Twisted Vallis Melting

[Ficious]

Aaron, so running the airstone at the moment will actually be HELPING to keep the levels stable as well as providing the extra circulation?

Yes, average CO2 levels in the aquarium are around 6-8ppm. When plants photosynthesise they are obviously using this CO2, so it starts to become depleted, so by having the extra surface agitation it allows gaseous echgane, therfore keeping the levels up, and in equilibrium.

However this is not the case for artificially injected CO2 because the levels will be much higher (30ppm) so therefore there will be more CO2 being gassed off, than there will be entering the aquarium.

so youre saying an airstone in a planted, no co2, aquarium is ok?




and OP i had very bad luck with my spiral valls. they would look like they were melting...i took them all out of my 20 gallon and put them into my 5 gallon with substrate and co2. they have become sturdy looking and bright green...also they are spreading pretty good in there. i think they like root tabs or a good substrate to get them started.

also for a DIY co2 project you would need at least two 2ltr bottles going at once...and they would need to be changed every week for good results. all you need to buy is sugar and yeast though. idk how much that is compared to the real co2 method

 

[aaronnorth]

so youre saying an airstone in a planted, no co2, aquarium is ok?

yes

 

[Schmill]

A couple of pictures of the Vallis.

In this first one you can see the melted trasparent / brown leaves, but also what looks like micro-cracks in the greener leaves

This one shows the 2 different planting depths of 2 plants that I have at the moment thanks to my corys!

 

[Schmill]

Would using a liquid carbo product, (I'm thinking EasyLife EasyCarbo) help with these issues, (or even the tank as a whole?)
I'd never looked at it as people said it would be expensive, but looking at Aqua Essentials:

Tanks with minimal plants - 1ml per 100 litres
Tanks with fair amount of plants - 1ml per 50 litres
Tanks with large amount of plants - 1ml per 25 litres

1L is £20 + del

So in my 300L tank, if I go for 'fair amount of plants' then thats 1ml / 50L, or 6ml everyday.

1000 / 6 = 166.6 days

166.6 / 7 = 23 ~ 24 weeks

So by that reconning, thats £20 for almost 6 months supply. Even if I had to go to the 'large amount of plants' dosing, it's still 3 months supply, which seems almost on a par with pressurised CO2 refills.

Have I missed something here, or would EasyCarbo be a good place to start to see if carbon has an effect on my tank, (and if it does, what effect it has)?

Thanks

 

[minxfishy]

Hey they look like my twisted vallis, glad its not just my plants that arent doing so great.

Would also like to know if the easycarbo is any good instead of a co2 system, which I cant afford nor understand


Edit: Just had a quick google around about the effectiveness of this, according to alot of people on PFK forum, it is good and can be used as an alternative to co2 injection, however, as stated it will cost a lot on a large planted tank, mine being 400L could work out expensive, but unless anyone has anything particularly bad to say about it, then Im willing to give it a shot at this point, before I lose all my plants.

Would you still use the normal ferts, in my case tpn+ with it or is it sufficient enough on its own.

Sorry schmill dont want to overtake your thread, but I guess youd want to know that too.

 

[aaronnorth]

carbon based products can be used as alternative, although remember it will never be as good as CO2 gas. TPN+ is still needed, that provides macro & micro nutrients - excel/ easycarbo is just for carbon.

 

[minxfishy]

Thanks aaron, will give it a try then

 

[minxfishy]

Oh, btw, should I be removing carbon from my filter before dosing?

 

[Schmill]

EDIT - Severly queue jumped due to getting a phonecall half way through writing my reply, hope it still makes sense lol

*********

No worries, it's good to have all the info in one place.

I believe you would still need to dose the TPN+ as that is providing the micro & macro nutrients, the easycarbo is just providing carbon.

I don't know how many plants you have, but working on the 'middle' dosing for a 'fair amount of plants' ona 400L tank;

1ml for 50L per day
8ml for 400L per day

1000 / 8 = 125 days

125 / 7 = 17 (nearly 18) weeks

So £20+del for nearly 18 weeks worth of carbo additive doesn't seem too bad?

 

[Schmill]

Aaron, what doing of the easycarbo would you recommend? Should I am for the 'fair amount of plants' dosage? (Overall tank shot earlier in this thread).

Thanks

 

[minxfishy]

Well here is my tank:

So I was going on the fair amount dosing of 8ml per day, so should last a few months. Ordered mine already, how about you?

 

[Schmill]

Well here is my tank:

So I was going on the fair amount dosing of 8ml per day, so should last a few months. Ordered mine already, how about you?

lol, cant order mine till at home tonight, did you order from Aqua Essentials in the end?

 

[minxfishy]

Yeah I did, looked around couldnt find it cheaper anywhere else.


Edit: Just had email for AE, they have dispatched today!! Hoorah that was quick.

 

[Schmill]

Wow, sounds good!

 

[Ficious]

so youre saying an airstone in a planted, no co2, aquarium is ok?

yes

ok thats good to know! i was worried the airstone in my 20 gallon would effect the plants...but i dont have CO2 in that one.