Stopping CO2 in high tech tank

[Aniket Mishra]

Hi guys!
I am in the process of setting up a new tank and here's what I have thought
1) I'll buy a 2.5 feet long tank roughly 25g
2)I want dense planting, basically, some swords, crypts, hygrophilias, anubias and fern
3) I want to carpet it with marselia (whichever I can find)
4) T5-40W light (I get a decent amount of light in the room from the window)

Now, I don't plan to stock fish till the plants have grown and I have a lush carpet, because I will be using DIY CO2 to grow the plants and I wouldn't want any fish to be asphyxiated. My question is, can I stop the CO2 after I have the desired foliage, and what will be the implications of doing so?

 

[foxfish]

I think you need to do a lot of reading before you go a head with your plan as a densely planted tank is what virtually everybody on this forum wants & it is not always easy to achieve!!
DIY C02 can be very fickle & you best read about lighting and EI too...

 

[Aniket Mishra]

I have read a lot and have been researching for the past three months before I moved on to finalizing my plants and purchases. It is not out of impatience that I am setting up DIY, it is because of the lack of funds, and because I know that it is fickle and may work erratically, I do not want to endanger any fish's lives. I have read about EI, and I am not very comfortable with it. All i wanted to know was what are the implications of doing what I have planned.

 

[foxfish]

OK sorry!

 

[Aniket Mishra]

No need to say sorry Mr. Fish, can you help me out though?

 

[Vazkez]

Hi there and welcome

I used to use DIY CO2 for year in simile size of tank like you have...

This jungle I had with just one Hagen leader ( plz do not mind the scape )

Be ready for some algae as DIY doesn't have stable CO2 level so It's good if you uses two bottles and change them in different days.

Also carpet plants are a bit tricky to be honest.

Anyway why do you want to stop the CO2 after achieving the goal? You gonna run to more problems like algae etc. Little of CO2 doesn't kill anything ...

Vazz

 

[Aniket Mishra]

From what I understand, hygrophylias help check the algae. I want to stop the co2 because I will be setting up this tank for my parents. I wouldn't want them to deal with the hassle of changing bottles. What will happen of the plants after I stop.
Also, can you please elaborate why carpet plants are tricky? Marselia is supposed to grow like weed right?

 

[Tim Harrison]

Just a suggestion - but why not just cut to the chase and set up a low-energy soil substrate tank from the beginning. You can achieve all you want - it'll just take a little longer but you won't have the problems associated with erratic CO2 and plant melt when you turn off the gas.
Your plant list is ideal and it'll be hassle free, and low maintenance for your parents from day one.
Your lighting will need to be less intense. Something like a TMC Aquabar with dimmer will give you the flexibility you need, and is relatively cheap.
Follow the link below to the tutorial for further details...and this one for suitable low-energy carpet plants http://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/low-tech-lawns.32597/#post-346432

 

[Vazkez]

I want to stop the co2 because I will be setting up this tank for my parents

I see well they will get some algea as well as probably some decay of plants ... But they will recover after while ...

Just a suggestion - but why not just cut to the chase and set up a low-energy soil substrate tank from the beginning.

Actually great idea +1 to this.

 

[Aniket Mishra]

I will be moving out of my parents place in about three months and I wanted this to be a sort of gift that they could enjoy, that is why the rush. The low tech soil + substrate is my plan, I just wanted to speed up the process in the beginning, so that by the time I leave, majority of the work is done and they can just sit back and feed the fish and perform once a month top offs. Anyway, thanks a lot all of you. I guess, I will have to modify my list and get 20W or less.

 

[Tim Harrison]

You could achieve an awful lot with a low-energy scape in three months, and you wouldn't be saving up problems for your parents to deal with later when the gas is shut off. Swords, crypts, hygrophilias, anubias and ferns are good choices...
4 months growth (with some additional planting)...
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7327/11528332916_5d60a159ce_b.jpg

 

[Aniket Mishra]

You have convinced me.
But what about carpet plants, in my case, marselia, how much coverage can I get?
And you are right, when the plants start melting, it will be a huge pain.

 

[Tim Harrison]

I've no experience with M. quadrifolia, but the link I gave a post back has some great ideas for low-energy low-maintenance carpet plants. Lilaeopsis spp. are pretty hardy, and spread relatively quickly.