Tetraplant Co2 Optimat Or Nutrafin Co2 Kit

[scottca]

Hi All,

Just wondering if anyone has had any experiece with TetraPlant CO2 Optimat kit, you have to buy refill cannisters and then you release the co2 by pushing a button to release a burst of Co2 that goes into a diffuser - says you need a couple of bursts a day... just wondering if anyone has used one and how they rate it compared to the Nurtafin Co2 kit, I know the downside is it costs more to replace the cannister whereas the Nutrafin one you can just use sugar and yeast (That sticky is supurb by the way!)

Does anyone know how long a cannister will last, and if they are any good ? There also cheaper by £5 in my lfs

Cheers,

Craig

 

[Liam]

The Optimat kit will give some Co2 to the water, it might be okay on a small tank, but I would go with a yeast based system it gives more Co2 to the plants and the cost is nothing in the long run. I had a similar kit to the Optimat years ago but it made no difference to the ph in a 10gal tank which tells me that hardly any Co2 went into the water.

 

[scottca]

Thanks Liam... Ill have a shop arround for a Nurtafin Co2 kit then ditch the supplied sachets and use the yeast and sugar mix as suggested in the sticky

Cheers,

Craig

 

[juwelfan]

I have been thinking about CO2 for a while now. I have lots of plants and they are struggling. There's plenty of light and 'soil' and fertz, but i end up with lots of algae instead on lush green plants.

I was going to set up a JBL CO2 Set Easy 1, but almost £90 made me think twice. I decided to try the Tetra Optimat CO2 (http/www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=484) as a cheap intro into the CO2 world. Its only been in for a few days. I've yet to notice a difference (as you'd expect in such a short time period). I really cant see it doing much, but i'll report back after 2 weeks of use.

Mite try this Nutrafin CO2 kit after the 2 weeks of trying the Tetra Optimat. I'll read the sticky 1st, the idea about very cheap refills sounds great.

Anyone had experience of the JBL CO2 Set Easy 1?

Cheers,
Juwelfan

 

[nry]

Bit late for some but I think the Optimat system is rubbish - manual addition of CO2, no method at all of keeping CO2 at any specific level, fill the cyclinder twice per day manually (which most people who work or go to school cannot do!) during the lighting period.....I gave up with mine, the Nutrafin kit is much much better, more stable rates of CO2 if you go for two bottles with DIY mix, vary the amount of yeast to get levels 'where you want'. The ladder system works very well, I managed numerous times to make my drop checker yellow (bad!) using this kit on a 15-gallon tank until I worked out the right amount of yeast to add.

 

[juwelfan]

Nutrafin it is then. My Scientific training is making me want to wait 2 weeks to see if this Opitmat works (for the fair test), but my consumer impulsiveness is pushing me to my LFS in the morning.

So nry, do you think i the Nutrafin will be fine for my wee 70L tank? is a pressurised co2 system a waste of money on such a small tank?

 

[RadaR]

Nutrafin it is then. My Scientific training is making me want to wait 2 weeks to see if this Opitmat works (for the fair test), but my consumer impulsiveness is pushing me to my LFS in the morning.

So nry, do you think i the Nutrafin will be fine for my wee 70L tank? is a pressurised co2 system a waste of money on such a small tank?

Understandable about the fair test, however it really isn't worth it. Ive given the Optimat a go myself and wasn't impressed.
1 Nutrafin will be ok for a low light Rekord 70. However with more light, say 35W+ then 2 would be better so that you could keep a constant level of the required output of CO2.
Pressurised wouldn't necessarily be a "waste" on a Rekord 70. It would be easier to use, aspecially in the long run. Not to mention that one 500g canister would last a few months. It all depends on if you can be bothered to manually change the yeast mixtures in the Nutrafin Canisters each week or so. The good things about pressurised is, if you ever want to sell the kit if you "grow" (sorry, couldn't resist) out of it, then people are always willing to buy.

 

[juwelfan]

Cheers RadaR, I just read all 11 pages of the Nutrafin 'sticky'. It looks very cheap and effective. Changing the mixture once a week will be fine, as i clean the tank weekly anyway.

I have two questions:
How concerned about the fluctuating CO2 levels should i be?
Are atomiser-style diffusers better than the ladder? And will they work on a single Nutrafin kit?


In this article (http/www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/pfk/pages/blog.php?blogid=116) PFK’s Jeremy Gay writes about running CO2 24/7, dont most of these Nutrafin kits do that anyway? Theres no off switch on yeast.

'nry', could you give me a tip on a pressurised system worth looking at?, i.e which one do you use?

Sorry about all the Q's. The more i read the more questions i have.

 

[nry]

For my Rekord60 a ladder was as effective as a diffuser, I only went for a diffuser as they are much smaller.

I have now moved to pressurised (D-D kit from aquatics-online.co.uk as it was £100 delivered) to reduce my tank maintenance time (kids and all that!) and ensure CO2 levels are as stable as possible.

 

[RadaR]

Cheers RadaR, I just read all 11 pages of the Nutrafin 'sticky'. It looks very cheap and effective. Changing the mixture once a week will be fine, as i clean the tank weekly anyway.

I have two questions:
How concerned about the fluctuating CO2 levels should i be?
Are atomiser-style diffusers better than the ladder? And will they work on a single Nutrafin kit?


In this article (http/www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/pfk/pages/blog.php?blogid=116) PFK’s Jeremy Gay writes about running CO2 24/7, dont most of these Nutrafin kits do that anyway? Theres no off switch on yeast.

Fluctuating CO2 levels are quite an issue. They need to be avoided. This is becuase the plants won't be able to adapt quickly to the swings and also the CO2 amount may not be enough (30ppm). These will both render you with algae that are taking advantage of the situation.
Some atomiser-style (ceramic glass diffusers) may work with the Nutrafins. Such as this one. The only problem is that enough pressure has to be built up in order to go though the diffuser. This may take a while. They are better than ladders though. Alternatively you could give the Jaqno C02 Reactor a go. Pressure wouldn't be too much of an issue then.
Yes, the Nutrafins run 24/7, which isn't a problem. There are some people that have used their DIY skills to ensure that CO2 doesn't enter the tank at night, however it really isn't needed and I've been running CO2 at night without problems.

 

[juwelfan]

Cheers for your help and advice.

I've got the Nutrafin CO2 kit up and running using Farmer 'G's info. I'll have to think about a device to monitor CO2 conc. But as i have an airpump with airstones giving surface agitation i guess CO2 levels wont reach too high anyway (well Carbonic acid levels really, CO2 + H2O ⇌ H2CO3, Do aquatic plants really absorb CO2(g) anyway? or is it H2CO3 or HCO3−?).

Anyway, i'll wait 14 days before i make any changes.

Tar.

 

[Themuleous]

You want to reduce surface agitation as this will drive of CO2, which is just a waste.

If you want a cheap DIY pressurised CO2 kit, check out the link in my sig

Sam

 

[juwelfan]

You want to reduce surface agitation as this will drive of CO2, which is just a waste.

If you want a cheap DIY pressurised CO2 kit, check out the link in my sig

Sam

So my airpump goes off? But i was just reading on P F K that running CO2 with some normal aeration was a good idea.

 

[nry]

Normal aeration is (in my mind) the water movement caused by a filter which does not disturb the water surface much. Air pumps and filters which add loads of bubbles or disturb the water surface a lot are not generally required providing you have not overstocked and you have good water quality through relevant filtration and maintenance.