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diy co2 on a 55 gallon

flyhawk

Seedling
Joined
30 Dec 2009
Messages
21
i cant get pressurized co2
i just dont have the money
my question is that if i use diy co2, will it help a little bit?
 
The addition of Co2 will always help, I personally would say pressurised being expencive is a falacy, you can pick up a good reliable rig for less than £100. It depends on what you want to achieve though, it would be a matter of assessing your goals and choosing a method that suits.
 
well i have no income, as im a teen, soooo
thats why i cant afford that
i was just wondering if it will give a noticable difference
 
Hi flyhawk
DIY CO2 is notoriously unstable and you could end up with a major algae headache if you get it wrong.
The best set up I've heard is to use two systems (damn, more expense I hear you say), set up 2 weeks apart so when one runs out you still have some CO2 going in the tank until you renew the expired one. Lot of messing about though.
Take a read on El natural & Low tech section. This might give you some ideas if you're on a tight budget.
There is no reason you can't have a planted tank without CO2. You just have to be a bit more selective with your plant choice, but there is still loads to choose from.
The only difference you will see is that the growth rate will be slower than when using CO2, but the plants will still be healthy :D.
 
well i already have alow tech tank running, but i am not dosing macro nutrients, so thats why i think my plants have gone bad, is they ran out of nitrate and phosphate and potassium
 
well i was just wondering if diy co2 would make the plants grow a little faster
this is what i was thinking it may sound like a lot of work, and i will make up the time i used to spend doing water changes. i have a 2 liter going heavy on yeast, so the bubble count is higher
i will change it once a week(i have lots of yeast around) with a batch that has beeb sitting next to it for 2 hours already mixed up
that way there wil be less flucuation
 
Hi flyhawk

If you can keep it relatively stable then you should certainly see improved growth rates :thumbup:
But if you are using any form of CO2 then the weekly water change is a must I'm afraid because it's not low tech any more.
As plant growth rates are accelerated, one sniff of ammonia in the tank from dead or dying leaves, fish waste or any other organic matter that is decomposing, then you will have a tank full of algae in no time. As CO2 accelerates the plant growth rates, your ferts will have to be increased accordingly, and it is these nutrients that will accelerate the algae growth rates. You will need to keep your tank scrupulously clean if you want to avoid algae and this is assisted by the weekly water change.
 
yes i get to do water changes!!!!
i couldnt stand the thought of going for more than a week without water changes
 
i dont mind dosing more

also, i put he co2 in yesterday, and today the bottoms of the anubias leaves are full of bubbles
Pearling?maybe?
 
Did you do a water change as well? Anubias don't tend to be the first to bubble if there is other faster growing plants in the tank. I got my Full CO2 kit for less than 60 quid. It comes with a CO2 cylinder, regulator, tubing and home made Co2 diffuser. Only thing is that I have to run it 24/7 till I install a solenoid.
 
no
and the pearling happens during the day then goes away at night constantly now
 
well the wisteria pennywort and java fern all pearled today

i got some rainbow fsih for the tank, and he look great!!
(thanks for the insperation aaronnorth!!)
 
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