I got lost somewhere mid post.

I presume you are asking how to calc. CO2 conc.

BAsically pH and KH are related to CO2 conc. so if you know these two variables you can work it out.

In simple terms, measure ur pH and KH using the appropriate test kits and whack the values in the calculator in the centre of this page:

http/www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_co2chart.htm

Good luck

Your aiming for it to be 30ppm or a touch higher.


btw, i may be wrong, but yellow tips can also indicate poor lighting.

Chris

 

[rubberdoofa]

I got lost somewhere mid post.

I presume you are asking how to calc. CO2 conc.

BAsically pH and KH are related to CO2 conc. so if you know these two variables you can work it out.

In simple terms, measure ur pH and KH using the appropriate test kits and whack the values in the calculator in the centre of this page:

http/www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_co2chart.htm

Good luck

Your aiming for it to be 30ppm or a touch higher.

Chris Raynerd

btw, i may be wrong, but yellow tips can also indicate poor lighting.

Chris

When i added my kh/ph in to that calculator thingie it came up with 7. something ppm thats a hell of a long way off 30ppm. as i said in my first post ive made my diy co2 kit i will be doing the yeast method ( would prefare brewing yeast but its tough as i cant find any at present) i have hear of lots of different co2 concentrations and im not sure what i should be aiming for, I see you say i should be aiming for 30ppm but the calculator thingie on that page you linked me to said 12!!!!! Im highly confused i dont want to kill my fish pollute my water or redecorate my living room yeast colour My lighting is fine so i belive, i baught new tubes 6 month ago i cant see the writting on them and i didnt keep the sleeves but i think they are made by Arcadia, and are full daylight spectrum which was recomended for my plants , would i be looking for wattage in the bulbs? how high? whats recomended?
sorry you got lost in the post, i guess that comes from trying to write about stuff your not entirely sure of.
well just had my tank hood up looking for the bulb wattage and it dont tell me or at least i couldnt see here but what it did say was; they are both made by Arcadia one is called a high output tropical lamp the other a plant growth lamp. Guess imgonna have to buy new lamps too eh just spotted a sticker on one it says 38w per bulb...........................is that good/bad?

 

[craynerd]

when i say poor lighting, i do not necessarly mean poor quality lighting, i mean not enough lighting. So, how many of the 38w tubes do you have and the tanks a 240l yes?

If the calculator is saying you have 12ppm then yes you are correct there is not enough CO2 dissolving in the water. Maybe try two things, 1) look at your diffusion method, i would recommend putting it through the filter intake rather than the bell diffuser 2) increasing your yeast mix so more CO2 is produced.

Chris

EDIT, btw are you fertilising the tank, otherwise you may get all this going and then face algae issues!

 

[rubberdoofa]

when i say poor lighting, i do not necessarly mean poor quality lighting, i mean not enough lighting. So, how many of the 38w tubes do you have and the tanks a 240l yes?

If the calculator is saying you have 12ppm then yes you are correct there is not enough CO2 dissolving in the water. Maybe try two things, 1) look at your diffusion method, i would recommend putting it through the filter intake rather than the bell diffuser 2) increasing your yeast mix so more CO2 is produced.

Chris

EDIT, btw are you fertilising the tank, otherwise you may get all this going and then face algae issues!

What ..............algae argh please no i use a fertilizer yes its a liquid stuf called Flora pride with active iron.
I got my diy kit up and running today but im not sure if its working, howdo i know if it is and how long should it be befor i get bubbles from my tube?How would i place the co2 tube if its going through the filter intake? I was thinking of getting a ceramic defuser thing
I will have to check over my seals tomorrow as i wonder if i have a leak at the lid connections, i found the silicon didnt stick as well as it does to everything else Oh i have 2 tubes as thats all the lid /hood caters for, i did get some led uv lights havent used them though
many thanks Jo