[LaquariaJackson]

Hello fellow planted tank lovers!

A few days ago my extremely cheap CO2 system in my 75 gallon completely died, and I do not want to refill it again because it is defective. I've been thinking of two options: 1) getting a new CO2 system or 2) getting two new fish instead.
My flora: Anubias, several echinodorus, rotala, staurogyne repens,and java fern. IIRC these are all relatively low demanding plants.
My fauna: 7 discus
Ferts: Flourish as instructed
Lights: (1) Current Satellite LED, (1) Finnex Ray 2 LED Daylight
Filters: Diatom as needed, Eheim Cannister, Emperor Hang on
Tank conditions: 84.5 F, 0-10 ppm Nitrate, 0 nitrite, 0 ammonia, pH 6.5-7, and I do daily 10-15g water changes.

Should I get two new discus and let my tank grow without Co2 for a while and see how it does, or should I lean more towards a new CO2 setup? Oddly enough, my 25 gallon W/O CO2 has the same plants and has much more plant growth with less light and same ferts.

Thank you all for the help!

EDIT: It is important to note that with the addition of two new discus, I would trade out two others currently in my tank. Some time ago when I was less experienced, I ordered some discus and two ended up being stunted. They are very small, do not eat much, and will not grow past the 3" size they are now. 5 of my Discus are very large, healthy, and eat like monsters.

 

[OVT]

IMHO, go without CO2, which has no place in a Discus tank, unless you are really, really experienced.

 

[LaquariaJackson]

Thank you for replying OVT! I was beginning to think this might get buried. I'm not sure what my experience level is, but I would eventually like to reach that goal. Also, what I've been currently reading is that for the CO2 to be effective in my tank, I would need to up my ~1 watts per gallon to 2-3, so it seems that for the current state of my tank no CO2 might be best.

 

[PlantedRich]

I would also recommend going with no CO2. I have it on several tanks and it is some help. But then I also nearly killed by whole tank full of the fish I like best. I was amazed at how easy a simple slip could push things from working to nearly killing. I now am backed off and while still using CO2, it is far reduced. I never really wanted some of the things that full CO2 can provide. I only wanted my plants to look good enough to make the fish look good.
With a bit more plant experience, I'm finding I can get the plant level I want without the high risk of higher tech and full blown CO2 use.
If you have not see it, this post might give a look at what I mean.
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/8-general-planted-tank-discussion/1000122-co2-warning.html

But in the end, it is a personal decision and not all of us have the same priorities.

 

[Hoppy]

You will have plenty of light with just the Finnex Ray2 light, without CO2. With both lights you risk running into lots of algae problems if you don't use CO2. You probably have 50-60 PAR with just the Ray 2. As I recall Discus aren't too happy with a lot of light anyway.

 

[LaquariaJackson]

Hoppy,
are you suggesting I should just use only the Ray II and cut out the Current Satellite to reduce algae with no CO2 involved?
Thanks!

 

[OVT]

Current USA Satellite (with 2 rows of LEDs) do not produce that much light. I use them so that I can see what's in the tank.
Hoppy does have a point but the missing part is how heavyly your tank is planted and with what. If you have some floating or surface trailing plants then then how much light you really have at substrate is unknown. 75 g is also a relatively tall tank.

In the end, it is up to you to experiment and see what works best for that tank.

 

[PlantedRich]

Is it too late to warn you that this can be a mind boggling trip?
If not---be warned!
I more or less stumbled into the planted game and feel I was lucky. I was not at all sure I wanted to bother ,s o started very lightly with very flexible lighting and no CO2. As it seemed to be working well, I added better lighting as well as ferts and CO2 But I did it as I began to see progress over several years. I also found it was easy to get a bit off course and I am always "adapting/adjusting" me or my tanks.

 

[Hoppy]

Hoppy,
are you suggesting I should just use only the Ray II and cut out the Current Satellite to reduce algae with no CO2 involved?
Thanks!

The Ray II light is stark white, without much red in it, so the appearance of the fish and plants may not appeal to you. But, if that isn't a problem for you, then, yes, I suggest using only the Ray II light. You also could push the Ray II light towards the back, and add the other light near the front, so the two don't combine for quite as much total light. And, you might find the appearance more appealing. In either case you are pretty high in light for not using CO2. You could try Flourish Excel, dosed at 2 ml per 10 gallons (twice what Seachem recommends), and without using the Seachem recommended 5 ml per 10 gallons when changing the water or starting the tank. That will help the plants grow faster, which helps inhibit algae growth.

 

[LaquariaJackson]

Thanks for the advice Hoppy! I actually already have my lights set up in that order, as I found that to be the best placement.
I've been monitoring my tank for the last few days and have noticed some things. The rotala are losing their nice reddish colors and algae is beginning to take over my tank and cover my plants very quickly.The plants all seem less healthy, even though I've been keeping up with ferts and water changes. I'm really considering getting a new CO2 system, it seems like the aquarium as a whole would be healthier if I did.

Bump: OVT,
I would say my tank is medium to heavily planted? Here is a picture of my tank if that helps.

http://imgur.com/rZqCOCJ