New To This With A "dumb" Question

[Gavlar]

ok so basically ive recently purchased an aquarium, came with plants and a co2 filter, thats fine, however i cannot work out the co2 filter to a state of it bubbling, ive been given 2 or 3 ways of using it, the sachets and 2 different home recipes but all these "lines" inside, i simply cannot see.
that being said i was wondering if the use of an airpump could suffice a similar purpose to the plants or not, im almost certain i know the answer to be no but i wish to make sure before dismissing it as an alternative.
is there an ideal PH that planted aquariums work best at? im still in the setup stages and only inhabitants are cleanup crew of snails and a couple of shrimp.
regards,
Gavlar

 

[Gavlar]

the CO2 setup i was given was the nutrafin co2 system with the bubble wall. think its a basic setup but being unable to make even a basic setup work at the moment partly from not living at that house at the moment and partly through sparodic work shifts i simply cannot decifer how to work it. i am starting to get concerned the plants will begin to suffer from lack of co2 when they are still in the process of being revitalised from the aquarium being relocated from previous owner to me.