co2 drop checker

[ersteb]

ok..so i just received my drop checkers...set them up...and now have to check the color in the ball against the color chart they give me...with the difference in colors very muted it seems impossible to get an exact reading as the ball is underwater and the lighting is not optimal....

is this REALLY better than the results of the DH and PH testing?????

IF the fish dont die AND the plants are doing fine....get my point???!!

 

[jmhart]

So, "if the fish don't die and the plants are doing fine" isn't really the goal of a drop checker. "Ensuring that your plants have a maximum amount of resources while ensuring the health of your fish" is. Point is, using a drop checker, you have a real-time check on your co2 levels without having to peform a ph and kh test every time. Additionally, generally, the drop checker will help you push your co2 levels to the highest level that is still safe for your fish. You can add co2 without a drop checker and not harm your fish, but it's difficult to tell if you are helping your plants as much as you could be.

 

[Fordtrannyman]

Reading/differentiating the color tones in a Drop Checker does take a little practice.
Don't try to match a color chart, just know that Blue is low, Green is optimal, and yellow is too much. After a couple weeks you will start to notice minor hue changes.
A little darker green, maybe a little lighter, maybe a hint of greenish yellow.
I know that from personal experience it's easier to use a lab tested and certified dkh solution over a DIY dkh. It stays much clearer.

A DC is a great little gadget. It takes a lot of guesswork out of determining your actual KH.

 

[Carissa]

The KH/pH relationship isn't that useful anyway, since most tanks will have either phosphate or acids (nitric acid, tannins, humic acid if you run peat, etc.). If any of these substances are in the water, the KH/pH relationship to determine ppm's of co2 is useless. The only thing that works in these cases is a drop checker, or a less useful method, testing pH and then allowing it to come to equilibrium with the atmosphere and then checking pH again (a good level of co2 would cause the pH to rise 1.0 - 1.4 in the test tube after offgassing).

 

[Fordtrannyman]

The KH/pH relationship isn't that useful anyway, since most tanks will have either phosphate or acids (nitric acid, tannins, humic acid if you run peat, etc.). If any of these substances are in the water, the KH/pH relationship to determine ppm's of co2 is useless. The only thing that works in these cases is a drop checker, or a less useful method, testing pH and then allowing it to come to equilibrium with the atmosphere and then checking pH again (a good level of co2 would cause the pH to rise 1.0 - 1.4 in the test tube after offgassing).

Thanks for elaborating on my last sentence. I was trying to keep it simple.