my new cannister filter and co2

[danski]

Woooooooooo Hoooooooooo--the wifey let me pick up a cannister filter last night but first i need some advice. first ive noticed that since ive added my 2nd co2 on two ocassions my fish seemed to be gasping for air and turning pale. i immediatly introduced air from my pump to drive off excess co2 and things were fine. do i need to readjust my co2 mixture? last time i read it my co2 was only 25ppm.
2)-how does the cannister filter introduce oxygen with so little surface aggitation?
3)-should i use the spraybar or the power jet head?
4)-where should i put the lift tubes and returns to maximize filtration?
5)-since im not going to use the carbon any suggestions for adding more sponges, i noticed they have a few different types of sponge in there.
thank you beforehand for your input.
by the way i purchased the rena xp-1 good for up to 45 gal. my choices were fluval which i was told are just so so, the eheim which i absolutely cannot afford,and the rena. I went middle of the road.

 

[danski]

anyone have any advice? im itchin to install this thing

 

[nodding_dino]

sorry danski...it's a LONG time since I last used an external filter so can't really help out...

 

[danski]

did i say external ? i meant cannister. sorry.what are you using by the way nodding dino? thanks

 

[nodding_dino]

don't apologise...! you said cannister, I just presumed you meant an external )

I have a Juwel tank and am just using the internal filter that came with it...with the small number and size of fish that I currently have, theres no real need for me to add anything too clever (yet... )

 

[danski]

okay..thank you. by the way ive read alot of your posts with interest

 

[danski]

after lookin around i think this should of been in equpitment forum.(anyone care to move it) sorry.

 

[nodding_dino]

okay..thank you. by the way ive read alot of your posts with interest

[snapback]860918[/snapback]​

thanks!

 

[houndour]

i assumed cannister was external? is it internal then?

Dispite whether its internal or external....

do whatevers best so you don't disturb the water too much or your CO2 wont have a chance to dissolve.

As for filter media...I personally filled the space that was supposed to hav ethe carbon filter with more bio-media (which is the tube like stuff). You can put filter floss, or a very fine sponge material in the 'last' space to filter out the tiny bits.

Did you test your CO2 when your fish were gasping for air? If not if they do this again, test it there and then.

Plants take in CO2 and expire O2 during daylight hours as a process of photosynthesis (sorry if this isnt all technically correct, biology a-levels were quite a while ago now). And at night, plants take in O2 and give off CO2.

If you are concerned, you could set an air pump on timer so it turns on at night? So that it cancels out the effect of adding CO2 at night.

Hope that helps a bit.

 

[danski]

thank you that was very informative.yes it is an external cannister filter(sorry). i didnt even think to test the water then but its a great idea and i will be sure to do that next time. also the pump on a timer is a great relief to know an easy way to get some air in there without getting up at midnight. houndour do you think this filter will introduce enough oxygen into the tank, since there will be less surface agitation? thanks

 

[houndour]

houndour do you think this filter will introduce enough oxygen into the tank, since there will be less surface agitation? thanks

I'm afraid I have no idea.

Are you planning on having quite a heavily planted tank? Maybe you could fill it out with some fast growing plants? the more plants then common sense says they would take in more co2 and give out more oxygen.

But then going by the same idea you could just cut down on CO2 output (less yeast).

What is your lighting like? How many watts per gallon?

 

[houndour]

oh and if you put air pump on timer, make sure you have a um...(cant remember name...) check valve?? So when it turns off in morning it stops the water from syphoning out if it does go back up the tube.

 

[danski]

good call on the pump i never woulda thought of that. that coulda been ugly. any way im runnin about 2wpg. i have a 29gal tank with a 65watt 6500k compact flourescent. i think i will try remixing with a little less yeast. i would like to have a few more plants than what are seen in my signature though

 

[Mondego]

just thought i'd like to add something about your fish gasping for air.

if you are pumping Co2 during night time hours, you may want to cut this. houndour is accurate about saying plants give off Co2 during the night, and when you combine these, together, you have a lot of Co2 in the tank. Correct me if i'm wrong but i believe this can drop your pH. you can hook up a Co2 tank to a system that shuts off Co2 dispersal into your tank during the night, but i'm not sure if they have anything similar for DIY setups. If there is i would invest in one.

 

[danski]

yes that could quite possibly be the problem. both instances were in the night hours.any suggestions besides an air pump. could i maybe increase the air coming out of my exit tubes at night? i noticed my filter has a little plug i can manipulate that sends anywhere from minute air bubbles to gobs of it. funny thing i cant find anything about its purpose in the manual so im assuming thats what its for at this point. i will give them a call tomorrow for sure.