# DIY Co2 question - Airstone while running Co2



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

I'm curious if I shouldn't be running my airstone during the day while my DIY Co2 system is running? 

I've read threads where people suggest running an airstone at night while the lights are off because the plants are not using the CO2.

But I've never read anything on turning off the airstone during the day while the Co2 system is running

I can't imagine it hurting anything, however I'm only supposed to be running just the Co2 system during the day I'd like to know

thanks in advance.


----------



## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

The reason people run air stones at night is plants change their respiration and produce co2 at night.The bubbles from airstone cause surface aggitation and "out gas" the co2.I wouldn't run the air stone during the day.Just hook up air pump to a timer to shut off when lights turn on andon when lights turn off.The bubbles from air stone are "counteracting" the co2 IMO.


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

Thats what I was thinking, I'm going to have to buy a 10 pack of timers. I just bought 3 for some new lighting.

Now I'm going to need another


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

Another question, I've watched some people put the tiny Hagen 1gal filter into their tank to disperse the Co2 and I"ve also heard/read people mentioning hooking up their DIY system to their powerhead

If I were to hook up my DIY Co2 system to my powerhead would I suck too much Co2 out of my DIY system?

I would think a regular powerhead could draw some serious air from the tubing, I'm just curious if I would be putting my fish at risk by sucking the Co2 out of the system.

again thanks, I'm sure these questions have been asked a 1,000 times.

I have 1 (2 liter system with a mason jar as my bubble counter on a 29 gallon tank)

From what I've read, I should be using 2 ( 2liter bottles for any tank larger than 10 gallons)

For now I'm just testing out the waters, I'll be getting my Co2 indicator kit this week. So once i get that rolling, I'll play around with it a little more. I have no way of telling if I have too little or too much Co2 right now so until I have the tester I'm going to play it safe.


----------



## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

If anything, the powerhead would increase the back-pressure on the CO2 system. My whirlpool Red Sea reactor did that. Just make sure your CO2 system is air-tight outside the tank and it won't matter too much whether the system is pulling a vacuum or has back-pressure.


----------



## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

^1^
If the system is air tight then the only thing the powerhead could pull is the co2 created,and creating enough pressure to feed the powerhead.If the system is air tight then the powerhead can't pull anything that doesn't "ferment"(build pressure).


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

coralbandit said:


> ^1^
> If the system is air tight then the only thing the powerhead could pull is the co2 created,and creating enough pressure to feed the powerhead.If the system is air tight then the powerhead can't pull anything that doesn't "ferment"(build pressure).


I'm an idiot, I was thinking that the power head might be drawing extra air/co2 but it's only going to be drawing whatever is put into it.

I thought that maybe the power head might draw more air/co2 because of the pressure from the water.


----------



## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

^No idiot^! Good question and many probly still don't understand.But yea, if you ran an airline to powerhead bubbles would fly,put your finger over the tube and? NO bubbles.
No stupid questions ,I just started pressurised co2 yesterday so for those who have done it for years the answers are easy,but I don't know them still!
We all need a little help or explanation,thank God for this sites great members!


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

I bought this 
Amazon.com: Nano Carbon Dioxide CO2 Diffuser - Glass Reactor for Aquarium Tank Plants: Pet Supplies

& this

Amazon.com: Fluval Ceramic 88g-CO2 Diffuser - 3.1 Ounces: Pet Supplies

for my DIY meth lab ( i mean DIY Co2 reactor ) I'm getting bubbles right now, but all I have hooked up is a crappy airstone that I wrapped a scotch pad around with a zip tie. I would NOT recommend this method to anyone  but it's the best idea I could come up with. 

Totally cheesy, but I had to try something until my amazon purchases come in the mail.

From what I've read, it seems like the Fluval might not work with the DIY system, but until I get my Fluval Co2 indicator I don't want to go overboard and kill my fish.


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

The fluval is intended to be used with a pressurized system, but I think I'm going to try and hook up a 2nd 2liter bottle and see if I can get it to work.

If not, I'm going to use the glass difuser and hopefully i'll have better results.

Sucks to watch your plants slowly dying


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tetra-T585-Plant-Co2-Depot/dp/B000XA6PJC

I wonder why I can't find this on US Amazon? that's odd? I imagine Red Sea's version is similar. But I wonder why I can't find it on Amazon?


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

Tetra Plant Co2 Optimat - Impianto Co2 - YouTube

here's a video of the product being used, and I found the product on ebay. I just don't see / understand how creating an air bubble without the Co2 dissolving put's Co2 into a tank?

If this actually works, I can put my air tube into my plastic vacuum and just silicone the top. Would this work? Or am I wasting my time by creating a Co2 bubble that's not getting diffused


----------



## jccaclimber2 (May 6, 2012)

While possible, I wouldn't be surprised if your diffuser doesn't work. A lot of those require 20-30 PSI before they'll start passing any reasonable amount of CO2.
Your powerhead will probably draw it out at a slight vacuum. Look up the 'venturi effect' for more on how this works.
Turn the air stone off during the day. It will bring your system closer to equillibrium (which in this case is less CO2, but more O2). Note that if you aren't running any CO2 the airstone may slightly increase the CO2 (and O2) in your tank as the plants will be keeping levels below where they would be normally.


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

+1 for diffusers usually needing higher pressures to work properly. Don't think a second bottle would get you there. DIY systems operate at pretty low pressures.


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

I plan on hooking up a 2nd 2 liter bottle once I get my purchases from amazon.

Not sure if 2 bottle will yield 20 psi? I saw a few videos where people were using a DIY system with glass diffuser. 

I'm 99% positive that the fluval diffuser I bought isn't going to work considering I saw it included in the pressurized kit from fluval but it was only a couple bucks.

I've only spend 20 or 30 bucks total so far on plants, accessories and if what I bought doesn't work I hope to not have to spend more on a pressurized system.

Paying / taking care of 3 tanks is enough work. I played around with the DIY system just for fun. I really don't plan on getting crazy with spending more cash on upgrading my system at least not yet


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

guy at LFS said that he's got a tank at home and just uses flourish excel and never messes around with Co2 and all of his plants are fine.


----------



## jccaclimber2 (May 6, 2012)

Some of my tanks run great without CO2. My display tank on the other hand turns in to an algae farm in a couple days without it. It all depends on how your system is set up.


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

if diffuser doesn't work as expected. I'm just going to add a 2nd bottle to my DIY system and put a "T" from my air pump to my DIY system and have that running through the diffuser. I'm sure with the air pump and the 2 bottles rolling I'll get some bubbles coming out.

It won't be long before my ADD kicks in and I take all of it out and move onto the next thing I'll waste money on


----------



## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

If all else fails, I have 3 500mL Flourish Excel bottles sitting here, I bought them thinking Flourish comprehensive and Flourish Excel were the same thing, and since I already have a pressurized system the Excel is wasted on me.


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

Gizmo said:


> If all else fails, I have 3 500mL Flourish Excel bottles sitting here, I bought them thinking Flourish comprehensive and Flourish Excel were the same thing, and since I already have a pressurized system the Excel is wasted on me.


Figures, I just bought some Excel yesterday. This DIY thing is kind of a pain in the ...

I bought both the glass and Fluval ceramic diffusers and for a day or two both of them worked and then once the pressure started to drop and I changed the Co2 fluids BOTH diffusuers no longer worked???

With the fluval I tried putting some peroxide on it to see if I could clean it but it still wouldn't work anymore.

I really liked the look of both diffusers and the bubbles they were putting out were great. My tank was at a perfect Co2 level but again like someone has already mentioned they're not designed for the DIY system.

My next step is running this setup.










This is a GREAT site for the DIY Co2 novice, it is the best page I've found so far

DIY CO2 System for Planted Aquarium

I already have 2/3rd of all of the parts so I'm going to try and see what happens. I'm happy with my DIY system going directly into my powerhead however I'm thinking that I'm wasting a lot of Co2 by just putting the tube right into the intake on the powerhead.

Hopefully my Amazon purchases will be here in a few days, for anyone that has a PRESSURIZED system and is interested in the Fluval or Glass diffuser hit me up. 

They were only used for 2 days and are practically brand new but they're of no use to me now.

Thanks again for all of the comments


----------



## jccaclimber2 (May 6, 2012)

That should work better. Set it up right and you can put the CO2 in after the pump. If you get gas lock in the siphon tube ask and I'll show you the easy fix when I get back to a computer.


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

That's a pretty informative site. What type of powerhead do you have? The Hagen/Aquaclear heads have an air inlet on the output that your airline could be put into. Using powerheads is not bad as long as you see the large air bubbles coming from your CO2 bottles getting dispersed. That is the most important thing. This can be done with really small powerheads that are made for nano tanks and don't require a big one. I used to use one for my 29g that worked perfectly.


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

Yeah, the site has been very helpful . The rest of the site I've Been on haven't provided 1/2 of that information.

What's gas lock, JCC?


It's an old petco brand, it really doesn't move the water as well as it once did. But I'm thinking that it should work. I don't really want to buy the one they recommend unless my power head doesn't work.

Also, I mixed up a new batch of co2 liquids last night &used twice the amount of al the ingredients and finally got my glass diffuser to work again. I know once the pressure wears off it will stop working again, but it's nice to know that it is possible to use the DIY system with the nano diffusers. I'm sure the seals on my DIY system will eventually leak

I'd really like to go pressurized, but mos systems are kinda expensive. 

Amazon.com: AQUATEK CO2 Regulator Mini: Pet Supplies

This is nice, but a little too expensive to buy for my 3 plants. If the PB tank were included I might think about it 

I'm looking for a system under $ 50 with the tank. If I can find it

I'll post the link later but I'm thinking of maybe going with a paintball DIY system, found a YouTube link with a guy making/selling a cheap ASA valve


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

PB tanks are pretty cheap. Personally, I'd rather get a CGA 320 size regulator and then get a reducer.


----------



## jccaclimber2 (May 6, 2012)

I agree. Wait longer if needed to save the extra cash and do it right with a 10 or 20 pound tank.


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

Ideally I would love to get a nice setup, and after reading about the PB setups it seems like they don't last all that long 

so spending 50 -100 for an item to only last a year is like throwing money out the window which I really don't want to do.


----------



## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

I bought one of the PB regulators once. It failed in less than 30 days. Get a normal size regulator, some are as cheap as the one link you posted, and spend a few bucks for a reducer/adapter so it will fit on the PB tank.


----------



## attackonthebass (Aug 3, 2013)

for now I'm just going to keep using the diy method

haven't found a affordable system for pressurized, if I had a 55 gallon planted tank I'd think about buying a tank but it seems like a lot o cash


----------



## lonedove55 (Jan 25, 2012)

> Another question, I've watched some people put the tiny Hagen 1gal filter into their tank to disperse the Co2 and I"ve also heard/read people mentioning hooking up their DIY system to their powerhead


Just thought I'd mention I've used that Hagen Elite mini filter Amazon.com: Hagen Elite Underwater Mini Filter, UL Listed: Pet Supplies before on DIY CO2 and it works fairly well. Tried it with the sponge attached to the small outflow nozzle thing (per youtube videos) and the sponge would get gunked up with tank debris, so I just pointed the small (and I mean it's SMALL) outflow nozzle down. The filter does churn up the larger bubbles into tiny ones. It's not the best looking set up, what with the airline tubing, the filter itself (about 2" x 2" x 5" long) and cord all going into the tank. The problem I had was the end of the tube that is fitted into the filter would eventually gunk up with the CO2 mixture, even with a check valve between it and the CO2 bottle. I only used a single bottle set up with this method though. And I paid no where near that price for it on Amazon either...was like $6.


----------

