GardenBanter.co.uk - Co2 Questions

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I am new to the whole aquarium scene, and i recently set up a new 30
gallon tall aquarium. Not knowing anything, I was relying on the one
15watt bulb that came with the hood to supply enough light to my
plants. After watching the sword slowly 'wilt' i did some research
and went out and bought a 20 inch 28 watt compact flourescent hood to
use in conjunction with the 15watt bulb that was currently being used.
Some algae started growing on a big rock i have in the tank, nothing
serious, so i figured the amount of light I had was probably DOING
something now. Still, though, I have not seen ANY of my plants give
off any oxygen bubbles. So i did some more research. Yesterday I
made one of those DIY CO2 yeast reactors and attached it to a
bubblestone . It seems to be producing enough gas, but after about 24
hours or so my ph hasnt changed at all, and my plants still arent
producing oxygen, so im thinking that maybe the co2 isnt getting
dissolved into the water, its just rising to the surface and exiting.
So i did some MORE reading today and put the hose into the intake of
my Penguin 170 Biowheel. Now wvenever a bubble escapes the hose, the
filter makes a little noise. Is it possible to get the co2 dissolved
into the water through this kind of filter or not? Why arent my
plants bubbling nicely!!! All i want them to do it grow and be happy!

If anyone has any ideas or suggestions PLEASE let me know, i would
greatly appreciate it.

Thankfully
Connor Maltsberger

It seems to be producing enough gas, but after about 24
hours or so my ph hasnt changed at all, and my plants still arent
producing oxygen, so im thinking that maybe the co2 isnt getting
dissolved into the water, its just rising to the surface and exiting.

That is likely.

So i did some MORE reading today and put the hose into the intake of
my Penguin 170 Biowheel. Now wvenever a bubble escapes the hose, the
filter makes a little noise. Is it possible to get the co2 dissolved
into the water through this kind of filter or not?

It's possible, but it's difficult. The Bio-Wheel dissipates a lot of CO2. You
might consider removing the wheel, or getting a different kind of filter. If
your pH doesn't drop, the CO2 is not getting into the water.

Why arent my
plants bubbling nicely!!! All i want them to do it grow and be happy!

You still have a fairly low-light tank -- 1.4 watts per gallon. At that
lighting, the plants may not bubble even if you get enough CO2 in the tank.

However, you have enough light now to grow some nice plants, if you choose them
carefully. And you don't have to inject CO2 with this light level. (If you go
over 3 wpg, you'll have to inject CO2.) So you could have a beautiful,
low-maintenance tank that could be a real joy, as long as you don't expect the
plants to pearl like crazy or grow an inch a day.

Leigh

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