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Well, this seems (another) Chinese brand. This does not mean they are bard; it just means do not expect the same quality than an ADA Cube garden, of course, but three years guarantee seems very good. Said that, most of glassware in the hobby is highly overpriced. Even for some people this could...

This is a hard question. Thinking about the plant metabolism, I would say that anabolism of urea to retrieve ammonium happens at a different point than photosynthesis. For instance, photosynthesis fixes the carbon but this is partially burnt to produce energy that also generates CO2. That energy...

Within the time, and more and more convinced that glutaraldehyde based products are just a complement of normal CO2 injection. Some plants that are very bad to uptake HCO3- or CO2 dissolved in water can benefit of this. But I strongly doubt that products like Exel can replace CO2 injection. I...

Well...I did not want to ruin hopes of anyone, really, far beyond my wishes...but crudely said...you are right. Seneye is not reaching the sneak oil category (I reserve that category for Twinstar), but hype advertising to favour selling is a fact, in this case. Not only for this brand, by the...

Ufffff....there are SO MANY oversimplifications of the matter in that sentence of PFK that I even found it a bit dangerous. The thing of using Excel and not CO2 injection is that they operate in different mechanisms of plants. They are both a carbon source but you cannot fully replace CO2 with...

This is the problem with this kind of devices...they are not always telling you what it seems they tell. For instance, from Seneye website: "The Seneye device only measures toxic free ammonia NH3 and the Seneye connect application allows you to look at free ammonia between 0.000ppm and...

Photosynthesis rate relies in several factors, mainly light intensity, CO2 availability, temperature, and of course, nutrients. However, each demand happens at different level. For instance, CO2 is not used unless there is previously some energy coming from the photosystems allowing to combine...

There is an errata in my former message. Enzymatic rate doubles every 10 degrees, not 5. This means that 5 degrees involves about 50% more consumption, not double. I will reapond to your other questions later. ;-) Cheers, Manuel Enviado desde mi C6903 mediante Tapatalk

Yes, if you expect to have a few days with higher temperatures. Obviously, this is a general rule and as such, it is not always valid. For instance, having low demanding plants involves they will consume more CO2 but again, low-demanding means they use low amounts, so even if they increase the...

I was waiting for this question long time a go. There is a wrong belief that changes of temperature have significant effect to the CO2 levels in aquariums. Reality is: There is some effect, yes, as solubility of gases in water is a function of temperature: the higher the temperature, the lower...

Oh yes, that is why I tried the thing. The input of carbon from photosynthesis is different from this one, so they are not incompatible. The only "issue" is that as you are forcing the machine, plants needs to adapt the concentration of enzymes in their system to tackle the secondary source of...

Hi kadoxu, Thanks for this report. A few questions/comments, as I feel a bit curious about this device. I wonder... does the device includes any calibration routine or are the probe all time under water? pH meters work in a very specific way which demands regular immersion inside a KCl...

I do not see any need to Excel having anything else. I was also skeptical about it, so I did a test y my last aquarium, and in my opinion, it is good as a synergistic approach to CO2 injection that helps to some plants and reduce the needs of dosage. For instance, plants with more difficulties...

Yes, that's right, Darrel. I used the standard value assumed in Chemistry, but being honest, this should be updated, as CO2 levels are far beyond that, nowadays. This is why ocean acidification is a problem: Increasing CO2 levels in air propagate to ocean water, reducing pH, what affects to the...

Yes, that's right. The theory of the drop of pH in 1 unit is mainly bullshit (see below). I am glad you found it useful. :) Hi Darrel, You are right in that sense. CO2 in a room can be higher, but still, 700 ppm are about 1 ppm of CO2 in equilibrium with water, far beyond from the claimed 3...

I missed the first part of your sentence, in which you establish a causal relationship between plant requirements and Na Cl in sea water. Because of the plants do not use it, it is then wasted to oceans and accumulated. This is not true, and most of Na Cl come from the mid-ocean ridge ion...

Both previous answers are fully correct. These tables are only valid for the drop checkers and they cannot be used with external measurements for a few reasons: -KH in aquarium will be affected by much more things than only (bi)carbonates. As result of that, KH measurement from tank water will...

Interesting discussion here. Please allow me some comments: 1. I agree with Darrel that you do not need to add at all any source of NaCl. A re-mineralizer getting that is just thought to be cheaper (i.e. more weight for the same GH capability). Note that NaCl will not increase, at all, your GH...

This has not been fully proven. Seachem did a specific test with their equivalent product Seachem Flourish Excell, and they were not able to replicate the apparent death of Vallisneria with it. However, they did not publish the experimental conditions, so hard to say if the way in which they did...

This interesting and would explain too part of the 3% of difference I find, which will be related to do the mix in terms of mass and not in mol. Following the idea: 195 gr CaSO4.2H2O = 1.1326 mol 195 gr K2SO4 = 1.1190 mol 64 gr MhSO4.7H2O = 0.2597 mol Now, proportion Mg/Ca should be 0.25. In...

You are welcome, no problem at all. Most difficult part use to be the idea of "mol". A mol is just a way of counting things. The good thing in Chemistry is that is very useful to determine how components/atoms relate each other. Having that in mind, the rest is just to describe how weight...

I am afraid that is not that simple. Amounts you need to add are also related to volume of the tank, and the proportion is in terms of number of molecules, which is not the same than weight. In fact, by doing the approach in weight, you can be ending adding too low Mg if you are using, for...

Barr GH booster is just a slight variant of any normal GH booster. The numbers 3:3:1 means that final products is made of 7 parts, with 3 of the parts being potassium sulfate K2SO4, 3 parts calcium sulfate CaSO4, 1 part magnessium sulfate MgSO4. In general terms GH in water corresponds to a 75%...

You are right. Any media able to support a bacterial colony in the way I showed will have a certain degree if denitrification. The process becomes NO3- into N2. This can happen by absorption of protons, or by reduction through ammonium. Nitrogen in from of N2 is an inert gas, not able to react...

That's totally right. I think we agree in the setup, and Marcel did a good job summarizing it up. Sorry about that. I have a personal crusade to provide scientific background supporting the statements. I learn in the process and no few times makes me change my mind about something I believed...

Just to support a bit more the statements, I have looked for old information I got about the topic. This is a pellet of Biohome, a mature one, splitted in a section: The structure is as expected in any kind of media/sediment in which anaerobiosis takes place: From outer part to inner part...

Yes, of course. As many things, there is a difference between particular cases and general terms. In particular can go pretty well, and the product is good, do not take me wrong. As you well say, it is quite the same thing, being just a variety of sintered glass, so essentially pretty similar to...

BioHome uses a denitrification strategy. Besides the fact that you do not want to your nitrates disappearing from water in planted tanks, denitrification is carried out by anaerobic bacteria, which means it can only happen with practically no oxygen, and it is also quite dependant of water flow...

When people do not come to a reason. money makes the job. :lol: Cheers, Manuel

Hi Timon, Well, a simple question with very difficult answer because this depends of many factors, between others that media should change depending on the stage of your tank, but this is not always the case. At the end each person comes out with something different, so reality is that most...

In the era of internet, most people think that by reading a couple of posts and asking in facebook groups everything is done. Reading books is becoming a kind of vintage activity, changed by the laziness that internet has created in the habits of people. However, I would insist to a newbie...

Good job, Nuno! So far, so good. I like the natural flow of the aquascape and the selection of plants. :) I have two questions, please: -What type of wood is that one? I have seen it in the past but I never managed to identify it. -The dark plant in the middle...which one is it? Thanks...

It sounds interesting! Let's see how evolves. Following this one. Cheers, Manuel

Amano shrimps (Caridina multidentata) love this stuff, too. In my opinion, light control plus algae grazers and the regular water changes should fix the problem. Diatoms are easier to control than other kind of algae. Cheers, Manuel

Well, CO2 toxicity in fishes can start as soon as 10 ppm are present. Obviously, having happy fishes and no algae means your CO2 levels are OK in relationship with your light and nutrients level. :) In your case, it can be true. However, the values of pH before CO2 injection means that you...

How is the shape after breaking? I mean, when you broke it, it took form of sheets, irregular or rather than that conchoidal? Most probable case, if broke easily, it is that you took then a slate. The one in the photo, though, it seems still a siltstone to me, but perhaps is just an slate with...

Hi again Jameson, Not exactly. Algae are what is called opportunistic organisms. Opportunism is not something specific of a given animal, plant, bacteria, fungi or whatever living group you consider, as it is an adaptative strategy to survive. Opportunistic organisms take advantage of any...

Hi again, I agree with Darrel, especially because CO2 diffusion takes some time, so colours in drop checker are always with a lag respect to changes in the tank. This, in my opinion, the problem with this system: It is assuming that you have a dkH of about 18-20 in water (about 200 mg/l of...

No, this is a myth. They are not accurate, but the best method by far. Inaccurate in drop checkers come from colour, but inside a range of colours you are quite safe. pH drop is also a myth, as it depends AL LOT of the CO2 levels prior the starting point of control, and can lead to dosis of CO2...

You are welcome Ryan! No worries about from where they are. As you say, one thing is taking lose rocks, other one go with a hammer and crack the monument. I was more teasing you than anything else. ;) Glad to help, though. :)

Having a problem reading kH does not invalidate the values in the chart, which was your original point. It just means that we cannot estimate with accuracy CO2 levels, whether you use a pH meter and looking for the 1 unit drop (which as I have pointed out, just works at certain circumstances) or...

Color perception always is a problem. I would say is about OK, perhaps a bit too high, as Ian says. A good option is using some drop checkers with a color of reference. For instance: https://www.aquasabi.com/co2/co2-drop-checker/cal-aqua-labs-double-check-v2 I want to get one of these, but I...

You are right, but only if we assume that the system reached equilibrium, i.e. your starting pH is equal to the one you get considering a pure bicarbonate solution at equilibrium with atmosphere. Plants and CO2 injection means that starting point in a running tank, everyday, is not necessarily...

Make your numbers: http://www.chem1.com/acad/webtext/pdf/c3carb.pdf You can doubt it but you are wrong. There are many information around showing similar results. For instance: http://aquadaily.com/2009/01/29/co2-ph-kh-chart/ Or this one: http://aquariuminfo.org/co2calculator.html Or this...

Be careful, Rebel. This is only true in high-tech tanks, As Seachme says: "In a planted aquarium employing a properly set up CO2 injection system the KH and pH should remain stable because one adds only as much CO2 as the plants need, thereby maintaining a constant level of CO2. In practice...

Uh, not at all! This statement is quite misleading and totally wrong. Shawn is right: without kH information, drop into pH is just telling you that there is injection of CO2 but nothing else. And there is no reason to tell that 1 unit of dropping in pH is equal to 30ppm concentration. Different...

Such a beautiful world in which we live... People always looking for ways to parasite others. This kind of things make me very sad... :( Good I do not upload videos to YouTube, so I have not to face this kind of abuses.

From the concentration in %. For instance, the text says 1.5%, which is essentially, the proportion of the glutaraldehyde in the product. This can be offered as % in weight or % in volume. Considering is in weight, then 1.5% corresponds to 1.5 grams every 100gr of solution, and then 15 gr per kg...

Glad to help! And more glad about you fixing the issue. :)

Hi there, I would say the problem is then the tube, which, perhaps, is slightly larger than should. Try to get a different tube, or check first the size of the current one to ensure matches. If before was working, only problem I see is that tube gets old within time, and the part that you are...

You are welcome! Glad to help. About your comments: -kH is relevant for CO2 concentrations, both in high-tech and low-tech. However, as in high-tech you inject CO2, kH has less weight, as it will impact more in terms of stability, CO2 optimization and times. Nonetheless, many aquatic plants...

Very well done, Marcel. Just a point: Once the setup is done, a proper comparison would require to use the same system but outside of the sump. Only pH differences between both cases (pumping normal air / pumping sump air)will show you if this idea work or not. :) Good luck! Cheers, Manuel

In this sense, I think is viable and it will increase at some extend the CO2 levels. Worth trying, I think. :) If you do so, please, report later. :happy:

You are welcome! :)

Soils have bacteria that consume methane producing CO2 instead. This is related to the stratification of the oxygen concentration in soils. Methanogenesis happens in an environment with low oxygen content, so usually deeper in the soil. The so-generated methane goes up in the soil, purely by...

...and not talking about the fact that you assume that the combustion efficiency is a 100%. NO2 injection is bad, but even worse methane injection as result of a less than 100% combustion efficiency (and it will be always the case), which will kill your fishes straight away. :nailbiting...

Well spotted Ian, you are right. It is Prime the product who actually makes "deactivate" the nitrates. But in the application, result will be the same: If removes the source of nitrogenous components and the plants uptake nitrates, you will observe a reduction, anyway. Thanks for the correction. :)

Hi Ryan, So you are taking rocks from a National Trust zone (I know that exact spot of your photo) and protected area (Exmoor National Park)... you naughty boy... :twisted: :lol: :lol: These are siltstones, but you can find also there some slates and sandstones. In terms of impact for water...

I have been using Purigen in a few occasions. The stuff is pretty good to get a crystal clear water, and large part of the success into it is associated to its capability to kidnap organic matter in suspension. Seachem also affirms that Purigen absorbs nitrates. I have used it for both things...

Hi Jameson, Well, there are a few things that I think are missing in the discussion. The idea of EI is not far away from what you mentioned: Having enough ferts in water so there is no limited growth coming from lack of these nutrients. This is, in theory, based in the Redfield indexes, but...

Hi Jason, According to your data, and using this: Your CO2 levels are oscillating between 9.5 and 30.1 ppm of CO2, and that corresponds to a jump of color between green and yellow-green, so it should have such color. You say you changed the solution a few times and the same problem...

Hi there, A complete information about how to monitor and read CO2, is found here: http://www.thelivingtank.co.uk/2016/07/article-co2-drop-checker-ultimate-guide.html It a good reading but pretty technical. However, it is quite thorough and useful. For instance, pay attention to the provided...

The topic is funny. Checking Seachem information, they confirm that Prime is able to neutralize nitrogen in practically any form, but they do not know why... It seems to be a kind of side effect they found by accident, but confirmed both by Seachem and users...

Hi Mark, The problem can be related to many factors, but one of the key points is the carbonate hardness in the aquarium, which will explain a slower response of the system to CO2 injection. Drop checkers are very good tool to monitor CO2 (thing that is important, besides some people despite...

No, you are right. They were Japanese. My mistake. I obtained such information from other site, which was incorrect. Thanks for pointing out that. :) Cheers, Manuel

Thanks Stu! I looked in their site but I did not see the prices, that is why I asked. :) Cheers, Manuel

Please, could you tell us how many kg. of rock you got for that price, Stu? Many thanks! Cheers, Manuel

Hi there, I am more in the Darrel's side here: I feel very skeptical about this specific device. The reason is because many of the explanations of Twinstar make no-sense at all, or are even contradictory. Their resistance to explain how works is also highly suspicious. And the arguments they...

Thanks a lot! I will ask them and see the price. I will request them, though, photos first, as the problem I have is related to both colour and texture. I had some nasty surprises in the past when buying rocks online, and getting something that differs quite a lot from what you wish to have...

It sees a good option to me, Stu. Thanks for the contribution. It reminds me being some kind of metamorphic rock, but the shapes are approximated. Not same colour, though (unless biased by photo). How much is this one by kg? Cheers, Manuel

The rock that Aqua Essentials is selling as Manten, is not Manten. Probably they even do not know this. It is like the thing of Seyriu rock that we buy as Mini-landscape. It is Seyriu-style but not the same. For comparison, a picture: Real Manten stone: Aqua Essentials one: You can see...

Hi there, No, it will not be the same, and you can see some bad symptoms of that all around. To start with, ADA has less online presence than in the past, precisely because they are not producing videos showing Takashi Amano doing this or that. Secondly, it is just not ADA...it is just Mr...

Hi there, Many people confuse the role of the premium substrates, reason why they are overestimated, in some cases, and underestimated, in others. It is fully true that you can grow practically any plant in plain gravel if you have dosage of ferts in column. The reason is pretty obvious...

You are right, Zozo. I agree that is likely to be the algae, even when happens over the leaves of the plants. The reason why is because there are three strategies for plants making use of bicarbonates when CO2 availability is poor or non-existing: 1. Proton extrusion: Essentially, the...

Hi there, Darrel is right, but only if pH gets below 8.2. Otherwise you will not see improvement in this line. The reason is that above 8.2, the fraction of CO2 species in form of dissolved gas is zero, which means the plants (or algae) are using the bicarbonates instead, what explains the...

Hi Billie, It depends. I am not fan of water changes if no real need of that, but this depends a lot of your routine of maintenance, set up and state of the aquarium in a given point. From your data, I do not see any need of water change at this point unless: -Your nitrate levels started to be...

Hi JMorgan, You can make the solution easier to make if you do two things: a) Dissolve each component separately in RO water, to avoid common ion effect, which makes harder to dissolve some salts. b) By heating the water instead of doing it in cold water. Both things together probably will...

Of course! No problem at all. :) Fair question. This goes to the relative efficiency in which plants and algae use the different resources. As general rule, algae are better adapted to take advantage the low levels of CO2, for example, so when these levels are low, the plants are not having a...

OK, brilliant. As said, best thing is to look how it evolves with these changes. If you see things improving, perfect. If you feel it is not working, just go back to the original line and then maybe try another thing. We will see. :)

Hi jsiegmund, Many algae problems are related to low CO2 levels, but there are further reasons than this one to have algae. You have several types of algae, so it is clear that is not a single thing but probably a combination of parameters. In my point of view probably due to low PO4 and long...

Hi jsiegmund, Sorry, I did not mention that the kH "consume" does not recover itself unless you have something in the tank releasing such kH. Many typical rocks for aquariums are really varieties of limestone, so they release carbonates to water when the pH drops from certain level (usually...

Hi, I recommend you to send a PM to the admin here (mainly Dan Crawford and George Farmer). Maybe they can tell you. Cheers, Manuel

Hi jsiegmund, Well, the classical problem of CO2-KH equillibrium. With kH= 7 you have buffered you water so essentially, the CO2 being disolved causes a drop in the pH which is compensated by carbonates taking protons, so meanwhile your kH keeps at that value and your CO2 injection at your...

It should be OK. Citric acid is unlikely to harm your diffuser.

Ah, now makes sense... you just had the judges threatened of "physical damage". ;)

I am...obviously who I am :lol: :lol: :lol:

I do not remember who, but someone asked about who were each other of the challengers. Here is the answer! :) Cheers, Manuel

Best idea is to use PAR-meter, instead. PAR corresponds to Photosynthetic Available Radiation, which measures the amount of photons in micromols corresponding to the wavelength range between 400 to 700 nm (the visible light). A luxmeter will integrate the total number of photons within its...

George, it was an impressive event. As participant of both event and challenge I can tell you that UKAPS organizers did a fantastic job which paid well off! I am very happy of having the chance to be part of this milestone in UKAPS history. Hopefully, the first one of many! As I already said...

Well said and done! ;)

Yes, I agree. And we were told about it, so no surprises there.

Thank you Paulo for uploading this. And special thanks to Stu Worral for these fantastic photos! :woot: I love them. Again, very well done, guys! Cheers, Manuel

Well said Ivan! :)

Indeed! :lol::lol::lol::lol:

Thank you Nelson! It was very nice to meet you there! :D

Hy guys, Still recovering of the long drive, and with the beauty of the aquascape images we witness yesterday in my retina, I wanted to express my gratitude to the whole organization of the Aquascaping Experience 2016. It was impressive the well-organized the event was, as well as the quality...

And your bet was...? Just curiosity. :) Congrats to all the winners by the way. Amazing works there.

Thanks Paulo! It is a great opportunity, so thank you so much to all you guys for this organization and chance. :)

Thanks Nelson! It is going to be a fantastic day together, and it will be a pleasure to meet you there guys! I am very happy that UKAPS gave this chance. :D

Thank you for the publication, George! :) And well done guys! Some learning for the next year for all of us. :) See you all at the Aquascaping Experience on Saturday!