It's entertaining to suggest a myth vs fact on such topics.
As someone who has a water treatment operators license, I can tell you that most tap has more than ambient, and a lot of tap water is really loaded, well/spring water in particular.
I'll present my case easily here:
Caves, you know, the places folks crawl around in, my Dad was a cave biologist.
How are they formed? CO2..........
Why would ground water be loaded with CO2?
As rain falls, it enters the soil, bacteria give off XCO2, that's absorbed by the water, but there is nowhere for it to off gas. So it builds up and becomes rich in CO2, this eats away at limestone, which is a nice base that reacts well with CO2=> caves are formed.
Typical CO2 ppm in spring water: 10-30ppm in Florida, KY, IN, OH, AL, NC, SC, IL, MS, AR, TX, NM, CA, MN, WI, MI, NY, PN, WV, VA, TN..... anywhere there's limestone and many places there isn't. Not all tap will be loaded, but __most__ is. Ground water is almost always much higher.
Why would cold tap have more CO2 than your warm tank water?
Water at a colder temp holds more gas than at ambient conditions.
All gases...............
Those are the "facts" about tap water.
There are cases with low CO2, partial lime softening without recarbonation will provide high pH soft water without CO2. So being way too general can and has gotten more than one person into a lot of trouble, but some folks think their pride is more important than helping the hobby and seeking the truth.
Next statement:
Excessive CO2 will send off algae
"CO2 gives algae a major nutrient, carbon, so it is likely that it will help algae use any other nutrient lying around. Notion probably stems from going from NO CO2 to adding CO2, the nutrients will probably be used by the faster growing plants depriving algae"
Algae are not CO2 limited in any tank.
They do grow better with more, like plants, but they are more likely light limited in our systems.
He does not state which nutrients, NH4? Or NO3/PO4?
I can induce algae with NH4 or a high fish load which produces large amounts of NH4, but have been unable, as well as thousands of other folks to induce any algae with KNO3/KH2PO4.
I think I agree more in general with this statement of the 3.
But not the reason, algae are not deprived of nutrients, they are deprived of germination signals, NH4/variations in CO2 etc.
Both of which signal it's a good time to bloom in nature and aquariums and both of which are testable to the hypothesis and data shows this. Adding KNO3 a well planted lake or tank just gives you more weeds etc.
Any aquaculture farmer in Florida knows this that's raising bass and fish in ponds/lakes, they will add nutrients to increase plant growth or algae, they remove the weeds if they want algae instead. NH4 will spike the GW bloom and folks raising daphnia also know this method.
"MYTH - BBA does not grow in CO2 dosed tanks
FACT - It can do"
Yep, but if you use the CO2 right/correctly it will not.
you can also test this theory/hypothesis.
Decrease the CO2 by 1/2 or turn it off for a little while, say 1-2 weeks and see.
Will work faster with high light(why might that be?).
Watch if your CO2 tank runs out and you forget to check.
I had BBA about 12 years ago, we used Lamotte test kits to try to limit it.
We calibrated these test kits.
Something some have no clue about even how to do, ahem.......yet suggest that they are "good enough" and claim they do not need to check, I suppose we should not bother calibrating a pH probe either......................
I drove the NO3 to zero and then dose little pulses to see the effects.
Steve did the same with his infestation using low PO4.
After several months, no results.
We decided to add more CO2 after I noted none grew nearest the CO2 outlet, Steve noted the same effect. Suddenly the new growth of BBA stopped.
I've never had BBA since I figured out it was CO2.
Nor the client's tanks, nor the thousands of folks I've helped for well over a decade on the web with instant feedback.
Stable high CO2 helps and prevents new growth.
In order to confirm your hypothesis is true or not, you must go back and induce the algae.
Any one doing any sort of cause and effect research with algae must know how to produce new growth.
There might be other ways to induce new growth, but varying CO2 or low CO2 with high light is a certain method and a repeatable method that can be verified independently by hobbyists.
Rather than coming across as any sort of authority, I'd suggest you try a few things out and see what you think, see what your common sense tells you, then you will know and stop guessing.
You will be able to rule things out like "is my test kit crap?"
"Are my nutrients in good shape while I test the CO2 levels"
"How should I try testing this idea I have out?"
I'd rather not give folks a deer to eat, I'd rather teach them how to hunt.
That's better for the hobby and addresses our specific issues/needs/requirements/criteria.
Regards,
Tom Barr
/www.aquaessentials.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=790
