diy co2

[aznpanther98]

i'm plannin on setting up a co2 system and was wondering should i have less co2 output b/c i have alot of fish in my tank? i got about 20-25 between 2-4 inches fishes in my tank and well recently i lost alot of my plants (mainly vals) b/c a large snail i had ate alot but it's slowly recovering anyways should i have less co2 produced with a high fish load? i'm gonna use the recipe from the previous posts

[Somonas]

How big is the tank ?

[equinom]

Since I am also in the same process, here is another question:  Some instructions suggest using a ceramic airstone, because the CO2 can damage stones made of other material.  True/False?  

From some of the things I have read, is tank typical CO2 levels less than 3, and levels above 20 - 25 toxic to fish?  It probably depends on the type of fish - hun?  But all the DIY instructions highly recommend testing for CO2, so proper adjustments can be made.

[aznpanther98]

the tanks a 30 gal i've started on it useing a 1 liter bottle and half the recipe and i've noticed a bit of growth in my plants, i use the chart for measuring co2 levels with the kh and ph levels and it looks like it's round 9.5 is that to low? i have more algae growth and the waters a bit cloudy so it's either nutrients problem or not enough co2

[aznpanther98]

i ran the co2 line into my poweer head filter with a sponge, i stuck the air line into the inlet of the powerhead to chop up the bubbles better

[Somonas]

aznpanther98 you say you are getting more algae. not good. we want more plant growth, not more algae.  how is your nutrients (NO3, PO4, K, FE, traces)  and how is your PH/KH/GH.   time to get out the test kits      If you fill your tank with co2 and the plants have no nutrients they ain't gonna grow.

+/- 9.5 of Co2 is fine - what recipe did you use for DIY ??   I have 2 bottles of diy on my 33 gallon....   it seems to work fine for me.   I try to monitor my nutrients twice a week and dose if required.

Cloudy water? green or white ?

equinom AFAIK airstones are fine , they just become clogged ?  I think clogging is more common than actual damage so "false".  I put mine into my canister directly. with no airstone

"true" It probably depends on the type of fish - ..  I'd think if your fish are gasping you probably have wayyyyy over 20ppm of co2 in there.     if they do gasp you can blow off some excess co2 at night.

[aznpanther98]

i checked the levels the other day and it was at 6.8ph 2gh 0 nitrites 0 ammonia don't have a test kit for nitrates and other tests yet but i did put some ferts liquid fert tetrapride 0-0-3 and flourish tabs for th substrate in few days ago, the water looks a bit green this happened to my 10 gal when i first set it up but it's cleared up in that i cleaned the front glass few days ago and it doesn't seem to have any algae or very little in it maybe the otos and pleco in there is helping...

[equinom]

How long would it normally take for DIY CO2 to start producing?  It's been around 36 hours, and very little activity.
The only time I see bubbles is if I swirl the sugar/yeast mixture.

My set up:

Glass jar with yeast, sugar, water    an air tube through lid  (silicon sealed)  Tube extends into jar, not into mixture

Second glass jar, about filled 1/3 with water.  Air tube through lid  (silicon sealed) from jar with yeast (silicon sealed), tube  extends to bottom of jar - under water.  There is a second air tube coming from top of second jar - which is attached to a glass airstone which is in the fish tank.
A small plastic cover is positioned above the airstone, to hold the CO2 in the water a little longer.

The temp of the tank is around 76F, the house temp is about 72F.  I wrapped the glass jar in a towel today in an effort to keep it warm - Any suggestions?

How quickly the yeast/sugar starting reacting is temperature dependant. When I had my diy C02 injection on my 90G, I had 2 4L bottles pumping out C02. Every week I would replace one bottle. The mixture started reacting within 12 hours because if you look at my tank, I can open the back. Thats where I put the bottles and it gets pretty warm in there ( I would say around 80-84F).

One thing I always did was mixtured the sugar in very hot water first in order to disolve it completely. I did this in a separate container and then poured it into the bottle. I then added the same amount of cold water to the bottle. The yeast I also mixed in a separate container but using warm water (If you use hot water, it will kill the yeast) until it was pretty much disolved. I then added it to the bottle and then filled the rest of bottle up with cold water. I put the cap back on the bottle and really shook the bottle. This worked the best of me and the C02 was bubbling in less than 12 hours.

The harmful level of C02 is 30ppm. Ideal range is 10-20. Tanks without any C02 injection have levels around 3-5ppm.
You can measure the C02 levels by using this chart:
http://www.thekrib.com/Plants/CO2/co2-dietsch.gif

Therefore if you have plants, C02 is a must.  miley*

[aznpanther98]

my diy started off slow useing a 1 liter bottle half the recipe just to see how it works probally change it to a 2 liter next time but it's been about a week now and i can see bubbles being produced in the mixture my room temp fluctuates now it can get really warm in my room so the mixture does produce co2 more not sure how much is being produced but right now it's kinda cool weather so my rooms kinda cool but the weathers been out of whack in this area had tornados/warnings 3 days in a row in maryland area last weekend lol