# Tropica nano CO2 for 140l tank



## brokeLad (19 Apr 2020)

Hi,

I’m considering CO2 for my first set up and I’ve seen that Tropica state that their nano system can support their Easy range of plants on up to a 200l tank....says a canister would last 30 days..


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## Sammy Islam (19 Apr 2020)

Well first of all i would say.... Don't do it! save up for a proper co2 set up with a dual stage regulator and a 2/3kg cylinder. 

It could work if you have low light and you balance low light with low co2. But realistically it won't last very long, maybe a week or 2 at most as its 95g. Especially as i assume you have to open/close the tap manually everyday, that will lead to inconsistent co2 levels. Then having to change bottles regularly and re-tuning co2 will also become annoying and lead to more inconsistent co2 levels. 

I have about 150L tank and i use a 3kg cylinder which lasts me 2.5-3 months - I do have high light so i have to use a lot more co2.

There's a few things you should consider before making a decision, like how powerful will your lighting be? What sort of water parameters do you have?


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## brokeLad (19 Apr 2020)

Yeah I’m not going g to rush into it.....my tank is   In it’s 3rd week and until now all was good on the algae front....but now I’ve got brown algae on leaves of stem plants and a cobwebby algae on my mosses. My light is 35W that’s all I know unfortunately and I’m not sure if that is high or low tbh? I cut light from 6hrs to 5hrs and today I tapped over half the leds to reduce it. My water is hard with no nitrites and about 20ppm nitrate, I have a journal which has images of my planting....not sure how to link here? I wasn’t even going to consider CO2 but I’m feeling the pressure cheers for replying


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## Jayefc1 (19 Apr 2020)

There is no way I'd waste my money on these as sammy says with co2 do it properly or dont do it there is no middle ground really that 95g bottle will just be washed out in a week and it will end out being detrimental to the plants and the scape as a whole save up by a co2 art duel stage reg and look for somewhere that sells 2kg out of date fe


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## brokeLad (19 Apr 2020)

Yeah...I’m getting where your both coming from.....any budget regulators worth considering??


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## Jayefc1 (19 Apr 2020)

I personally wouldnt purely.because co2 arts after sale is by far the best whether you by from them or aqaurium gardens so many threads on here where something has gone wrong and they have replaced it with out question but again just my opinion


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## sparkyweasel (19 Apr 2020)

brokeLad said:


> can support their Easy range of plants


Remember that the 'easy' plants will also grow perfectly well if you don't inject CO2.


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## kilnakorr (19 Apr 2020)

Just don't. I tried it on a 9L nano.
Very poorly constructed. The gauge failed after 2 weeks, and just feels cheap.
Also, it doesn't come with solonoid.
You'd be far better of with a decent regulator with solonoid and 2-4 kg canister.


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## Paul27 (19 Apr 2020)

Jayefc1 said:


> There is no way I'd waste my money on these as sammy says with co2 do it properly or dont do it there is no middle ground really that 95g bottle will just be washed out in a week and it will end out being detrimental to the plants and the scape as a whole save up by a co2 art duel stage reg and look for somewhere that sells 2kg out of date fe



Agree with this. I brought a nano tropica Co2 and have never used it. It would not last long on a 200liter tank!. Best off going with Co2 art regulator(They do kits with everything you need)and a fire extinguisher, can pick a 2kg one off ebay for around £20.


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## alto (19 Apr 2020)

I’ve used Tropica nano CO2 systems for years - not the most economic but dead easy ... no FE possible here, and it’s a significant drive for refills (which are fairly expensive) and an even more significant investment for the CO2 tanks (which I’d do if I could get what I wanted) so I just keep putting the whole thing off

Of course if the Tropica system didn’t work well enough to grow decent plants, I’d be a lot more motivated to upgrade
BUT
I have very soft tap water and 1bps is more than sufficient for a 60P

Build quality of the Tropica nano system is much better than its competitors - with one exception - that o-ring which completes the seal is NOT CO2 resistant  AND Tropica does not offer a replacement part 




brokeLad said:


> My water is hard


Invest in a proper system such as CO2Art offer



brokeLad said:


> I’ve got brown algae on leaves of stem plants


This is not particularly CO2 related - daily water change and (gentle) physical removal (snails and otocinclus are more adept and gentle than human hands)



brokeLad said:


> cobwebby algae on my mosses


twirl a spiral (bottle/straw) brush to physically remove, toothbrush should also work

I’d focus on large (90%) daily water changes with cooler water (more dissolved gases), 18-20*C tank temp


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## brokeLad (20 Apr 2020)

thanks guys, loads of food for thought here. The only live stock I have is 6x cheery shrimp......Ive read Amano are better for algae eating? also what snails are good?

Sorry another question.....today will be my 1st water change with the shrimp in the tank......up until now I've added cold water from a hose (tank temp is 22oC) which drops temp to about 19oC ....would this be bad for the shrimp? Cheers guys, much appreciated Craig


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## ian_m (20 Apr 2020)

On a 200 litre tank, on for 8 hours a day I use about 20gr CO2 per day. Thus your 95gr will last less than 5 days assuming you remember to manually turn it on and off  !!


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## kilnakorr (20 Apr 2020)

brokeLad said:


> thanks guys, loads of food for thought here. The only live stock I have is 6x cheery shrimp......Ive read Amano are better for algae eating? also what snails are good?
> 
> Sorry another question.....today will be my 1st water change with the shrimp in the tank......up until now I've added cold water from a hose (tank temp is 22oC) which drops temp to about 19oC ....would this be bad for the shrimp?


Amanos are much better algea eaters. They can eat few plant species though and cannot reproduce in freshwater.

Your shrimps will be fine in 19 c water

Nerite snails are decent algea eaters, just be sure you are ok with tiny white spots (eggs) in the tank.


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## brokeLad (20 Apr 2020)

kilnakorr said:


> Amanos are much better algea eaters. They can eat few plant species though and cannot reproduce in freshwater.
> 
> Your shrimps will be fine in 19 c water
> 
> Nerite snails are decent algea eaters, just be sure you are ok with tiny white spots (eggs) in the tank.



Cheers mate : )


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## PARAGUAY (20 Apr 2020)

Nano kits are fine for small tanks but as ian says biggest downside is lack of control with a solenoid If you want to down the disposable bottle  route set consider the D-D dual reg freshwater set 600g it has a solenoid and replacement cylinders pretty cheap at Halfords


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