Need help with Setting up a planted aquarium!

[smellslikefish]

Hello everyone,

I'm new to planted freshwater aquariums and need some advice with filtration. Recently bought a 110g Corner Bow front for my first planted aquarium. I've been doing some research here and there and would like to know if any members can send some pics of their filtration or advice on the best way to set this up. Just bought a CO2 5lbs cylinder with a regulator. Will be getting Solenoid, needle valve, Milwaukee PH monitor, tubing.. I've gotten a lot of different advice with getting a reactor and diffuser. Is this really needed? I've also been told you can just stick the tube end into the intake of the eheim filter so that the CO2 bubble can be dissolved evenly... The members of this forum seem to have really good information. Can someone please help?

 

[Zagz]

I don't use CO2 but have cannister filters for my planted tanks. I have one tank with an XP3 and 2 HOB's and one tank with a Fluval 404 and a HOB. They are both heavily planted medium light tanks. If you want specific information with CO2 setups I am of no help to you unfortunately.

For the filtration in general. I diffuse the flow across the top of the tank with the HOB's and downward towards the back of the tanks with the cannisters to minimize the plants being pushed around.

 

[OldMan]

What I have done to diffuse bottled CO2 is to use a very fine airstone as a diffuser. It is the kind that is made from a porous white plastic material. What I did was attach it below where the filter flow comes back into the tank so that the very fine bubbles coming from the stone are pushed along the length of the tank by the filter flow. I don't see very many bubbles survive being in the water that long as bubbles. Most of them dissolve first so I lose almost nothing as bubbles reaching the surface of the water.

 

[jsoong]

A HOB would not be good for CO2 injection - since that would outgas the CO2 as fast as you put it in.

A canister is ideal for you. Although you can use a diffusor/reactor (there are DIY versions that you can put in line with the canister), you can prob. get by T-ing the CO2 into the canister input. By the time the CO2 goes through the canister, it would be dissolved. You would want your canister output to be deep in the water so you don't disturb the surface & out gas all the CO2.