# BPM



## James Bond (Apr 4, 2009)

I recently got the semi automatic CO2 system from Dr Fosters and Smith and I am running it in 100 Gal tank with approx 20 plants mostly low light vals, and ferns. Question I need to know what BPM you guys would reccomend? I currently have it set to 2 BPM.


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

James Bond said:


> I recently got the semi automatic CO2 system from Dr Fosters and Smith and I am running it in 100 Gal tank with approx 20 plants mostly low light vals, and ferns. Question I need to know what BPM you guys would reccomend? I currently have it set to 2 BPM.


How much light is there?


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## maknwar (Jul 16, 2007)

surely you mean BPS. Get a drop checker, thats the easiest and best way to tell how much co2 is needed.

Start out with 1 bps, and fine tune it from there.


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

In a minute it should be much easier to count the bubble rate then a second. You can more easily and accurately count the bubbles in a min then divide by 60 to get bubbles per second. Either way, one is just a multiple of the other so 60 bubbles per min would be the same as 1 bps so you mean the same thing. BPS is just a lower number so its probably easier, but you should find bpm to get bps as you cant accurately determine how long a second is even with a watch where as bpm--> bps leaves much less sources of error.


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## James Bond (Apr 4, 2009)

Four 30watt T8 18,000K light bulbs

Yes BPS

is the drop checker a testing solution?


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## maknwar (Jul 16, 2007)

James Bond said:


> Four 30watt T8 18,000K light bulbs
> 
> Yes BPS
> 
> is the drop checker a testing solution?


18,000K bulbs are for salt water setups. You need to get some bulbs that are 5,000 to 10,000K. You should have no problem finding them in a T8.

A drop checker is a little glass question mark looking thing that holds an indicator solution.

http://www.njagc.net/articles/co2dropchecker.htm

View attachment 190056


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

I would change the bulbs. For fw you don't really pass 10 000K. 6700K will be good. For sw these bulbs are for good coral colours, but they make for crap growth. Lower K ratings make for faster growth and blander colours.


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## ryanimpreza (Jul 19, 2006)

change the bulbs asap. I run 6700 and 6500. As for your BPS like everyone else said start with 1 but I can see you going to 2 bps or 120 BPM. use the drop checker and watch your PH.


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## Ba20 (Jan 29, 2003)

Unless you like the yellow/pink look in your tank mix some 10k in there, drop checker is the way to go, but can be missleading at times, i slowly turned my co2 up untill my fish started gasping then turned it down a touch. Im running about 2 bps on a 55, but i have extremely low off gassing










BTW i run 216 watts of 10k T5 over this 55


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## James Bond (Apr 4, 2009)

Yeah I kinda wish I didnt get the plants until I had everything figured out, but I guess I will live and learn. I looked at some of the bulbs there are 4 total 1 is a 6k ,1 is 18 k and the others are UNK.

I may be building a whole new canopy setup with some shop lights for the tank in the near future.


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## ryanimpreza (Jul 19, 2006)

I run 700 + watts of 6500/6700k on my 180 gal with co2


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## Ba20 (Jan 29, 2003)

Ryan that aquascape is absolutly beautiful, Just IMO you need more reds on the right side i have a bunch of crypt's if your interested


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## ryanimpreza (Jul 19, 2006)

Ba20 said:


> Ryan that aquascape is absolutly beautiful, Just IMO you need more reds on the right side i have a bunch of crypt's if your interested


thats cool of you. This was an old pic, I have add crypt's to the tank and let the clovers take over the bottom of the tank. I officially have no substrate showing.


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## Ba20 (Jan 29, 2003)

That is great hit me up, I wanna know your dosing schedule, lighting time schedule, water parameters, what type of lighting"MH T5", algae control, filtration, ect...


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## ryanimpreza (Jul 19, 2006)

Ba20 said:


> That is great hit me up, I wanna know your dosing schedule, lighting time schedule, water parameters, what type of lighting"MH T5", algae control, filtration, ect...


9 hours for cf lighting 700 plus watts then and hour before and after the main lights kick on and off of 130 watts cf 6500k, I do this so my fish gets use to the lighting before the mains turn on and off. The rest of the dead time for lighting I have 8 led moon lights. I used a fluvel FX-5 filter along with 4 power heads. I used a lot of flourish tabs for my rooted plants. Trace and potassium is dosed once a week. As for algae control, I never had a problem due to the amount of plant I have in the tank. the plants take the nutrients out before the algae can. Im sure I am forgetting a lot because I am on my way out the door and I am typing fastttttt!!!!


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## Ba20 (Jan 29, 2003)

check out this place it will save you a bunch on dosing.

Green Leaf Ferts

I bought the N-K-P & CSM+B......Last year, i dose everyday and havent used half of it.


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## His Majesty (Apr 5, 2005)

i read along with these thread. its real interesting. just wanted to pop in and compliment both ba20 and ryan on their tank. both of them are really nice looking and well scaped.
and im really digging the rockwork on yours ryan. you got any updatd pics of it?

apologies for derail please continnue


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## Ba20 (Jan 29, 2003)

yeah ryan i want updated pics too


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## CLUSTER ONE (Aug 2, 2006)

Ba20 said:


> check out this place it will save you a bunch on dosing.
> 
> Green Leaf Ferts
> 
> I bought the N-K-P & CSM+B......Last year, i dose everyday and havent used half of it.


Anybody know a reason why it says they don't ship dry ferts to canada?

What would be some generic dry ferts that i could use that would be similar to flourish excell, but not cost half as much?


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## maknwar (Jul 16, 2007)

sean-820 said:


> check out this place it will save you a bunch on dosing.
> 
> Green Leaf Ferts
> 
> I bought the N-K-P & CSM+B......Last year, i dose everyday and havent used half of it.


Anybody know a reason why it says they don't ship dry ferts to canada?

What would be some generic dry ferts that i could use that would be similar to flourish excell, but not cost half as much?
[/quote]

Not sure why he doesnt ship to canada. This place does, and they are cheaper http://www.aquariumfertilizer.com/


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## James Bond (Apr 4, 2009)

I have pulled all my plants, ferts and CO2 from my P tank and set them up in my Oscar tank upstairs, went from a 100 gal to a 55 prob a little easier to manage and maintain, beside my Ps were destroying all my plants. I will post a pic Monday to update the thread.


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## James Bond (Apr 4, 2009)

I have pulled all my plants, ferts and CO2 from my P tank and set them up in my Oscar tank upstairs, went from a 100 gal to a 55 prob a little easier to manage and maintain, beside my Ps were destroying all my plants. I will post a pic Monday to update the thread.


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## ryanimpreza (Jul 19, 2006)

Trigger lover said:


> i read along with these thread. its real interesting. just wanted to pop in and compliment both ba20 and ryan on their tank. both of them are really nice looking and well scaped.
> and im really digging the rockwork on yours ryan. you got any updatd pics of it?
> 
> apologies for derail please continnue


Ya I don't mean to jack your thread the purpose of it was to show you different types of kelvin rating lights on tanks. This pic was taken just tonight. I am in the process of rescaping and major pruning. You can see that I grew my clovers over the whole bottom. I wanted to do that for a change.


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## James Bond (Apr 4, 2009)

View attachment 190170


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## ryanimpreza (Jul 19, 2006)

James Bond said:


> View attachment 190170


that ether a amazon or a java hard to tell my vote is on java. Root tab fert that thing and prune the dyeing leaves


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## Ibanez247 (Nov 9, 2006)

Itll come around james. My 75 looked like yours when I first planted it. Pretty bare but it filled in nicely. I run 2 40 watt T-12 G&E aqurium/plant bulbs and have had luck. I have eco complete substrate and was dosing flourish excel daily and flourish comprehensive once a week. Ive stopped all together as I think I was dosing too much. Started getting algae. This is my tank last month. Now houses my manny.

View attachment 190178


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## notaverage (Sep 10, 2005)

Ibanez247 said:


> Itll come around james. My 75 looked like yours when I first planted it. Pretty bare but it filled in nicely. I run 2 40 watt T-12 G&E aqurium/plant bulbs and have had luck. I have eco complete substrate and was dosing flourish excel daily and flourish comprehensive once a week. Ive stopped all together as I think I was dosing too much. Started getting algae. This is my tank last month. Now houses my manny.
> 
> View attachment 190178


You only have 80 watts on the tank?
Thats on the low sid eof wattage isn't it?

I have been looking at 120 watts or so for my 55...just trying to figure a lighting system b/c I have a hood and can't get the systems that sit on the lip of the tank.


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## Ibanez247 (Nov 9, 2006)

Yup thats it. 2x40 watt 6500K plant bulbs. I want to say the eco complete substrate is a huge help but Ive always run this light set up and have had luck. I did however just add another set of lights to my tank and rearanged it. So now Im running 2x40watt T12 flourscents and 2x32watt T8's. The whole watts per gallon still baffles me. Especially since a T8 puts out more light than a T12. I run a single shop light over my 125gallon and the plants seem to do fine in that too. Nothing crazy as far as growth but I trim every other week.


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