Co2 Pressurized System Set Up

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  • #1
I am purchasing an Aqua-Tech regulator with a minI 24oz paintball tank. In reading thru forum on CO2 blogs, I am not sure of myself. I have a 65gal live planted tank. What all do I need? Regulator-timer-CO2 resistor tubing/hose air hose-diffuser-bubble counter-check valve-CO2 tank? Is there a Brand that sells all this as a kit? What is this best brand for this set-up, i.e. Aqua-Tech etc. If I am going to spend a couple $100 I want to be sure it is really what I need and the best to buy. Thanks for helping out a Newbee.
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bigdreams
  • #2
Not sure, but I have always drooled over these:

Check out their whole line up. There are other companies with less expensive setups. I personally would get a nice kit than attempt to DIY.

I have low tech setup at the moment. High tech CO2 would be nice but it's a lot more work and maintenance. Three years now with my dirted tank... These days I totally neglect it for weeks and it's still ok with decent growth. In fact I added root tabs in February after a whole year of no fertilization. With high tech the tank would have turned to mush/algae farm in a few days.
 
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  • Thread Starter
  • #3
Not sure, but I have always drooled over these:

Check out their whole line up. There are other companies with less expensive setups. I personally would get a nice kit than attempt to DIY.

I have low tech setup at the moment. High tech CO2 would be nice but it's a lot more work and maintenance. Three years now with my dirted tank... These days I totally neglect it for weeks and it's still ok with decent growth. In fact I added root tabs in February after a whole year of no fertilization. With high tech the tank would have turned to mush/algae farm in a few days.



Bigdreams. Thank you and in checking out some of the recommended kits WOW1 Nice but costly and look complicated. What is your low tech system and your habits appear very close to mine.
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bigdreams
  • #4
Those kits arrive assembled for you, you just connect the CO2 tank, set a dial or two and you are done... Otherwise you need to build out something similar in your DIY to avoid CO2 dumps when your tank runs low, pressure buildup (since tank is under a lot more pressure than what is needed for CO2 diffusion). A lot of the DIY setups (paintball type) take short cuts or aren't as safe as they could be... Something to think about. Milwaukee brand is another popular one I believe.

My tank is three and half years old now... 55 gallon Dirted tank (inspired by Walstad) plus 29 gallon sump running at about 200gph, with a 25 watt TMC vectron UV filter on the return. Sump is a mattenfilter sump with 2 three inch Poret blocks. I have a koralia nano 225 circulator pump in the display for additional flow. I used to have mechanical filtration but got rid of it, the Poret handles it all. I sometimes vacuum out mulm from sump and I have only "squeezed" the Poret foam once in three years (about a year ago). It was beginning to get backed up, but may have been my imagination. My nitrates are high, admittedly, around 40-80ppm.. I used to do weekly updates but for past year been doing monthly to every two or three weeks so that isn't good. Been too busy with work and family . The extra water volume helps. Being overstocked doesn't. (17 lemon tetra 4 pearl gourami, 9 sterbaI tetra a couple of kuhlI loaches, 12 or so cardinal tetras (now over two years old) , and a lot of guppy and their fry (counted about 30+ last time I attempted to count). The guppies definitely pushing the stocking but can't myself to get rid of them.

As far as plants, mostly swords, moss, crypts and a two ludwigia repens stems , and a lot of hornwort. It's amazing how you can push stocking with (tropical) hornwort . I have 11 honey sunset gourami in a 15 gallon cube, but sometimes I think there's more hornwort than water in the tank!

It's also pretty cool how fast moss grows when near the surface and under bright lights. I have a football sized thick clump of moss now in the 55 gallon. Pretty cool.that's probably filtering my water too. I didn't fertilize for two years (relying on soil), then tried osmocote, that made nitrates skyrocket, don't recommend it unless you are super careful and use very little ( I only used 6 pellets, where most people use gelatin tablets... That's gotta be rough on the fish ). I didn't fertilize again for another year, got some seachem roottabs for my swords in January. Saw some improvement, going to retab later this month. Nitrates are high so getting algae now more than ever before, but I don't mind it. Got some black beard algae growing on some pothos roots (got pothos growing out from the top), looks like an scary fury octopus in the tank, lol.
 
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  • Thread Starter
  • #5
Those kits arrive assembled for you, you just connect the CO2 tank, set a dial or two and you are done... Otherwise you need to build out something similar in your DIY to avoid CO2 dumps when your tank runs low, pressure buildup (since tank is under a lot more pressure than what is needed for CO2 diffusion). A lot of the DIY setups (paintball type) take short cuts or aren't as safe as they could be... Something to think about. Milwaukee brand is another popular one I believe.

My tank is three and half years old now... 55 gallon Dirted tank (inspired by Walstad) plus 29 gallon sump running at about 200gph, with a 25 watt TMC vectron UV filter on the return. Sump is a mattenfilter sump with 2 three inch Poret blocks. I have a koralia nano 225 circulator pump in the display for additional flow. I used to have mechanical filtration but got rid of it, the Poret handles it all. I sometimes vacuum out mulm from sump and I have only "squeezed" the Poret foam once in three years (about a year ago). It was beginning to get backed up, but may have been my imagination. My nitrates are high, admittedly, around 40-80ppm.. I used to do weekly updates but for past year been doing monthly to every two or three weeks so that isn't good. Been too busy with work and family . The extra water volume helps. Being overstocked doesn't. (17 lemon tetra 4 pearl gourami, 9 sterbaI tetra a couple of kuhlI loaches, 12 or so cardinal tetras (now over two years old) , and a lot of guppy and their fry (counted about 30+ last time I attempted to count). The guppies definitely pushing the stocking but can't myself to get rid of them.

As far as plants, mostly swords, moss, crypts and a two ludwigia repens stems , and a lot of hornwort. It's amazing how you can push stocking with (tropical) hornwort . I have 11 honey sunset gourami in a 15 gallon cube, but sometimes I think there's more hornwort than water in the tank!

It's also pretty cool how fast moss grows when near the surface and under bright lights. I have a football sized thick clump of moss now in the 55 gallon. Pretty cool.that's probably filtering my water too. I didn't fertilize for two years (relying on soil), then tried osmocote, that made nitrates skyrocket, don't recommend it unless you are super careful and use very little ( I only used 6 pellets, where most people use gelatin tablets... That's gotta be rough on the fish ). I didn't fertilize again for another year, got some seachem roottabs for my swords in January. Saw some improvement, going to retab later this month. Nitrates are high so getting algae now more than ever before, but I don't mind it. Got some black beard algae growing on some pothos roots (got pothos growing out from the top), looks like an scary fury octopus in the tank, lol.
 
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  • Thread Starter
  • #6
Bigdreams. Mucho gusto. No question for me but to get the entire system kit and cobuddle as I am having trouble figuring out how to hook my EHEIM Canister filter. I have done my eco substrate-put in my driftwood and slate rocks and two amazon swords and filled the tank with about 50 gals of declorinated water - put in my two heaters-have got temp up to 71F so far. Need to get filter going to clean up water from substrate and my python to clean bottom and wipe down tank glass and set back and test-test for cycling to finish-add a few more plants -test-test and if all OK Fish Time
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