After reading a lot and doing much research i came to the conclusion that if you have a planted tank(With Fish in it) you do not really need to go the expensive route of buying Thousands of rands worth of equipment. For the average aquarist a low pressure DIY Solution will work.If you have a bigger tank (250 Liters plus) then you can go the pressurised route,or add another DIY CO2 solution. During the week i will post some pics and will show you how to build an EFFECTIVE low pressure CO2 System,that includes a bubble counter as well as a diffuser(The diffuser works on the "membrane" as well as the breaking up of co2 bubbles and agitation of water.) Thereafter i will show you how to build your own Pressurised system.
Thanks Slojo, i'm busy setting up a planted tank at the moment and would love to add some inexpensive C02.... will be watching this thread like a hawk (or a hungry Oscar)
Thanks for sharing Slojo. I am also in the beginning stages of setting up my first planted tank, so your timing is PERFECT!
First of all you need to minimise the loss of CO2 and make sure that the CO2 bubbles stay in the water.The longer it stay in the water the more time it will have to diffuse.
Perhaps have this as a sticky thread? It will be very useful especially to the newbies who wants to start a planted tank. Looking forward to this thread. Thanx Slojo
re CO2. I have been using DIY CO2 reactors for almost a year now and am impressed with the results. What I need to find out is that when the plants are growing at rate where they need costant trimming, would it not make sense to remove the reactors? i.e. Is a CO2 reactor required permanently or just till your plants are established? (I know there are other water chemitry issues here ph etc but I am trying to find out if splashing all the money out for a fancy CO2 system in worth while in the long run)
That depends on what you want to grow. If you want a Glosso or HC carpet, then pressurized CO2 in tanks larger than 55g or DIY CO2 in smaller tanks will be a must. Permanently. Other difficult plants like Ludwigia Pantanal, Toninas, Rotala Macrandra, etc. will require CO2 all the time. If you switch the CO2 off, you will also have to drop your lights to 1.5WPG, otherwise algae will be your next battle!
DIY CO2 is a great way to get into the hobby. Just remember to keep those bubbles flowing to avoid BBA
If you guys want to see real DIY CO2 results,look at this: http://www.aquascapingworld.com/forum/aquascaping-showcase/1406-power-nature-gliga.html
Definitely,and DIY is more effective the smaller the tank. Anyway lets start with CO2 loss. As you have a DIY CO2 Solution you want to make use of all or as much of the CO2 that you generate. For DIY you can use a small airstone to break up the CO2 bubble into smaller bubbles,but as al the CO2 are not absorbed into the water you will need to trap the CO2 under the water.That can be done by cutting a 2Liter Plastic Colddrink bottle in half.
I hope this is not a stupid question. What does BBA stands for? I am currently using a DIY CO2 setup in my tank and my plants is growing good.
Thanks Neilh. I have seen a small patch of algea that is starting to grow in the back of my tank, but now I know why. So far I have been switching of the CO2 at night and on in the morning again.
Now i can already see that everyone was thinking a Yeast Mix etc. Actually you can DIY a Pressurised CO2 System. Step 1. Go to a Paintball Gun Shop and buy yourself a CO2 Bottle as well as a fitting. Bottle - R240 + R20 to fill. Fitting - R100.00 Couplings - R100.00 Diffuser(DIY) Less than R100.00 Now next you need to source a valve. Step 2. Go to an aircon or Fridge/Freezer repair shop or technician and beg for his empty bottles that they used to fill the aircons or fridges.(They throw those away,because it may not be refilled.) Open the valve and let it stand outside overnight. Unscrew the valve. Step 3. Go to a Hydraulics company like Quick Hydraulics and take the connectors,valves and fittings as well as a piece of airhose with. They will supply you with the correct couplings. Step 4.Build your Diffuser as shown in the later posts with pics. Step 5.Connect and test. DONE!! Your very own pressurised DIY CO2 System for at least R2000.00 less than a new one and just as if not more effective. The Diffuser is 100% effective as you will be able to see in the pics.
Pics of the DIY CO2 and DIY Diffuser. 1st Pic - CO2 Bottle 2nd Pic - Connector for CO2 Bottle 3rd Pic - Couplings 4th Pic - Valve 5th Pic - Old Gravel Filter 6th Pic - Stripped 7th Pic - Drill 5mm hole through top cover. 8th Pic - Push through Airhose and attach small airstone 9th Pic - Here you can see the Action of CO2 Being broken up. 10th Pic - Here you will see that Virtually no Bubbles escape from the bottom of the diffuser,meaning that CO2 is diffused properly. Do not use too strong a pump or the CO2 Bubbles will be pushed out of the tube befor it can be properly diffused.
Yeast Reactor Recipe For those of you that want to go the Yeast reactor way use the following instructions. Ingredients: 2 cups sugar 1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp yeast Start with a small cup or bowl and add a small amount of lukewarm water and a pinch or two of sugar. Mix in the yeast with a fork, stirring vigorously until the water is bubbly. This will help to "activate" dry yeast by adding oxygen, preventing mass die-offs that occur if you just dump the yeast into the water. Let this sit while you prepare the container, or for at least 10 minutes, and stir every few minutes to keep the water oxygenated Rinse out your container if you have used it before to remove all traces of alcohol. Fill it about 2/3 of the way with lukewarm water. Tap water is fine. Using a funnel, add the 2 cups sugar and the baking soda to the water in the container. If you've used the container before, it's likely you don't have a lid you can use to close it up and shake it, so just put the palm of your hand over the opening and turn it upside down over the sink and shake it gently, making sure to keep the seal with your hand. The point is just to dissolve most of the sugar in the water (otherwise it will just sit on the bottom). If you haven't used the container yet, wait to drill a hole in the lid till after you've shaken it up, just to save yourself a sticky hand. If it's been about 10 minutes or longer, pour the yeast and water mixture into the container using a funnel. No need to mix it up, just put the lid on and it should start producing CO2 in anywhere from a few hours (I've had it start in around 1 hour!) to 12 hours depending on how well you activated the yeast. If you don't have any bubbles after 12 hours, you've probably either got bad yeast or leaks @ Rudi.Please do not hijack my thread.
