CO2 Solution

[heresmike]

Hello...
Before you all jump down my throat about doing a search on this over-asked question, let me just say I did one on CO2, and it returned nothing... so there must be something wrong with the search mechanism here! And I looked at several pages of topics...

I'm setting up a 90 gallon, I want it to be heavily planted, will need a CO2 system... and I don't want any DIY solutions. What can I buy that will be a plug-and-play solution to appropriately supply this tank with CO2.

Dr. Foster an Smith offers an Eheim CO2 Set for 140 american dollars... is this what I need, in addition to the tank of CO2? I'm really confused on all the terms.... diffuser, reactor, regulator, bubble counter, etc. Like I said, I really just want a plug-and-play solution.

Why isn't there a pinned topic here??

Sorry if it sounds like I'm ranting... I'm really a nice guy!

 

[Discomafia]

If you're willing to spend that much, why not just get a few of these?
Not sure if that'd be a good idea for a tank that size though... refills and all that, a real CO2 injection canister unit would be a better idea. Try PM'ing one of the members that have large planted aquarium, they'd know.

 

[Waterloo Kid]

Some terms for you:

Diffuser/Reactor - the equipment used to disolve the CO2 into the water. This could be a bit of kit like the Hagen Natural system 'ladder' that basically makes the bubbles take a tortuous route to the surface giving them longer to disolve into the water or as simple as directing the bubbles into the inlet of a powerhead that smashes the bubble into tiny fragments that disolve quicker.

Regulator - the kit that regulates the amount of gas leaving the pressure cylinder. These are normally the two valves on top of a bottle of CO2 that restricts the pressure of the gas entering the rest of the system. Without one of these the pressure would be at that of the bottle and basically the bottle would empty in seconds resulting in a big mess of water and dead fish.

Bubble counter - this lets you see the amount of gas leaving the bottle by bubbling the gas through a small column of water. You can literally count the number of bubbles released in any given time and adjust the regulator to give you the required amount. It might have another purpose, but I'm no expert so I don't know.

Tube - now I'm taking the Mick!

WK

 

[heresmike]

If you're willing to spend that much, why not just get a few of these?

Well, because I don't think they're reliable/consistent enough, and you can't control the output. Even if they were reliable and controllable, I would need at least four of them for a 90 gallon tank. I wouldn't want to have that many of those little units.

 

[heresmike]

Thanks WK for the explanations. That all makes sense, except for the "Tube - now I'm taking the Mick!" ... you lost me there!

So, it looks like the only thing missing from the Eheim unit in the link above is a bubble counter. How important is this? Is that the only way to count the bubbles, or can you just do it visually? Are there any other features that the Eheim unit is missing? Are there any other units available that are superior/more complete?

Thanks!

 

[smithrc]

lol - Taking the mick - It's an english term for taking the pi55.

If you can afford it - a complete CO2 control unit is a few hundred pounds - It'll be cheaper in the US - probubly a few hunderd $$.

the system will use canisters of CO2 and it will control the rate of release so that the PH stays at a preset level.

you set the ph level acording to you KH (hardness) and the ammount of CO2 you want deffused in the tank. eg a ph of 7 in a tank with a KH of 8 mans the CO2 is about 30ppm - just right for a vell planted tank.

If i could justify it - i'd get one tomorrow

instead i'm working on a preasurised DIY ststem to do the same thing - but it'll cost about £40 (plus free bits from houshold appliances)

 

[heresmike]

lol - Taking the mick - It's an english term for taking the pi55.

If you can afford it - a complete CO2 control unit is a few hundred pounds - It'll be cheaper in the US - probubly a few hunderd $$.

the system will use canisters of CO2 and it will control the rate of release so that the PH stays at a preset level.

you set the ph level acording to you KH (hardness) and the ammount of CO2 you want deffused in the tank. eg a ph of 7 in a tank with a KH of 8 mans the CO2 is about 30ppm - just right for a vell planted tank.

If i could justify it - i'd get one tomorrow

instead i'm working on a preasurised DIY ststem to do the same thing - but it'll cost about £40 (plus free bits from houshold appliances)

I thought it might be an English thing... and actually so is taking the pi55 ?!?

Thanks for that add'l info. So it doesn't sound like the Eheim model I refer to is the complete unit you're talking about. Can you recommend a manufacturer/model? Sorry to be so helpless...

 

[smithrc]

ummm.. i cant off the top of my head - sorry...