Ok guys, ive been doing a lot of research on plantedtank.net and im getting a little confused again. worst part is they dont have stickies over there for noob info 
gotta dig through hundreds of threads
anyways, i have a few questions on how exatcly ph controllers work and how that affects CO2 levels. i know that a ph controller keeps the ph set a certain level by injecting CO2, when the ph goes up, the ph controller opens the solenoid to release CO2 and bring the ph levels back down to the set level. so my question here is, How do you know what your CO2 levels are when using a ph controller? What ph setting should the ph controller be set at? 6.6??? because a ph of 6.6 with a carbonate hardness reading (KH) of 4 degrees = 30ppm of CO2, which seems to be ideal for plants and fish
i know about the ph/KH charts to determine your CO2 levels, but ive read that these results will not always be accurate because of various variables in the water.
ok, so then i found out about drop checkers and how they are some of the best little tools out there. i ordered one off of ebay yesterday. i also found out that i need to use some 4dKH solution in there, followed by 3-4 drops of ph reagent to be able to get accurate results. ill be ordering some of the 4dKH solution shortly. so, a green color in the drop checker means the ideal 30ppm of CO2, yellow is too high, and blue is not enough. next question is, How does a drop checker work with a ph controller? If I set the ph controller to 6.6, will I automatically get a green color in the drop checker?
And finally, by using a ph controller and a drop checker, how do I know i have the right amount of CO2 in the water (30ppm)?
hopefully you guys can shed some light on this for me, this all still very confusing and i dont wanna start buying equipment until im sure of how it all works!
thx!
gotta dig through hundreds of threadsanyways, i have a few questions on how exatcly ph controllers work and how that affects CO2 levels. i know that a ph controller keeps the ph set a certain level by injecting CO2, when the ph goes up, the ph controller opens the solenoid to release CO2 and bring the ph levels back down to the set level. so my question here is, How do you know what your CO2 levels are when using a ph controller? What ph setting should the ph controller be set at? 6.6??? because a ph of 6.6 with a carbonate hardness reading (KH) of 4 degrees = 30ppm of CO2, which seems to be ideal for plants and fish
i know about the ph/KH charts to determine your CO2 levels, but ive read that these results will not always be accurate because of various variables in the water.
ok, so then i found out about drop checkers and how they are some of the best little tools out there. i ordered one off of ebay yesterday. i also found out that i need to use some 4dKH solution in there, followed by 3-4 drops of ph reagent to be able to get accurate results. ill be ordering some of the 4dKH solution shortly. so, a green color in the drop checker means the ideal 30ppm of CO2, yellow is too high, and blue is not enough. next question is, How does a drop checker work with a ph controller? If I set the ph controller to 6.6, will I automatically get a green color in the drop checker?
And finally, by using a ph controller and a drop checker, how do I know i have the right amount of CO2 in the water (30ppm)?
hopefully you guys can shed some light on this for me, this all still very confusing and i dont wanna start buying equipment until im sure of how it all works!
thx!
