Black Spots on leaves

[Cd2021]

Hi All,
My first post here!! Looking for a bit of assistance as struggling to find the answers to the below.

My Aqua one oak style 230 (245l), has been setup for approximately 3 months (not my first tank). Over the last week plants are showing black spots on the leaves and a tiny bit of BBA.
I have put Seachem excel on the BBA which seems to be dying off. But don’t understand why the black spots have appeared. I’ve read possibly high phosphates, which my area has extremely high phosphates and silicates from tap. But the phosphates will be iron phosphates therefore useless for the plants, therefore I’m really confused. Plants growth seems to be okay. Water specs, 0 Amazonia, 0 nitrite, 5-10ppm nitrate.

Tank Specs
Chihiros WRGB 2 light- Been on tank 3-4 weeks running 40r then 20 on g and b.
2x Oase biomaster 600 filters (1 has been running 1 week.
co2- 4-5 bubbled per second.
24ml Tropica specialised nitro on per day, swapped to EI as of Thursday dosing 50ml per day, doubled to phosphate in mix.
Tropica substrate.
2x 50% + water changes per week. 1 of which I trim and clean substrate and pre filter.

thanks in advance!
Chris

 

[ceg4048]

Hello,
Black spots on plants is due to CO2 deficiency. In fact, ANY structural flaw in plants is due to CO2 deficiency. In your tank this is corroborated by the appearance of BBA which is a CO2 deficiency related algae.

That was very easy to diagnose, unfortunately much less easily resolved because we do not know what combination of things you are doing or not doing.

It could be simply that you are using too much light. Have you increased your lighting level recently?
It could be that your injection rate is too low or that the timing of when you turn the gas on relative to when you turn the light on is too late.
It could be that you have not optimized your flow rate or flow distribution scheme.
Of course, it could be any combination of these.

I suggest that you stop with all the test kits because they will not tell you anything that you do not already know and they simply waste your time. The one kit you need on hand is a pH probe (highly desirable) or a pH test kit (less desirable).
Perform a pH profile of the tank by taking readings starting just before the gas is turned on until the gas is turned off, perhaps once an hour or the occasional half hour. Record the readings and the clock time an note at what time the lights are turned on.

The goal is to achieve a 1 pH unit drop by the time the lights turn on. If this is achieved then you move on to looking at the distribution and flow rate techniques.

Cheers,

 

[Cd2021]

Hi Ceg,

Thank you so much for your reply!
Reading your response I think it’s possibly a link to all 3.
- tank lighting, the wrgb 2 is relatively new and I’ve been upping every couple of weeks by about 10%, and still on a 6 photo period. Currently on 40 red then green and blue are at 20%. But I think I’ll tank it back a step for now.
- co2 injection rate, I have been adjusting slightly with the lighting increase and upping the ferts. But agreeed maybe not enough. Co2 comes on 1 hour 30 mins before light and off 1 hour before lights out.
- flow rate, a little trickier when the tank has the rim and only a small cut out for piping. In the right of the aquarium I have a Lilly pipe as the outlet, then on the right side the standard Oase spray bar pointing down but about 30%. Open to suggestions if you can think of a way of bettering this.

Test kits, I only have the NT labs kit. Was chatting with someone at a LFS, and they stated our area is extremely high in both phosphates and silicates and to look at purchasing JBL’s silicex. But I don’t want to wipe out for phosphates completely. And if they’re iron phosphate then their useless


Ill definitely purchase a prob then can monitor the PH drop with co2 and and just as necessary.

Really appreciate the detailed response, really been struggling to find out the answers to what’s happened with. Has been doing really well until now.

Thanks
Chris

 

[sparkyweasel]

Was chatting with someone at a LFS, and they stated our area is extremely high in both phosphates and silicates and to look at purchasing JBL’s silicex.

That's a good idea, it will boost their profits a bit in these difficult times. 🙂
A shame it won't help you though.
Stick with @ceg4048 's advice, he's not trying to sell you anything.

 

[ceg4048]

Test kits, I only have the NT labs kit. Was chatting with someone at a LFS, and they stated our area is extremely high in both phosphates and silicates and to look at purchasing JBL’s silicex. But I don’t want to wipe out for phosphates completely. And if they’re iron phosphate then their useless

As @sparkyweasel mentions, it's ironic that the worst advice about test kits are actually given by LFS. Their tendency is to blame all problems on NO3 and PO4 and then sell you something to "cure" your problem. Save your money mate. I mean, who cares if your tap water is high on phosphates and silicates? This is not what you should be focused on. If you want to spend money then buy a bigger filter, or better CO2 gear.

flow rate, a little trickier when the tank has the rim and only a small cut out for piping. In the right of the aquarium I have a Lilly pipe as the outlet, then on the right side the standard Oase spray bar pointing down but about 30%.

Well, no, this is not the best. Spraybar technique depends on pointing the holes at the horizon, maybe even slightly up. Also you are sending the energy along the long axis of the tank, which is also not the best. All you outlets should be mounted along the back wall pointing towards the front glass. Lily pipe and spraybars must work together in the same direction in order to get the mass of water moving. Water is heavy. It weighs 8 lbs, per gallon, so you really need all pumps and outlets facing the same direction and the best direction is along the shortest path.

Can you see how easy it is to spend all your energy and resources on things that don't matter one iota and in so doing, completely ignore the things that matter the most?

The better your flow/distribution the more use the plants can make of and the more tolerant they will be of higher lighting.

Cheers,

 

[Cd2021]

Hi Guys,

Really appreciate the in depth responses. It’s a great help and teaching my loads.

I purchased a PH probe that arrived Monday and my readings so far are as follows.
22nd- 8pm 6.43
23rd- 7am 6.9 then 8pm 6.53
24th- 8am 7.2 then 8pm 6.66.

I will continue to probe in the same way then more over the weekend when I’m not at work.

I missed what you said with flow, so I currently have the Lily pipe going accros from right to left then the spray bar on the left side is current pointing down towards the crypts on the bottom right and most plants are showing a gentle flow. Shall I point the spray bar more towards the top then?

I upped the lighting on Sunday after my water change to 60,60,50. As I believe it was out of balance to the ferts and co2. I haven’t noticed any other signs of BBA or spotty plants since trimmed most of it off. And no algae blooms on the glass.

I have attached an overview picture of the aquarium (excuse the dirty glass).

Thanks again,
Chris

 

[ceg4048]

I purchased a PH probe that arrived Monday and my readings so far are as follows.
22nd- 8pm 6.43
23rd- 7am 6.9 then 8pm 6.53
24th- 8am 7.2 then 8pm 6.66.

Hi Chris,
It's great that you have a pH probe. Be sure to calibrate the probe using the pH4 and pH 7 calibration solutions.
The readings you are reporting doesn't really help. You'll need greater precision by getting a reading at gas ON and a reading every hour until lights OFF so that we know how long it takes to drop the pH to it's minimum value and at what time the lights come ON relative to the gas ON time.

I missed what you said with flow, so I currently have the Lily pipe going accros from right to left then the spray bar on the left side is current pointing down towards the crypts on the bottom right and most plants are showing a gentle flow. Shall I point the spray bar more towards the top then?

Regarding the spraybar and lily pipe study their spatial relationship. With flow from the left opposing the flow from the right you are in fact causing each to cancel the effectiveness of the other. Not only are the two flows fighting each other, but the flow from each has a really long way to go. Instead of sending flow along the length of the tank both outputs should be laced along the back wall of the tank. Have a read of the thread Water flow in the planted aquarium? and take note of the configuration shown in post #11.

Cheers,

 

[Cd2021]

Hi Ceg,

Again, thanks for the detail.

Okay that’s fine, regards Ph I’ll give that a go Saturday when I’m at home and will update you of my findings.
Lights times are 2pm-10pm.
Co2 is 12:30-9.

I had a good read of the other post and must say your tank looks amazing. I’m slightly confused about this as I thought I was doing things correctly, going by videos etc. Lilly pipe out dissolving mid way then as it reaches the end of the tank the spray bar forcing it down covering the plants.

So am I right in thinking, best port of call would be to ditch the Lily pipe, run the spray bar across the back of the aquarium facing horizontally towards the front?

I cannot currently purchase another co2 regulator therefore would I be best with a splitter piece, 2 separate diffusers? Or another way.

Thanks again

 

[ceg4048]

Lilly pipe out dissolving mid way then as it reaches the end of the tank the spray bar forcing it down covering the plants.

No, sorry mate, that is all a dream. You cannot play ping-pong with water. Of course, sometimes one can get lucky due to the unique configuration and layout of an individual tank, but generally, it's best to start with the configuration described and then make adjustments from there if needed. Because tanks and layouts differ there are no guarantees and obviously your were able to achieve some success with the configuration you have now, but as the plant mass increases they demand better and better CO2, so your technique needs to be as efficient and effective as possible because you're only getting about 10% of the gas being injected to actually reach the plants. About 90% of your gas is lost to atmosphere.

So am I right in thinking, best port of call would be to ditch the Lily pipe, run the spray bar across the back of the aquarium facing horizontally towards the front?

Well, that would be my preference, but I'll not bash lily pipes as many use them effectively.
When using a spraybar across the back, remember that you do not need to run it along the entire length. Yes, you can use two segments and split the gas between the two. If you can get the gas to be processed through the filters by getting it into the inlet pipes then that would be win-win. Some filters, depending on their media load, object to the gas and so they cavitate a bit.

In any case, try this technique and see how it goes. CO2 and distribution are puzzles every tank must solve. I'd rather be lucky than good, but if you run out of luck, well, then you'll have to get good.

Cheers,

 

[Cd2021]

Hi Ceg,

Over the weekend I have removed the Lily pipe and fitted both spray bars to the back of the aquarium pointing directly out.

From the right side I can see the co2 making it’s way down to the carpeting plants and through the mid ground. But there is a clear different between left and right co2 dispersion. I have ordered a co2 splitter and another inline diffuser, which should hopefully be here this week.

Once I have this installed I will spend one of the weekend days checking the Ph on the hour every hour. I had no signs of green algae last week so have upped my light to 70,70,60. Bba doesn’t seem to be spreading so I’ve continued to spot dose.

Thanks again,
Chris

 

[Cd2021]

Hi Ceg,

Having a nightmare getting this 2nd inline diffuser. Royal Mail lost the first one, so hopefully later this week I should be receiving it then will get it all setup and ready to go. I plan to setup with each bubble counter receiving 3 BPS, but will monitor the indicator in the tank. Prior to testing the PH and reporting back my findings.

I opted for the same inline diffuser (co2 art), just to ensure consistent micro bubbles. My splitter arrived so nearly good to go.

the BBA hasn’t worsened, but I’ve been spot dosing with seachem excel. And plants are growing the best they ever have.

I’ve been reading some of the other threads, and really appreciate your help!!

Thanks
Chris

 

[ceg4048]

Hi Chris,
A shame about the Mail losing your kit. Hope they paid for the replacement. Good to know the plants are doing better, but BBA will not just go away once it takes a hold in the tank, even after you've fixed the problems. You really have to get your hands wet and forcibly evict the brushes.

Cheers,

 

[Cd2021]

Hi Ceg,

Hope You’re well?

Woo it finally arrived, the eBay seller was great and sent out another first class. Can’t fault them for that.

So over today I done quite a few ph tests. Firstly carried out the 2 calibrations. I wasn’t expecting it to be stable and needing adjustments straight away so started at 1pm (co2 comes on @ 12:30, then light @ 2pm). My results are as follows.
1:00- 6.92
1:30- 6.67
2:00- 6.50 (light on, 30 min ramp up time)
2:30- 6.53 (full light)
3:00- 6.49
3:30- 6.45
4:00- 6.32
4:30- 6.19 (became quite concerned at this point as didn’t want it to drop to low, checked again 15 mins later just to make sure wasn’t an odd reading and dropping a little more. Released when changing fitting the inline diffuser I moved the spray bar and was barely any surface agitation. Adjusted slightly.
5:30- 6.39
6:00- 6.43
6:30- 6.45
7:11- 6.43 (co2 off for water change).
8:10- 6.93 (after approx 50% water change)
8:40- 7.01.

To me, that seems quite consistent and around the numbers that I should be hitting.

Unfortunately I spoke too soon last week and this week has got worse quickly. A lot a bit of green spot has appeared. Only thing that I have changed is halved the dose of phosphate in the EI ferts. I previously doubled it, as speaking to a few people and my phosphates in tap are apparently iron phosphate therefore useless for the plants. Thinking I may need to return to this level. But typically with the algae increase I have seen great levels in plant growth.

Other changes that I’ve made Chihiros wrgb2 running 70% red, 70% green, 60% blue. Has been on this setting for about 2 weeks now. Previously ramping up 10% a week.

I have attached a few images of the algae, how I have setup the spray bars, the overall and the surface agitation I’m running.

Thanks again,
Chris

 

[ceg4048]

So over today I done quite a few ph tests. Firstly carried out the 2 calibrations. I wasn’t expecting it to be stable and needing adjustments straight away so started at 1pm (co2 comes on @ 12:30, then light @ 2pm). My results are as follows.
1:00- 6.92
1:30- 6.67
2:00- 6.50 (light on, 30 min ramp up time)
2:30- 6.53 (full light)
3:00- 6.49
3:30- 6.45
4:00- 6.32
4:30- 6.19 (became quite concerned at this point as didn’t want it to drop to low, checked again 15 mins later just to make sure wasn’t an odd reading and dropping a little more. Released when changing fitting the inline diffuser I moved the spray bar and was barely any surface agitation. Adjusted slightly.
5:30- 6.39
6:00- 6.43
6:30- 6.45
7:11- 6.43 (co2 off for water change).
8:10- 6.93 (after approx 50% water change)
8:40- 7.01.

To me, that seems quite consistent and around the numbers that I should be hitting.

Hello Chris,
Well the numbers still are a bit wonky based on your light ON time. Your maximum CO2 is still happening 2.5 hours later than the light ON. The idea of all this is, for example, to hit the pH 6.19 at 2:00, not at 4:30. It should not take 4.5 hours to drop the pH by 1 unit, however, if that's what it takes then you would have to shift the gas ON time to 10:00.

Also, it's unclear why you became concerned at 4:30? The idea is to drop the pH by one unit, so the actual target pH is 5.9.
Were the fish showing evidence of CO2 toxicity at that time?

I'm also not understanding why you would have reduced the PO4. You have to do the right things, not make panic moves due to random advice. We follow the path, otherwise we'll suffer one problem after another and will be unable to find the thread. It is unnecessary to either double the PO4 or to half it. We follow the recipe and remain consistent.

When attempting to solve an algae problem it it ill advised to increase the light. I mean, it's super ill advised, especially when you haven't really fixed the CO2.
CO2 demand is strongly linked to the light intensity. More light means plants need more CO2. I probably did not stress that enough. So yes, the plant growth has increased but now there is a serious case of BBA as indicated by photo #4. You'll need to jettison those leaves as quickly as possible, and I suggest that you reduce the light intensity, otherwise we march ever closer to algae Armageddon. BBA is like the One Ring to Rule Them All. The GSA could also easily be CO2 related as well, exacerbated by the light increase, so those leaves need to go.

If you have access to Excel or similar then I recommend that you start using it to level the playing field, because even if you manage to fix the CO2, even if you get it to be perfect, the BBA will not then just go away, because BBA loves CO2 as well.
I recommend a severe light reduction as well as working on the CO2. Now I'm wondering whether the flow strength is too weak.
Can you remind me what the filter flowrate is again, and also what your KH is? The numbers are just not making sense.

Cheers,

 

[Cd2021]

Hi Ceg,

Thank you for your response. I am sooo lost, really appreciate the help!

kh6 and running 2x Oase Biomaster 600's, max flow rate of 2500lph, tank is 245l (Aqua One Oakstyle 230).

I became concerned based on the co2 tables (basing by kh @ 6 my PH needs to read between 6.6-6.8 depending on the table), and the bacteria in the filter becoming affected and dying off around PH 6.2. The indicator was bright yellow, fish did not appear to be affected and appeared to be dropping lower and lower.

P04 was reduced back to the recipe recommended level, i worded that extremely badly. I originally based in from the conversation and research on their tank and believing the phosphate was useless therefore upped. But i plan going forward to leave it at the 1tsp as per the recipe card.

I raised the light, again based on research thinking the BBA has been caused by a non equal setup. e.g. the filter on high turn over, good levels of co2, high dosing ferts, not enough light to counteract this. The light has been raised gradually by approximately 10% per week. Would you suggest dropping the light to approximately 50%? Remain at 8 hours or drop to 6?

The images attached were prior to water change, so i cut a lot of it off. I spot dosed with excel straight after the water change 25ml, then will continue to do i believe it's 5ml per day, but i'll double check the bottle.

I am just so lost as to why this is happening and why my numbers are so wrong. I had an issue on my previous tank, but believe that was due to the completely wrong/ inadequate setup, not enough flow filtering, over feeding. Therefore I focused and invested in an a lot better setup, substrate, lighting, good amount of filtration/ flow, co2 etc. Re-reading back through, I think i need to lay off the reading/ researching online, watching videos and focus on 1 thing at a time.

Again Ceg, really appreciate your time and help!! Thank you.

Chris

 

[ceg4048]

I became concerned based on the co2 tables (basing by kh @ 6 my PH needs to read between 6.6-6.8 depending on the table),

Hi Chris,
The problem with blindly following the table is that it assumes the only agent in the tank causing the pH is CO2. The fallacy lies in the fact that there are other agents in the tank that have an effect on pH. You cannot therefore use tank water pH reading to determine CO2. If you do that you will almost always underestimate the CO2 and it appears that is exactly what is happening.

the bacteria in the filter becoming affected and dying off around PH 6.2

Myth #2. The bacteria will be fine and you have more bacteria than you need anyway.

The indicator was bright yellow

Is tis tank water in the DC or is there the proper 4 dKH water?

Would you suggest dropping the light to approximately 50%? Remain at 8 hours or drop to 6?

Yes it should be reduced by at least 50% for only about 6 hours per day. This will slow the overall growth rate and will give you more margin of error.

The images attached were prior to water change, so i cut a lot of it off. I spot dosed with excel straight after the water change 25ml, then will continue to do i believe it's 5ml per day, but i'll double check the bottle.

OK, fair enough. Yes dose the tanks after each water change and daily. Some people dose 2X or 3X the bottle recommended daily dose until they see the BBA turn pink. It depends on how sensitive your fish and plants are though. Excel =CO2 and since you have a CO2 deficiency then every little bit helps. Spot dosing is not enough in this case.

am just so lost as to why this is happening

You need look no further than this:

Chihiros WRGB 2 light

Light can overwhelm the plants if they are not strong enough to deal with the other variables in the tank.
with a KH of 6 I would expect the pH to drop rapidly, so either the injection rate needs to be improved or the gas on time needs to be started earlier. Naturally, monitor the health of the fish as you make these adjustments. Do it when you have the time, but 4 hours to drop the pH by a single unit is a sure sign that there is a flaw in either injection rate or flow/distribution or both. If you don't ant to increase the injection then pull the gas ON time far enough back that the pH bottoms out at light on, then turn the gas off 5 hours after lights on. Experiment with both timing and injection always monitoring fish health.

Cheers,

 

[Cd2021]

Hi Ceg,

This is an earlier response than usual. Usually my first read of the morning.

That’s absolutely mad, I don’t get why these tables are even available? Along with the tank bacteria. I think I definitely need to lay off researching and looking into things online. All seems to be complete rubbish!

Yes I’d like to think so, came with the co2 drop checker.

Okay, I will drop the lights to 40r, 30g, 30b for 6 hours a day. I work quite long hours, but my fiancé will be on from 3:30 so will plan for the lights to come on then. And agreed to run ph tests roughly hourly, so we can see when it drops. Shall I leave a ramp time of 30 minutes still or remove it whilst running lower light? Plan will be:
2:00- co2 on
3:30: light on (with or without ramp time) start ph profile.
8:30 co2 off
9:30 light off.

Dosing excel, I’ll continue to do this and removing heavily coated leaves. I generally do thing in the evening.

What I don’t think I understand is the numbers that I need to be aiming for? From what I’ve read... Again, my dodgy research, I need to aim for the “30ppm”. My thinking is tap water is approximately 7.4ph, then allowing the ph drop of 1 unit, is then 6.4. But then my tank won’t return to 7.4 over night? Or do I have that completely wrong again?

I have no issue raising the injection rate, I have a couple of extinguishers ready to go.

I only noticed the articles earlier today, had a good read earlier. Your tank is absolutely stunning! Can’t you ship it here, and I’ll send you mine lol. Also reading other articles, I think I’m low on algae eaters (5 ottos, 12 armano shrimp)

Thanks again for all your help, patience and understanding.
Chris

 

[Cd2021]

Sorry just an additional side now reference flow. I am quite densely planted at the front with crypts. Could the be affecting flow?

Horrible pictures attached 😩

 

[ceg4048]

That’s absolutely mad, I don’t get why these tables are even available? Along with the tank bacteria. I think I definitely need to lay off researching and looking into things online. All seems to be complete rubbish!

Hi Chris,
Well the tables are useful when the only acid in the system of interest is carbonic acid. There are lots of other applications than just for us. In any case this is accurate in a dropchecker. That's why the DC has it's usefulness, except when people use tank water in the DC. It's at that point when the usefulness is lost.

What I don’t think I understand is the numbers that I need to be aiming for? From what I’ve read... Again, my dodgy research, I need to aim for the “30ppm”. My thinking is tap water is approximately 7.4ph, then allowing the ph drop of 1 unit, is then 6.4. But then my tank won’t return to 7.4 over night? Or do I have that completely wrong again?

Well, again, mistake #1 is the obsession with this random number 30ppm. It is that obsession that leads to reliance on the table. When folks misunderstand or ignore the context of the table it leads to trouble. Likewise, we really don't need to obsess over the number "1 pH unit drop". It's just a starting point and is just another variation on the 30ppm theme. The reason this number is more useful is that it eliminates the fallacy of the table's assumption that there are no other acids in the tank water. We are looking for a DIFFERENCE in the pH number. When we subtract the final pH (which has other acid effects) from the starting pH (which has the same tank acid effect) we essentially have eliminated the error caused by those other acids as we are seeing purely the influence of the gas on the numbers instead of reading an absolute value which is corrupted by the other acids.

As far as the tank not returning to 7.4 overnight, you don't really need to worry about that. You know that the target pH is 6.4.
Does this change over time? Yes because the acid production changes. When you do a water change you are lowering the interfering acids' concentration. It's not perfect but it's the best goal post. As long as you drive the injection to that target and that the lights go on at that target it's the best we can do because no one actually know how many ppm of CO2 is in the tank or how many ppm the plants are actually seeing. Most of the gas escapes at the top of the tank, but we pump enough pressure to force the CO2 across the leaf membrane. The next step is to distribute that pressure.

Sorry just an additional side now reference flow. I am quite densely planted at the front with crypts. Could the be affecting flow?

Yes, definitely. This is always a problem, but again all of this injection and all of this pumping and distribution obsession is because people are using too much light. You will discover, at some point, that you really do not need to be a Kligon. All of that megawattage from your lamp is actually destructive. There are hobbyists out there using simple hang-on-back overflow boxes and their tank looks fine, because they are not throwing photon torpedos at the tank. All the stress and hand wringing dissipates when we lower the light energy of the tank. It's only when you want to drive in the fast lane that you need to obsess. The idea is that you need enough flow so that you can see the crypts and the plants behind the crypts gently swaying. If you can do that then you will have satisfied that part of the equation.

Cheers,

 

[Cd2021]

Hi Ceg,

Your knowledge is absolutely amazing! Can I ask how long you’ve been doing this? And where you learnt all this. I’m learning so much from you and completely changing my thoughts on the whole tank, setup. Even the information easily obtained online, seeing other tanks on facebook groups etc.

If I’m honest, I’ve never felt so dumb in my life. I just can’t seem to get my head around this. I’m so sorry. I understand the flow, light and balancing the co2 to match the requirements etc without blasting my light to focus on overall plant and tank health. I honestly thought the co2 was simply connect, monitor against the drop checker. Looking for a Ph drop of 1.

I use the liquid that it came with so should be 4dkh. Was just an eBay purchase, but can get some indicator from my LFS. I have noticed it is never blue, usually different shades of green. I don’t get what you mean why it’s going going to be in-accurate in my tank? How can I monitor to ensure that my livestock isn’t being gassed? I can’t be pH testing every hour.

You mentioned the number I need to aim for is 6.4ph, how did you get this? Is this gas on? Gas off? Then I’d expect to see this drop slightly over the week.

I get that once the tap water is added to the tank, there is always going to be a variable in Ph due to water change levels never being the same, seiryu stone, acidstc. Along with it not returning to its previous state of the day before.
And I understand the maths of working out the difference allowing for the variable differences in my tank.

On a separate note, this evening I checking over the co2 system as my fiancé starting doing the pH tests today, and at lights on reading 7.11. Clearly not right and could see less co2 in the tank. Turned each side on individually and could hear a hissing from the right side at the inline diffuser. Removed the hose and swapped with a spare new bit I had. I reset the system to 3 bubbles per second for each diffuser and will try again tomorrow and will report back my results.

Again Ceg, your a true gent. I really can’t thank you enough for your help.
Chris