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co2 24/7

5K views 47 replies 13 participants last post by  kevmo911 
#1 ·
hi

i recently got a co2 regulator off a friend who is very generous.
i was later discussing co2 in planted tanks with a member on another forum, i told him about my planns to setup co2 in my tank and that i got this regulator, he asked if it was soleniod and it isnt, he said i would need to turn it on and off manually every day, i then asked the guy i got it off how he runs his tanks. he runs his tanks 24/7 but keeps a close eye on ph.

my questions are
1) if i were to do this would i need to decrease bubbles per secound
2) is it safe for fish?

please any experience advise is greatly appreciated
keep in mind i am new too co2
thanks :)
 
#2 ·
From reading on here, plants only use CO2 during the day when the lights are on, so at night, its just building up in the water not being used and either lowering pH too low or gassing your fish. I don't run CO2 but I think that's what I've read before.
 
#3 ·
you can run co2 24/7 without a solinoud
however since it will build up at night you would have to run at a lower bubble count
people do this all the time with diy co2
a problem you will run into if you want higher levels of co2 is
the co2 will be to low during the day and to high at night
to run 24/7 efficiently you would need a solenoid as well as a ph controller
 
#5 ·
its hard to say
it depends on how efficient the co2 diffuser is, how big the bubbles are
how big your tank is as well as flow and surface agitation

get a drop checker, start at very low bubble count and check in morning
slowly up bubble count every day until your no more then line green in the morning
make sure you have surface agitation so as to keep o2 levels high enough
 
#6 ·
You could use a powerhead/soda bottle (or filter sponge) reactor in your tank. You can simply turn off the powerhead at night and the CO2 will simply bubble to the surface. This is the way that I want with a DIY CO2 system.
 
#8 ·
Here are a few pictures. Notice that I turned the powerhead on its side to more easily let the CO2 bubble out at night (you could turn it upside down if you wanted to). For the powerhead, I chose the slowest that I could find with the least energy usage (it is a RIO 90+). The bare hose in the bottle acts as the bubble counter. I would say that this is about 95% efficient. Very small bubbles will sometimes escape from the bottom. However, as others have done, you can put a piece of sponge at the bottom to get it to 100%.

My current Nutrafin CO2 generator is running at about 1 bubble every 5 seconds and this is enough for my 40 gallon breeder.
 

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#14 ·
Yes, I did. I wanted to be able to access the inside of the bottle. I have lots of small holes in that bottom piece, and I was afraid that detritus from the tank would build up in there (the same problem exists for a sponge on the end).

So, I just cut the bottom off, turned it around and stuck it back in.

I used the Rio 90 Plus bump because it is small and uses only 2.8 watts. Basically, the slower the flow, the better, and the bigger the bubbles the better (if you were to add an air stone in my setup above, more bubbles would escape).
 
#12 ·
I run mine constant, I really don't think it's that big a deal. I run about 1vbubble per 3 seconds through a powerhead into my 40 gallon, haven't had any problems. Reaction through the powerhead is pretty efficient, but I have never seen the fish gasp or act crazy. That being said, it does have a solenoid, I just bought a crappy timer that quit working so I said the heck with it and haven't replaced it. I will sometime though, for one reason: using co2 12 hours is half as much co2 as 24 hours, which means half the trips to the welding shop and half the money spent on co2.
 
#13 ·
Just get yourself a really small powerhead and attach it to a soda bottle. Then, just stick the CO2 tubbing into a hole in the soda bottle, and you are all set. There are lots of things you can do to the base of the bottle, like add a sponge (I pocked tiny holes in it, cut off the bottom, and turned it around).
 
#17 ·
Yes, my 40 breeder is deep, so this easily hides behind plants. Another option is to use a powerhead into a filter sponge. This is slightly less conspicuous, but higher maintenance (you will need to clean the sponge from time to time).

Here is a picture of that setup:

http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/images/graphics/filtermaxco2airdiffuser.jpg

I started with a sponge reactor, but my wife and kids like to watch the swirling CO2. :)
 
#23 ·
I've been using tanked co2 with solenoid and needle valve for over two decades and injecting it 24/7. This is the same as nature does. I adjusted the needle valve and leave it alone. I use a *Powerhead pump to disperse the co2. No reactor, no sponge... I occasionally check the ph. Shoot for a slightly yellowish green which will equal a ph of **6.7-6.9.

*Too achieve very tiny bubbles less than 0.5mm I use an unused diabetic syringe. Break off the needle part. The syringe is inserted into the air injection port on the Powerhead pump. It never wears out and it never needs to be cleaned. If this is a practical possibility for you give it a try. If not a syringe think of another way using this basic idea to create these very tiny bubbles. It's simple and maintenance free and easy to hide.

** This will turn ammonia into ammonium which is food for your plants
 
#36 ·
It's possible but this is quicker. Take the pictured syringe remove the plunger then break off the needle. Shorten the length of the syringe, a utility knife will cut the plastic. Insert the shorten syringe into a length of silicone tubing and the syringe into the same hole where the plastic tubing is inserted into the powerhead. The needle will break where in goes into the plastic of the syringe. Do you understand now ?
 
#34 ·
You can PM Bettatail for more information. You are pretty much buying the pipe hosing for the soleniod, the needle valve, and the soleniod itself. Then, you need a general purpose AC adapter 12v or 24v to power the soleniod. I think Bettatail can hook you up on that. I got my CO2 setup from him too.
 
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