[urbguy]

I created my first diy co2 generator yesterday night and was so happy to see that it actually works. i didnt have a diffuser but i used a wooden chopstick to create those fine bubbles. however, i failed to read about night care and found that it had drastically lowered my pH. i knew that it would lower it but had NO idea that it could lower it by that much. especially for diy i was told that it was capable of changing the pH by THAT much and i have a 60 gallon tank. but i guess i was wrong...nothing happened but i did an immediate water change and my canister filter helped by churning that o2 into the water. now i'm back to a 7.0 pH. scared me soo much i was about to go to sleep and leave my diy co2 tank on the whole night....i dont think i'm going to settle for a diy co2 generator anymore...that yeast bottle is a bad idea...and being optional i think i'm just going to let that be for now...

 

[Darkblade48]

How big was your bottle of DIY CO2? For a 60g tank, unless you had multiple 2L bottles or a very large bottle, it wouldn't really make that much of a difference (in terms of CO2 production) anyway.

How much did your pH lower by? Swings with CO2 are not that uncommon and some people do leave their CO2 (whether it be DIY or pressurized) running at night to no ill effects.

There really is too much emphasis placed on having the "right" pH for fish. Most fish can adapt to a wide variety of pH ranges. Just because (say) a Neon tetra likes acidic water does not mean it cannot be kept in water with pH 7.5.

 

[urbguy]

i have a tester kit, and i tested it to be at 6.0.

 

[Darkblade48]

That kind of swing (provided it is gradual, as is the case with CO2) is not that worrying...

 

[urbguy]

god, i really am a newbie...when people say that it's optional, how optional is it? i feel like it's mandatory that we should have it. i mean i will eventually purchase a pressurized co2 system, but my finances are not really going to cover that at the moment.

 

[Darkblade48]

What are you referring to as "optional?" CO2? It is not mandatory in low tech tanks (i.e. low light tanks), however, the addition of it is beneficial for the plants.

However, in high light tanks, CO2 becomes necessary, unless you want to grow an algae farm.

How much light do you have over your 60g tank, and what kind of plants do you have/are you trying to grow?

 

[urbguy]

i'm really glad you asked, i currently have a "deluxe fluorescent reflector" light fixture/hood, the specs are 120 volts 38 watts, the fluorescent wattage now is only 25 watts. it came with the tank and i'm planning on upgrading rather soon. i've been trying to find something good online. to answer your question about plants, i have some wisteria, amazon swords, and 2 types of riccia fluitans. i'm trying to get this light for my 60 gallon and i wasn't sure if it will be enough.
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3060841
if you have any other suggestions please feel free to let me know, but yeah, my tank is pretty low tech, obviously lol... -_-'