[Aheartlessfish]

Just a general question, was wondering if theres any negative effects to a GH being measured 8 drops from the API kit and KH measuring 4 drops...

I know i can compare KH vs PH for an ideal Co2 level...but what do i do with the GH being 8 drops?

(i understand the inaccuracy of these drops but at least it gives an ideal of what the water chemistry is compared to not knowing at all)

Thanks

 

[Darkblade48]

GH and KH are two different measurements of hardness.

It is hard to say whether your GH and KH are "ideal", as there is no such thing. It all depends on your livestock, plants, etc that you want to keep

Comparing KH and pH to obtain CO2 works, but due to the fact that there are other components in your aquarium that are likely contributing to kH, it will skew the relationship, causing inaccurate estimations. The best way to estimate your CO2 levels is with a drop checker with a known kH reference solution.

Hope this helps,

 

[Diana]

If the test results were really far apart that might be some pretty odd water, but 4 dKH and 8dGH are not too far apart.

Don't trust the KH/pH/CO2 charts. They are accurate only in water which has only ONE buffer, KH. In an aquarium there are many things that control the pH, each trying to make the pH a little different. That throws off the chart. It can be wildly inaccurate.