Need an unconventional CO2 solution

[Vivienne]

The cement background I put in covers the back and sides of the tank so there's nowhere to mount a bubble ladder. Hindsight is a great thing.

I've been reading about the different ways of difusing CO2 into the tank and wondered if this might work:

Tank is a standard Juwel Rekord 120 with built in filter. I have a small device on the filter output that oxygenates the water. Basically it's just a thin tube that runs from just above the surface of the water to the filter output. As the water from the filter is expelled, air is pulled through with it. Could I get something like the Nutrafin CO2 kit and simply attach the output to this tube so that it's CO2 that's pulled into the water rather than oxygen ? I thought that I could then direct the output under some sort of upside down cup to trap the CO2 and allow it to disolve into the water. The filter output is currently fairly high up. I could perhaps use extra tubing to redirect it to near the bottom of the tank if this would be better.

Alternately, could I direct the output to the bottom of the filter, underneath the filter media. The CO2 would have to rise through the filter sponges. I figure this would slow it down and encourage it to disolve. Or would that play havoc with the bacteria in the filter ?

Can you buy CO2 kits without the bubble ladders ? Any suggestions would be very welcome !!

 

[gt568]

I diffuse my Co2 through the filter media, and I've never had a problem with it.

 

[zig]

Well personally id make it fit, and i dont suppose the front glass is an option

I think the best solution is some sort of homemade reactor worked off a small airpump, this would be suitable for the diy method of co2, have a look at the link below its a really good article anyway, but it gives plans on how to make a diy reactor to dissolve your co2 bubbles, the reactor would go inside your tank and the pump plugged in on the outside of the tank.

My Webpage

They are pretty simple to make and shouldnt cost to much, the expense would be buying the pump, but they are also cheap, you should get a suitable one for £10.

Cant think of anything else at the minute, if i do ill post again.

 

[smithrc]

we have the Aquamedic 500 reactor - the attaches to the output from the filter (in our case a standalone powerhead)

if you join it well the filter output would hold it in place

 

[Vivienne]

Thanks guys - that's given me loads of food for thought.

gt568 - Here was me thinking maybe I had an original idea. If diffusing the CO2 through the filter media works, that would definitely be the simplest and the most elegant solution.

Zig - that link was terrific. I have never seen such a detailed article. It referred to diffusing through the filter media too, but said it wasn't recommended because the CO2 etc might in the long term cause damage to the pump. No mention of bacterial problems.

Smithrc - something like that would definitely be best if I had room in the tank. Unfortunately the background took up more space than I envisaged, as per the photo below, so I'm desperately trying to avoid adding anything remotely bulky.



Unfortunately this shot was taken just after I added plants just as I started the cycle and I managed to kill them all off within days. Have also managed to severely damage a second batch since ! The first batch may have been cooked by inadvertently raising the temp too high, or we deduced on another thread by the very high ph spike > 9.5. Ph was better when the second batch went in but still high. Ph is coming down now and is currently about 8 (tap water ph is 6.5-7) The cement background definitely should have cured by now, although I guess it could still be leaching something nasty. Bit worried that if it is, the fish may also suffer. Have got a small, plain tank at the ready just in case I need to whip fish out in a hurry. Another possibility could be something that’s in the ammonia solution I’m using to cycle the tank I guess. It says pure ammonia and the bacteria are comming on fine, but who knows

 

[George Farmer]

I diffuse my Co2 through the filter media, and I've never had a problem with it.

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Excellent point - sometimes the simplest ideas are the best.

 

[Vivienne]

Definitely think I'll try running the outlet pipe down through the filter box - that way nothing will be visible inside the tank at all. From there the CO2 has quite a way to travel back through the filter media before it reaches any moving parts or seals it might damage.

Does the Nutrafin CO2 kit have some sort of non return valve to stop any of the yeast mixture being syphoned back into the tank accidentally ? On balance I think I'd prefer that to a DIY solution - for the moment it will need to sit visibly on a shelf above the tank, so a plain black canister is more appealing than a pop bottle and for me anything DIY ends up costing me more than I originally think !

 

[houndour]

thats a really cool background. did you make it yourself?

 

[Vivienne]

Hi Houndour - ThankYou. I did make it myself. It was fun to do, allbeit very, very, messy. I'll post a thread on the whole tank set up before too long. I thought I'd wait though until there are fish in there too and I can actually see whether or not the drainpipe caves etc get used.