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Do I need co2?

Martin296

Member
Joined
17 Aug 2014
Messages
39
Location
Ledbury
Hello all, I apologised now if this is in the wrong section... I'm new.

Basically looking to see if I actually need to run co2 in my tank
. Can some let me know if i need co2 or not?


Plants i have:

Needle leaf java fern,

anubias bartering,

anubias petite,

Cronin calamistratum,

nymphoides hygrophila,

Taiwan rotella,

mayaca fluviatilis,

villis (straight and twisted),

potamogeton gayi,

Amazon sword,

java fern,

and hydrocotyle leucocephala.


Lighting is 50w of dayglo tubes (t8) dosed with ferts atm, but i do have a decent layered substrate.

Tia :)
 
I have algae, I am running DIY co2 ATM but getting fed up of "setting it up" all the time when it runs out, but plants look healthy and grow like mad.[DOUBLEPOST=1408286285][/DOUBLEPOST]Oh and in the last few moments I've been offered a 4x38w t5 hood :)
 
well, depends what you want. DIY co2 isnt great as it fluctuates a lot, given your fed up of it probably means there is a good amount of co2 at the beginning of the week and little towards the end which will only benefit algae.

If you want something nice and easy then id suggest removing the diy co2 and try to reduce the light a little maybe by removing reflectors etc..
If the plants are healthy and grow well now then there is s good chance they will do the same but slower without the diy.
Try to eliminate the algae that is there by increasing maintenance, clean the filters, check over the flow and manually remove what you can.

You could always go for middle ground and look at dosing liquid carbon.

Certainly if you want a 4 x 39w t5 then you will need pressurised co2.
 
I have a 10litre co2 cyclinder, I am at the point of do or don't I spend on a reg to get it all going.
I have a diffuser from the DIY kit, I just want everything to run well.
 
the decision isnt one we can make for you, if you want to try a high tech tank with more challenging plants then go for it.
If you dont want the associated additional work and maintenance then keep it simple :)

Both have pros and cons and if you look around the forum you will find plenty of amazing set ups of both. Low tech can be amazingly rewarding with patience and tends to lead you more on the path of fish health, natural behaviour, breeding etc
With high tech i guess you could say it leads along a more modern art path, spending a lot of time and no doubt set backs trying to create a piece of living art in your house...
 
My inspiration is not only the fish I want to keep, but these pics too...

This the hard scape I plan to do;

70881383192bcb603ffff1b41828c806_zps09a9d91b.jpg
only with black sand.
With this added to it;
bcf6de736428d13ce422e4281c557840_zps0cd2a721.jpg


But this is mine now, so most of these plants I want to use;
4e58a3a0d4f6ecd2f74eb4a34b2c6c03_zpsa61c224d.jpg
 
Hi guys,

nice posts Lain +1 to that :)

Martin just want to add if you missing just the regulator there are plenty members on this forum which sales regulators for around £30 :) However you have to have 30 (?) posts to access this section of forum. (try to support the forum as well after you buy something as well )
Then you could go middle way with low light and just little bit of CO2. You will have the same what you have now but without algae as your CO2 will be stable. However you will have to start dissing fetr from time to time (not so much as on high light) because CO2 will push the plants. With let's say just 1 BP3S your 10kg cylinder will last for years.

Or you can go high tech but how Lain said this decision is on you and it is about what you trying to achieve :)

Vazz[DOUBLEPOST=1408289698][/DOUBLEPOST]BTW nice set up you have there :)
 
If I pushed mine to high tech, does it mean my current plants just grow better and bigger? Obv need maintaining each water change with trimming down etc.
 
With high tech you achieve your goal faster for the price of more "work". Also your dosing have to be spot on as you can run to lots of trouble. With high tech you can also grow more advanced plants which requires more light to grow.

However there are many stunning low tech tanks. Some of them even more stunning then high tech :)

Vaz
 
Which brings me to my original question, with my lighting, which I can reduce by half.
Will "easy/lowlight" plants be ok with higher levels of light? With having easy plants, does it mean I can run a lower amount of co2, if any at all.
 
It is the amount of C02 available to the plants that counts for fast lush growth or slow growth (slug pace with no injected C02)

It is always better to match the light to the available C02!

Bright light, like 4 x T5s, is best left to very experienced folk who are prepared to work hard on their tanks ... 2 x T5s are good for fast growth as long as you completely understand about the requirements of an injected tank.

None injected tanks do not require bright light....
 
looking at what your inspiration is id say you could happily go low tech with a mud base. Have a look through the low tech forum and read some low tech journals. There is no point going high tech unless you need to or just like walking a finer line.
 
If I'm being deadly honest, I only want to use co2 if I have to. But theb as said before even if I just use a very small amount like 1-2 bubbles per second or something. It'll give the plants something to eat without going mad?
 
Just a quick pointer.
You have planted your java fern into your gravel, id recomend tying/ glueing it onto some hardscape (one of your coconut caves?) or wedging it in the holes of that nice wood you have :) otherwise the base of the plant will rot and the rest will die.
 
Just a quick pointer.
You have planted your java fern into your gravel, id recomend tying/ glueing it onto some hardscape (one of your coconut caves?) or wedging it in the holes of that nice wood you have :) otherwise the base of the plant will rot and the rest will die.
Already done that when I realised what I've done :)

I don't really see the point of that, if you have 10 kg of gas then feed it in at a fish safe rate & keep the light low.

The bottle needs filling, and I need a reg.
 
I don't really see the point of that, if you have 10 kg of gas then feed it in at a fish safe rate & keep the light low.

+1 low light little of CO2 no trouble :)


Already done that when I realised what I've done :)

The bottle needs filling, and I need a reg.

Look around your town there will be some one who do the refeals :)
 
Just to confirm.

My low light plants will be ok in high light?
I am planning on getting a reg this month, and getting the bottle filled next month :)
 
The point is .. plants don't need bight light, they need high co2!
It is the co2 that is the driving force, try to forget about high light because it is bright light that causes 95% of problems relating to algae.
Honestly low light and high co2 will give you great results.
 
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