Co2 In Tropical Tank

[Frederick]

Hi all.....It appars to me that 99% of tanks now use the addition of Co2 in a planted tank. As a newby I question if this is needed in a well planted tank. I would be grateful to hear members opinion of this and also if it is really needed can you recomend a suitable kit for my Jewel Vision 180ltr tank very well planted.

cheers and many thanks ... Frederick

 

[coldcazzie]

I'm going to move your post to our planted section for better answers.

The short answer is yes for a heavily planted tank, they can benefit from co2 injection. If your plants are almost as important as the fish then you want to see them growing well, one of the ways to do this is to ensure that co2 is not a limiting factor. The best way to do this is with injection.

 

[Rorie]

I went all out with my planted tank - ADA substrate, £300 CO2 system, ferts etc. Some plants grew lightening fast! I was cutting down amazon swords every week as they were taking over the tank! But, when you add CO2 etc, the importance of getting the triangle equally weighted (Lights ferts and CO2) becomes more tricky. Tiny adjustments here and there. I found that having such a big tank (5 foot), the circulation of water was my biggest issue - i was not spreading the CO2 about as evenly as i'd have liked.

The short story is that my 90L planted tank looked AMAZING, and i didn't use ferts, CO2 or anything....just fish waste! Zero effort = impressive tank. My 360L took constant tweaks, money, tweaks and more money, and although it was looking good ish, i was never happy with it. I sold all my expensive kit and turned it into a basic planted tank.

HOWEVER, look up 'ADA aquariums' on google and you will see the amazing things that can happen if you know what your doing with CO2. I failed at this, but clearly others have huge success and the difference is amazing

 

[Primous]

No

It depends entirely on your plant selection. Basically in this instance it boils down to two types of plants. Plants that require co2 and those that don't. Since getting into the planted aspect of this hobby I have come across some stunning examples of both types. Lush and colorful with and without the addition of co2. The key here is research and since your already here perhaps a thread requesting plants that don't need co2 to give you a heads start.

 

[SO19Firearms]

No

It depends entirely on your plant selection. Basically in this instance it boils down to two types of plants. Plants that require co2 and those that don't. Since getting into the planted aspect of this hobby I have come across some stunning examples of both types. Lush and colorful with and without the addition of co2. The key here is research and since your already here perhaps a thread requesting plants that don't need co2 to give you a heads start.

Just to make it clear for any newbies reading this - it would be plants that do and don't need additional CO2