[Luke]

i live in southern california, so keeping my tank cool is a chore....my tank is always at 78F to 82F and sometimes a bit higher....will this heat kill some plants....
tank:
40 gal. 36x15x18
78-82F
ph 6.5-7.0
co2 injected[approx. 1.5 bubbles a second]
90 watts [3x30watt 36" flourescent)
10hrs a day
flourite/gravel mixture 50/50

also what would be some good recomendations for ground cover or grass like plant species that will do well in this environment...i have dwarf hairgrass, but seems to be slowly fading...i also have giant hairgrass, which is fading even faster....dwarf onions seem to be ok.....cabomba recently added to combat the algae is growing fine..... large dwarf anubuis from old tank is fine of course as well as amazon sword, and java fern.....i have tried java moss, but it always gets covered with green algae and dies....to combat the algae i have 5 ottocinclus, plenty of ghost shrimp, and various snails....the only fish in the tank are 4 panda corries.....soon to add 15 rummynose tetras, and maybe a pair of blue rams[since the tank is warm, they should like it....but will they eat my shrimp].....well, any recomendations are welcome

 

[Luke]

thanx for the link....i will get to testing tonight, and let you know....thanx

 

[Luke]

tested and the ph was about 6.5 and the kh about 7.....so if i read that link correctly...i have way too much co2, like 50 to 60 ppm.....so i have since slowed down the co2 injection a bit [i cant go to slow or i get backflow] and upped the light time...it is kind of cool though...after the lights are on full for a few hours the cabomba, and the amazon sword are pearling....the sword sends a stream of bubbles from one large leaf...i am still adding plants so hopefully the addition of plants will help use up the excess co2, and out compete the algae, which is the first to pearl.....i know that co2 overdose can harm fish, but i have ottos, and corries that seem fine, but i did lose cherry shrimp, and malysain shrimp.....are shrimp sensitive to co2?...will be testing again soon to see if the changes have made a difference...

 

[Luke]

yes i have a needle valve....and a bubble counter attached...it also has a solenoid that i initially attated to the light timer, but i got major backflow when it shut off at night[even though it has a tetra-brand check valve...now i have the co2 running all day and night....but it doesnt seem to be causing a ph swing....i didnt think that with my somewhat medium to low light that i needed to worry about adding ferts., or that i should even add them....i do add 1 dose[about a capfull] of flourish complete with every 2 week 30% water change, i dont think that i have enough plants to use up the nutrients, also i havent added the majority of the fish yet to add their own ferts....still trying to find a lfs near me with rummy-nose....