Water Results

[laurasmithuk]

hi all, tested water today.

ammonia - 0
nitrIte - 0
nitrAte - 10
PH - 7.6
gh - 17dGH - 304.3 PPM
KH - 14dKH - 250.6 ppm

does this mean my co2 system is all working ok, and doing what is supposed to?

 

[laurasmithuk]

someone must be able to help....

im not entitrely sure about co2 so just need to know if its ok. i am using my own co2 mix of 1/2 tsp of bicarb, 1/2 tsp yeast and sugar....

 

[The-Wolf]

the only thing I would say is a little high is your kH
everything else is fine

 

[laurasmithuk]

can i lower that at all? is the co2 mix im using ok or do i need to up anything?

 

[Walt]

with a KH of 14 and PH of 7.6, i show you sitting somewhere around 10ppm of CO2.
So id say no... you are not getting enough CO2 into solution yet...
With a KH of 14, your PH should drop to around 7.0-7.2 before you reach the ideal CO2 amount of 30 ppm.

Look at this chart to see how to figure this out...
http/www.sfbaaps.com/articles/table_01.html

 

[laurasmithuk]

what sort of solution would u recommend using then?

 

[Jen]

Looks like you also need some nitrates added to the water. Most people with planted tanks aim the get them between 10 and 20ppm.

 

[laurasmithuk]

im very new to this and dont know what im doing. what mix is best to add?

 

[Jen]

It all depends how much you want to get into it. If you have tons of plants, then you may want to look into EI (Estimative Index) Zig made a great guide here... http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=104737. If you don't want to go that far into the chemistry of it, I'm sure you can get a liquid nitrate supplement. It is more expensive in the long run, but easier than doing all the mixing.

 

[laurasmithuk]

its quite heavily ploanted and i was hoping to get into it quite a bit

 

[Jen]

Ok then. Have a look at that thread. It can be a bit overwhelming at first, but very informative. I suggest buying the dry cemicals and mixing them up yourself. It is much cheaper, and you have a lot more control over the amounts. I bought mine from www.gregwatson.com, but I don't know if the deliver over seas. Maybe George, jimboo or RYO can give you some names of places to get them on your side of the pond