Oxygen levels???

[aquarius56]

Has anyone ever tried to find out their CO2 ppm using Degassing chart method http://www.rexgrigg.com/Algae1.html I came across it trying to find out what kind of algae I had and I thought I'd give it a try :(

[xoolooxunny]

that chart is pretty accurate. If you want to double check, for a ballpark measurement, use the overnight ph trick. Take a bowl of water out of your tank, test ph. after 24hrs, test ph again. If the ph goes up .5, then you have about 15ppm co2. 1.0 is 30ppm, and you can estimate between there. between 15-30ppm is a good number to shoot for in most planted tanks.

[aquarius56]

Thanks so much for that quick response :19: I kinda thought it would be alright because I do have lots of air going in and the plants and fish seem to be doing well but one of the reasons given for brown algae(I think) was low co2, so I got a little worried. My next thread will be...HELP...Brown Algae...lol.
LeeAnn...ps...my water is well between 15ppm and 30ppm...

[xoolooxunny]

brown algae can come from low light too, btw how old is the tank? what kind of lighting does it have/how long is it on?

[aquarius56]

The tank is only about a year old, 20"Hx36"L and the light is Aqua-Glo 20w, 59cm/24" (T8) 25,5mm/1" and THAT is all the numbers on the box :19: I used to have it on for 8 to 10 hours a day and then I was afraid that was causing the algae, so I have it on 3 or 4 hours in the morning and a couple of hours at night, with just natural light thru the day. I have to say owning an aquarium is THE most frustrating...albeit the most rewarding experience in my life. One problem...5 different solutions...or not...lol...
Solution 5: Lfs says Otto's will be in on Fri.