Co2 In Tank

[willowstwin]

Hi All

Now, I understand that CO2 is needed for plants to photosnthesise, so I know WHY there needs to be CO2 in a planted tank...

What I would like to know is how? My reason for asking is that I would like to have a lot of plants in my 120+ litre tank I'm planning for, but I don't want them to all die.

I hear people talking about CO2 setups. What does it involve? and is there a possibility of messing it up and killing the fish? Also, would you need something like this in a planted shrimp tank (as I can imagine they produce very smaall amounts of CO2)... or am I just completely wrong about all this?

Confuzzled

 

[BigbruiserAl]

At this stage of the hobby i would not advsing getting into C02. Plants will grow fine without any added co2 and yes added co2 can overdose the tank and kill fish, i lost a tank of shrimp when i was new as they are very fussy due to too much co2. Adding co2 to a tank and dosing with ferts will increase plants growth rates and can make some plants really come out with some nice colours but deffo not NEEDED and wont die because you didt add c02

The plant section FAQ has some nice bits on explaining far better

 

[da7thson]

Hi there,

I'm really new as well so what i say could be completly wrong, but i have pretty much the same set up as you (125l planted tank).

I ended up buying one of the kits as i know that Co2 doesn't easily disperse into water as CO2 actually doesn't have a liquid state, its one of the anomalies that co stright from gas into a solid state (if you remeber states from phisicals in school). So the main bit for me was getting a diffuser that would help get the CO2 into the water, hence me buying a kit.

I did mess up a little when i installed it, as i shook the bottle with the yeast / sugar mix in while it was attahed to the air tube which went the the fish tank, and it leaked some of the liquid into the tank, and i ended up doing a water change because of this.

From the stuff you can google, making the bottle end as a diy project looks really easy, but the diffusion end looked really hard (or really un pleasing to the eye when in the tank). So i went with a kit (the JBL one).

That my experiance so far, but i've only had it about 2 weeks.

hope this helps

Andy

 

[Tizer]

Planted section has a great guide to making your own co2 using a Co2 fire extinguisher, ive done it myself as have quite a few others on here. Its very easy. The key to co2 is having a stable supply of it for a set period per day. It can get quite complicated especially as CO2 can lead to algae and all sorts. Planted section is where you need to go really, lots to read in there.

 

[ZoddyZod]

Planted section has a great guide to making your own co2 using a Co2 fire extinguisher, ive done it myself as have quite a few others on here. Its very easy. The key to co2 is having a stable supply of it for a set period per day. It can get quite complicated especially as CO2 can lead to algae and all sorts. Planted section is where you need to go really, lots to read in there.

I looked into the fire extinguisher idea......but messing about with 50bar of pressure put me right off!

As stated above - it's a bit of a challenge to inject C02. I'm 2yrs into this hobby and I'm still reluctant to spend the time and effort researching how to do it properly....

Another option (and MUCH easier) is dosing liquid carbon as a C02 'replacement'. Again, the planted section will have info - look for the word 'EasyCarbo' which is a brand name of one of the liquid carbon products.

 

[willowstwin]

thanks guys knew you'd help Ideally I dont want all the moss to die in my shrimp tank as a priority. But I guess it's just a case of wait and see

 

[Tizer]

Planted section has a great guide to making your own co2 using a Co2 fire extinguisher, ive done it myself as have quite a few others on here. Its very easy. The key to co2 is having a stable supply of it for a set period per day. It can get quite complicated especially as CO2 can lead to algae and all sorts. Planted section is where you need to go really, lots to read in there.

I looked into the fire extinguisher idea......but messing about with 50bar of pressure put me right off!

No reason for it to really, go buy a FE and let it off in the garden, that will give you an idea of how much pressure there is in them, its really not much to worry about. Once you have the regulator bolted to it, its really nothing dangerous in my eyes. Obviously if your house was burning down it has the potential to become something lethal

I've got mine under my tank in a cupboard with a filter, need to get lock put on the door at some point, keep little people out!

Happy to help source you the parts if you get around to it one day.

thanks guys knew you'd help Ideally I dont want all the moss to die in my shrimp tank as a priority. But I guess it's just a case of wait and see

If its just moss you have, i wouldnt worry about co2, most mosses grow perfectly fine without it.

How long do you have your tank lights on for every day?

 

[ian]

right firstly we need to know what your lighting is before the decision is made about adding C02, or if it needs adding at all. When it comes to C02, it's pretty easy when you break it down. So, what is your lighting in watts.

Light - C02 - Macro - Micro ferts. Flow also has to be in there when injecting C02, to ensure the C02 get around to every part of the tank. So, the light drives what is needed in the way of C02. To much light means that the plants photosynthesise quick, which in turn means you need to add the 'building blocks' for growth (C02). Then the plant will also need its macro nutrients (Nitrate, phosphate) and lastly in the chain, the plant will need it's micro nutrients (Mg, Fe etc etc). As i say flow needs to be in there somewhere, to ensure the plants get what they need.