[Jessery]

This is the first time I've posted on here so if I incorrectly uploaded the photo or posted this in the wrong thread, that's why (sorry).

So... I haven't really had any major issues with algae or plants dying, but I finally just got a solenoid so I won't have to manually turn it on & off everyday. I'm perpetually unsure of myself so I wanted other's opinions on how many BPS they think would be appropriate. The tanks been set up for about four months.
I'm running on very little sleep, so I'm probably leaving out all kinds of useful information, but I know I'll forget if I don't post it now. Thanks for any & all feedback.

 

[minorhero]

This is the first time I've posted on here so if I incorrectly uploaded the photo or posted this in the wrong thread, that's why (sorry).

So... I haven't really had any major issues with algae or plants dying, but I finally just got a solenoid so I won't have to manually turn it on & off everyday. I'm perpetually unsure of myself so I wanted other's opinions on how many BPS they think would be appropriate. The tanks been set up for about four months.
I'm running on very little sleep, so I'm probably leaving out all kinds of useful information, but I know I'll forget if I don't post it now. Thanks for any & all feedback.

View attachment 1030110

Looks fine, welcome to the forum!

 

[jellopuddinpop]

Bubbles per second is really only a gauge for you to tell how much CO2 you’re injecting. Every tank will be different, based on water flow, surface agitation, water temp, CO2 consumption, efficiency, etc…

Your best bet to know how much CO2 you want is to use the pH drop method. CO2 will lower your pH by a predictable amount, and that change will be the same no matter the starting pH. What you’re going to want to do is measure the pH of your tank water after it’s been fully degassed (leave a cup of it out for 24-48 hours). Write down that pH, and use it as a baseline. From there, you’re going to want a full 1 point drop in pH by the time your lights come on, and you’re going to want to hold it there throughout the lighting period. The equates to roughly 30ppm of CO2. Once you’re consistently holding a stable 1 point drop through the day, you can very slowly turn the CO2 up until your livestock begin to shows signs of stress, then dial it back a touch.

The amount of CO2 you can inject, as well as the speed with which you can inject it is very dependent on the amount of gaseous exchange in your tank. I would recommend this article from 2hraquarist that does a really good job at explaining the relationship between CO2 injection and gaseous exchange.

Surface agitation in CO2 injected planted tanks - The 2Hr Aquarist

 

[Econde]

Welcome to the forums. Your tank looks great by the way.

 

[Jessery]

Welcome to the forums. Your tank looks great by the way.

Cheers mate. 🙂

 

[Jessery]

Looks fine, welcome to the forum!

Cheers mate.

 

[Jessery]

Bubbles per second is really only a gauge for you to tell how much CO2 you’re injecting. Every tank will be different, based on water flow, surface agitation, water temp, CO2 consumption, efficiency, etc…

Your best bet to know how much CO2 you want is to use the pH drop method. CO2 will lower your pH by a predictable amount, and that change will be the same no matter the starting pH. What you’re going to want to do is measure the pH of your tank water after it’s been fully degassed (leave a cup of it out for 24-48 hours). Write down that pH, and use it as a baseline. From there, you’re going to want a full 1 point drop in pH by the time your lights come on, and you’re going to want to hold it there throughout the lighting period. The equates to roughly 30ppm of CO2. Once you’re consistently holding a stable 1 point drop through the day, you can very slowly turn the CO2 up until your livestock begin to shows signs of stress, then dial it back a touch.

The amount of CO2 you can inject, as well as the speed with which you can inject it is very dependent on the amount of gaseous exchange in your tank. I would recommend this article from 2hraquarist that does a really good job at explaining the relationship between CO2 injection and gaseous exchange.

Surface agitation in CO2 injected planted tanks - The 2Hr Aquarist

This is exactly what I've been looking for on surface agitation. I think this is the part of the puzzle that's probably kept me so unsure of any decisions I've made over the years. This relationship. I don't think it fully clicked until just now. Thank you so much. 😊

 

[jellopuddinpop]

This is exactly what I've been looking for on surface agitation. I think this is the part of the puzzle that's probably kept me so unsure of any decisions I've made over the years. This relationship. I don't think it fully clicked until just now. Thank you so much. 😊

You're very welcome =) He actually has a video on youtube that shows the same principals. If you search for "Dennis Wong- Surface Agitation", you should find it.