Should I add CO2?

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Reykur

Aquarium Advice Regular
Joined
Feb 12, 2017
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96
I need someone with more experience with planted tanks to give me some advice about whether or not to add CO2 to my tank.
I currently have narrow leaf java ferns, hornwort, java moss and microswords. Its a 5 gallon tank with 1 10w 5400k and I'm mainly concerned for the health of the plants so they won't end up dying one day. I have fluval shrimp and plant stratum in the tank, if that makes a difference. I also don't have an air stone running.
If I do need to use CO2, would something like seachem flourish adequately replace it for the same or better cost as CO2? For that matter, it seems like the DIY method has some down sides like the nasty gunk and pH swings that require an air stone to offset. I could just get a fluval 20g setup and add a bubble counter and smaller profile diffuser, but I don't know if that's even a good cost effective model.

I need advice.
 
Just buy flourish and flourish excel and dose to the recommended on the label and you should be fine with those plants
 
1 more question, do you think I should start running an air stone at night? I don't have any fish in the tank right now so I can't tell by observation whether or not I need to.
 
1 more question, do you think I should start running an air stone at night? I don't have any fish in the tank right now so I can't tell by observation whether or not I need to.



Doesn't matter to be honest. Abit of surface agitation is fine for fish. Also the liquid carbon won't be in a high enough dose to hurt anything, I've dosed 3x recommended dosage before with no issues.
 
Rey...

None of the plants you listed require CO2. They're all naturally slower growing plants, with the exception of Hornwort. Hornwort will grow best just floating on the surface close to the light. It won't grow as well if you plant it in the bottom material. Moss can be attached to driftwood or to pieces of lava rock with cotton sewing thread. Use cotton thread, not nylon. The cotton version will dissolve in the tank water, nylon won't for a very, very long time.

You can use root tabs for the plants that need to be planted. Rooted plants take in nutrients through the roots. Floating plants take in nutrients through tiny pores in the leaves, they'll get nutrients from the dissolving fish waste.

Have fun!

B
 
Hi Reykur.
Seachem Flourish is a micro-nutrient supplement, not a carbon supplement. Flourish Excel is the one that provides organic carbon in place of co2.

I have a similar situation- 5.5 g betta tank with similar lighting, 12w compact fluorescent, and undemanding low light plants. While it's true that co2 isn't absolutely necessary, I can tell you that since adding a very meager amount of co2 I have seen a huge improvement- much better and faster growth with more vibrant color than before when I was only using Excel. I didn't take very much co2 at all either. It only bubbles once every 15 to 20 seconds. This tank is in my son's bedroom so it was a fun and quick project and learning experience for him, plus I was able to use things I already had on hand. DIY yeast method in one of those small 12oz soda bottles, a check valve, and a glass bubble counter, fed directly into the hob intake.

As far as dosing, I just add Seachem Flourish for micronutrients and API Leaf Zone which provides potassium and iron, both added weekly according to the instructions on the bottle.
 
Thanks for the replies everyone!

Bert, I was planning on having my filter be set to as low as my betta feels comfortable with, so there may not be much surface agitation from the filter itself which is what made me ask. Thanks though :)

Bradbury, while I do agree with what you say in this post, I just wanted to make sure I was doing my due diligence is all, but on the note of the hornwort: it kind of floated halfway while the bottom of the plant submerged, so I tied it to a rock and the stem is maybe barely in the substrate. Would that be ok or should I move it out of the substrate completely for best result? I considered using root tabs, I just wasn't sure if they would be necessary for the microswords since they're in nutrient rich substrate. My moss is tied down in 1 spot to a rock in my tank, the rest floats loosely from that point, probably going to redo it since it came loose on accident. I've been using fishing line, since I had a bunch in my tackle and no thread :p

Depth, I actually didn't even catch my mistake until then, but I meant to say flourish excel. I was planning to get both flourish and excel using flourish basically how you use the API Leaf Zone, although API sounds like its a better option :)
So since you've made a DIY system, does your bubble catch properly intake all the yeast byproduct so the diffuser doesn't get a slime build up?
 
Thanks for the replies everyone!

Bert, I was planning on having my filter be set to as low as my betta feels comfortable with, so there may not be much surface agitation from the filter itself which is what made me ask. Thanks though :)

Bradbury, while I do agree with what you say in this post, I just wanted to make sure I was doing my due diligence is all, but on the note of the hornwort: it kind of floated halfway while the bottom of the plant submerged, so I tied it to a rock and the stem is maybe barely in the substrate. Would that be ok or should I move it out of the substrate completely for best result? I considered using root tabs, I just wasn't sure if they would be necessary for the microswords since they're in nutrient rich substrate. My moss is tied down in 1 spot to a rock in my tank, the rest floats loosely from that point, probably going to redo it since it came loose on accident. I've been using fishing line, since I had a bunch in my tackle and no thread :p

Depth, I actually didn't even catch my mistake until then, but I meant to say flourish excel. I was planning to get both flourish and excel using flourish basically how you use the API Leaf Zone, although API sounds like its a better option :)
So since you've made a DIY system, does your bubble catch properly intake all the yeast byproduct so the diffuser doesn't get a slime build up?
No diffuser, just the open end of the airline going into the HOB intake. There is a weird glob of stuff that you tend to get with DIY, some sort of protein byproduct buildup or something at the end of the tubing, I really don't know what it is. This is why I would never use any kind of diffuser with DIY- there's the chance it will get clogged and make a huge mess if a bottle explodes. Otherwise this stuff is really of no concern, at least it's never been a problem for me in 2+ years of running DIY co2. It's easy to clean off and doesn't ever clog the output. For some reason there hasn't been any gunk to clean from the end of the tubing on this particular setup. Maybe because it is such a low co2 output, or it's just getting sucked into the filter before it can build up much.

If you have a HOB filter, the surface ripple within the filter compartment will be sufficient. If you have an internal filter, angle the output toward the surface if possible.
 
I do have a HOB filter, although I hadn't considered putting the end of the CO2 directly into it, with no diffuser.
and honestly I've been really leaning towards a DIY setup over using flourish excel just for the price comparison (i would probably go through a bottle a month or $10 a month lol) vs the much more cost effective methods like citric acid mixtures and activated yeast mixtures.
With no diffuser is the CO2 being diffused into the water enough before escaping into the air? I don't know how to check how efficiently it is being diffused, but I wanted to ask.
 
I do have a HOB filter, although I hadn't considered putting the end of the CO2 directly into it, with no diffuser.
and honestly I've been really leaning towards a DIY setup over using flourish excel just for the price comparison (i would probably go through a bottle a month or $10 a month lol) vs the much more cost effective methods like citric acid mixtures and activated yeast mixtures.
With no diffuser is the CO2 being diffused into the water enough before escaping into the air? I don't know how to check how efficiently it is being diffused, but I wanted to ask.
You can order the larger 500 mL bottles of Excel online for only $10-$12 shipped. A bottle that size would last a while.

The co2 bubbles get chopped up by the filter and end up as a very fine mist. Honestly, I haven't bothered measuring co2 concentration in this tank. Aiming for a certain concentration just isn't critical with low-light. I figure any amount is an improvement over not adding any at all.
 
I've decided to use DIY CO2. I am going to try bakers yeast first, and probably switch over to champagne yeast for a lower cost per gram. I'm also considering what kind of sugar to use, some find the jello mix to work best, and I've read some people use molasses which would last significantly longer. I'm going to start with some plain sugar from the dollar store, then probably try organic sugar and molasses sometime. I can't see any real benefit beside slower dissolution by using jello, if anyone knows what effect of any that gelatin has on yeast, I would like to know.
I've also been thinking about trying to make some simple fruit wine this way just for fun. I would probably just sell it if someone I knew wanted it, since I don't really drink, and I don't like wine at all.
 
This has been an inspiring thread for diy CO2 injecting. Like you guys, I have the same low light plants doing ok in 2, 5gal with shrimp, and a 10gal with fish.

Reykur, Be sure to document a pic before diy CO2, and time lapse pics monthly[emoji106]
 
I definitely will be posting more pictures once more time has passed, although after a few days of CO2 and about a week after I added azomite, my plants are doing very well. I watched single 2 inch strands of java moss turn into 3 inch x 2 inches wide (with new growth on both sides about 1.5mm apart from one another)
I'm pretty impressed, but I think i have a leak in my co2, my plants all oxygenate very readily now, but my diffuser (2 inch wood) hasn't diffused, so I'm not sure.

Just remember, terrestrial plant growth goes like this:
Light -> water -> nutrients (since water helps unlock nutrients in soil)
Aquatic plants go like this though:
Light -> nutrients (broken down, this is CO2 -> macro -> micro)
Aside from light, CO2 is the next most important thing for your plants, which is what made me decide to use CO2.
 
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