Co2 and airstone

[Andres391]

HI guys I have a no power filter of any kind soley relying on plants and 2inch gravel with Carrib black substrate by the way the fish, shrimps and 2 nerite snails are healthy and happy I've had the tank like this for months just adding water however the co2 levels are low and the black substrate raised the ph since its rich in minerals so I added a co2 tank and it been 3 days so far the plants are releasing oxygen and Pearling yet not all but 2 of the fish seem to be breathing hard I reduced and kept the 1 bubble per second plants are still doing its thing added a airstone just for 5 minutes and fish were fine again but what if I add a airstone since I have no power filter I though it would be fine to add the airstone to not only bring in some oxygen but to also circulate the water a little. What are your thoughts on that?

 

[awilkinson871]

An airstone isn't really going to circulate water just create gas exchange at the surface. You really should have a filter for various reasons- water circulation, BB growth, increased oxygenation, etc. Without a filter I would not recommend co2 because the fish will suffer.

 

[Andres391]

An airstone isn't really going to circulate water just create gas exchange at the surface. You really should have a filter for various reasons- water circulation, BB growth, increased oxygenation, etc. Without a filter I would not recommend co2 because the fish will suffer.

Thank you for responding. Airstone does cause the water to move around my tank at a slower flow which I'm ok with also filters cause gas exchange as well unless your using a canister filter. I belive the only difference between the airstone and filter is that the filter circulates the water more and obviously more surface area for bacteria to colonize. My gravel and plants have plenty of surface area the gravel I have are made from black volcanic porous rocks wich doubles or triples the surface are for bacteria. The whole concept is just moving the water at a slow rate and bringing oxygen in without a bulky filter. The reason I prefer a slow rate is to kind of mimic the Rio Negro River with has a slow stream.