First tank, Superfish 80l

[Avel1896]

The bottle has CO2 in it and provides it passively rather than by actively bubbling it through - it has a more subtle effect.

Interesting ! Could you please give me some explanations ?

 

[Sunnyspots]

Interesting ! Could you please give me some explanations ?

Hi Avel. Well I've seen videos of LFS's doing it for plant growth. You just invert a bottle full of tank water and bubble CO2 into the end of it. It then gradually dissolves into the tank water. It works best for me when in the filter flow, but also works in quieter water, just more gradually. I've seen much better growth in my plants and obvious pearling. I can highly recommend it as a way of adding some CO2 for plants.

 

[Avel1896]

Thanks
As I'm bad at DIY .... how do you bubble CO2 in it ?
and what's this ?

 

[Sunnyspots]

Thanks
As I'm bad at DIY .... how do you bubble CO2 in it ?
and what's this ?
View attachment 139024

String with a weight hanging from it to keep the bottle inverted.
Melting leaf of a plant from when I didn't have the CO2 diffuser

Bubbling is done by holding one end of the tubing down under the water into the neck of the bottle, and switch the gas on through the other end.
I hope that all makes sense!

 

[Sunnyspots]

Well I am no longer finding it relaxing watching my fish. Fork, the male gourami, is tearing around chasing away the others as he protects his newborn fry. He's making me anxious too! I have a breeding box coming by post today plus some fry food. I hope I can save a few of them to make all Fork's fatherly efforts worthwhile. I plan to float the box, surround it with a 15 denier sock to prevent fry leaking out and tie the sock at the top with some thin silicone tubing going from inside to out through which I can feed the fish without them losing too much heat and humidity from above their water. That's the plan anyway. I wasn't expecting fry so very soon!!

 

[Avel1896]

Hmm you didn't answer me asking :

how do you bubble CO2 ?

 

[Sunnyspots]

Hmm you didn't answer me asking :

Oh, you didn't mean into the bottle? Once the CO2 is in the bottle it just diffuses into the water passively. It'll need more adding from the canister as it disappears into the water and the bottle sinks.

 

[Avel1896]

Oh, you didn't mean into the bottle? Once the CO2 is in the bottle it just diffuses into the water passively. It'll need more adding from the canister as it disappears into the water and the bottle sinks.

Sorry I probably badly express myself. Once the bottle is inverted, how do you bring and diffuse CO2 ?

 

[Sunnyspots]

Sorry I probably badly express myself. Once the bottle is inverted, how do you bring and diffuse CO2 ?

You need to buy a canister of CO2. I use aquaGro. It is made for aquaria so can be bought in an LFS, at least here in UK. There must be other sources available too. Anyway, the aquaGro comes with silicon tubing which you attach to its nozzle and then, having filled the plastic bottle with tank water and submersed it upside down (still keeping it underwater), you hold the other end of the tubing at/in the mouth of the bottle. When you press the canister trigger the CO2 will bubble up into the bottle, displacing the tank water. Since you have attached a weight to the open end of the bottle it remains upside down. There is even a little pressure applied to the CO2 gas by it which aids its diffusion/dissolution into the tank water within the bottle and then on beyond that into the tank.

Is that what you wanted ?

 

[Avel1896]

Yessssss that is what I thought
Aquaria dedicated CO2 is expensive. As I already own a SodaStream Sparkling Water Maker I gonna customise it.

 

[Sunnyspots]

Yessssss that is what I thought
Aquaria dedicated CO2 is expensive. As I already own a SodaStream Sparkling Water Maker I gonna customise it.

Is it definitely CO2? In the old days it was nitrous oxide.

 

[Avel1896]

Have a look :

SodaStream Official: Sparkling Water Makers, Carbonating Gas Cylinders

Make your own fresh sparkling water at home. Shop our range of Sparkling Water Makers, Bottles and Flavors, refill or buy a spare CO2 gas cylinder.

sodastream.com

 

[Sunnyspots]

Shame. Nitrous oxide gave a mini high

 

[Avel1896]

And exchangable carbonating cylinder

 

[Sunnyspots]

I moved my gourami fry into a hang on breeder box last night and did a water change today. I have no idea what to do with any surviving baby gouramis but the father has tried so hard I feel obliged to continue the good work. He now seems to be a bit of a bully. He has taken the whole tank as his territory. I hope he calms down or reponds to a decor reorganisation or its another trip to the LFS.