CO2 and Tank Stocking
- Thread starter ljse
- Start date
You would need to monitor your pH and KH levels. If your KH is low, then adding co2 can cause a traumatic shift in pH. If you have high kh, then dont worry too much. Just keep checking your pH levels. I use a DIY yeast/sugar co2 generator and personally love it.
well when the lights are on and the plants are photosynthesizing, more CO2 means more O2 will be produced, your fish shouldn't die from lack of oxygen. What you should test is to make sure your buffering is high enough so that the CO2 does not cause your PH to crash. If you decide to do it heres a really good DIY guide. http://www.qsl.net/w2wdx/aquaria/diyco2.html
I just added peat moss to my filter to lower my ph and buffer it. Now my Ph is about 6.5. Since I did this yesterday and you both said that I need a buffered Ph, should I wait for everything to stabilize before adding CO2, or would it be better if I just leave the tank alone and hope that the fish can produce enough CO2?
You need to make sure your kH is 3.0°H.....MINIMUM before injecting the tank with CO2. If you don't know your water's kH, test it or get it tested.
Raising kH is what increases your buffer and protects your fish from a pH crash.
For their saftey, don't inject until you know your kH.
If you have a pH of 6.5 without injecting, my guess is that you may well need to increase kH.
Just from the sounds of it, you've got soft water.
Len
Raising kH is what increases your buffer and protects your fish from a pH crash.
For their saftey, don't inject until you know your kH.
If you have a pH of 6.5 without injecting, my guess is that you may well need to increase kH.
Just from the sounds of it, you've got soft water.
Len
If the plants are doing well and you obviously don't want to risk your fish, I'd say it's a good idea to leave it as is. I've never tried DIY Co2 personally but I think it's more risky. It's tougher to control.