You raise some interesting points as always Darrel.
I hope it's not going too far OT, but I find 'Heavily planted' hard to clearly define. The image of Tim's tank you posted above, isn't what I'd call heavily planted per se, that's just overgrown in that image lol (hopefully Tim won't mind me saying that) - 'Planted' to me suggests some intent as to the quantity and position of the plant mass. Purely out of interest, would you still define that scape as heavily planted once in its manicured form?:
I ask the question because I can't make my own mind up. On the one hand I think 'heavily planted' usually means the vast majority of the substrate is covered with plants, on the other hand though it makes me wonder whether, for example, Igwami style scapes, can be defined as 'heavily planted' or not?
Coming back on topic then, at what level are we happy that the planting (or plant mass) is heavy enough to optimise the level of DO naturally? It bugs me that I can't accurately measure DO myself and actualy test empirically - maybe I will stump up for a DO meter one day.
For the Twinstars and Oxydators, personally I feel if they help to optimise the DO content of an aquarium, and have no negative side effects, they can be of benefit. Sure, they are not essential, and there are many many good tanks out there that have never used them. But I do believe optimised levels of DO are good for fish, good for minimising algal growth, and good for general tank health, and for me personally, I'm not convinced I can get sufficient surface agitation and/or plant photosynthesis to keep DO at optimum levels 24/7.
For me personally I like to 'check box' things, and having as few things to worry about with my tank as possible. EI with an auto-doser takes care of ferts, and allows me to tick that box that and not worry about the nutrient side of things too much. CO2 injection allows me to check the 'carbon' box and not have to worry unduly about insufficient levels. My auto-water changer ensures there is regular removal of organics in the water column and fresh water in the tank, so I can tick that box and not have to worry about that.
So the the Twinstar/Oxydator for me is another check box exercise that ensures there is plenty of DO around the tank at all times, and so it is another thing I can tick the box for and not have to worry about it.
A lot of people here and other planted tank forums think that Twinstars/Oxydators are snake oil, I don't think so, specially after using a Chihiros for more than a year, I can say that maybe not everybody needs them but for me has become a check as you have mentioned above.
Since nobody seems to be dosing H2O2 with a dosing pump, probably I'm gonna be one of the few/first to do it. I just need to know how much and how ofter to release the H2O2 in the tank.
By the way H2O2 food grade means water plus H2O2 right, nothing else?
