I have debated increasing the waterflow in my aquarium many times but I always come back to thinking it is adequate. I recently increased from an Eheim Pro II to an electronic III and it increased circulation.

I have my drop checker placed in an area of the tank with low water flow. It was placed there in hopes of providing me with information on how the worst CO2 level was doing in the tank (that in the low flow area).

I found that increasing CO2 until the fish started to hide, increased their respiration, and became faded in color to work well. I backed off by a ph of about 0.15 and things seem to be doing well.

The little bit of Excel dosing I have been doing seems to decrease the rate of pearling in my aquarium dramatically.

What are your thoughts on me using a kH 5 or higher reference fluid instead of the 4 that I have?