How many bubbles per second

[cdsgo1974]

Hello,
I just acquired a pressurized CO2 system and am therefore new to the concept of pressurized CO2 injection. I am still in the process of performing trial and error and doing some research on my own in order to find that sweet spot for my plants to thrive. I have attached an image of my current setup. I have recently rescaped so the plants don't look as established as I would like. An article I read (Welcome To UKaps - CO2 Measurement Using A Drop Checker) says 1 bubble every 2 seconds is what it recommends for a 20 gallon tank.

Fauna:
Blyxa Japonica
Rotala Indica
Rotala Rotundifolia Red
Staurogyne Repens
Glosso
Lilaeopsis Brasiliensis
Anubias Nana
Narrow Leaf Java Fern
Heteranthera Zosterifolia (Stargrass)
Riccia Fluitans

Lighting:
2.4 WPG

Ferts:
Seachem Product Line (doing EI dosing)

If you can give a suggestion on how many bubbles per second I should set my CO2 injection to, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks!

cheers

[2wheelsx2]

Nobody can really say what the bubble rate should be. I would start out low, like 1 per 2 seconds as you said, and then monitor the drop checker and your fish. If your fish are gasping, then dial it back no matter what the drop checker says. Do you have good surface agitation? Your plant mass is very very low right now, so you shouldn't really need a high bubble rate.

[cdsgo1974]

Hello,
I just acquired a pressurized CO2 system and am therefore new to the concept of pressurized CO2 injection. I am still in the process of performing trial and error and doing some research on my own in order to find that sweet spot for my plants to thrive. I have attached an image of my current setup. I have recently rescaped so the plants don't look as established as I would like. An article I read (Welcome To UKaps - CO2 Measurement Using A Drop Checker) says 1 bubble every 2 seconds is what it recommends for a 20 gallon tank.

Fauna:
Blyxa Japonica
Rotala Indica
Rotala Rotundifolia Red
Staurogyne Repens
Glosso
Lilaeopsis Brasiliensis
Anubias Nana
Narrow Leaf Java Fern
Heteranthera Zosterifolia (Stargrass)
Riccia Fluitans

Lighting:
2.4 WPG

Ferts:
Seachem Product Line (doing EI dosing)

If you can give a suggestion on how many bubbles per second I should set my CO2 injection to, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks!

cheers

I have two HOB filters but I keep the water top up to keep surface agitation at a minimum. I also lowered the temperature as per Gouedi's suggestion (which I also confirmed from my own research).

OK, thanks for the advice.

[2wheelsx2]

I think with the HOB's you may have to waste a bit, but with the water right to the top, it shouldn't matter much in a smaller tank. What's your CO2 injection method? That would also come into play, as some methods are more efficient than others.

[cdsgo1974]

Pressurized CO2... Milwaukee CO2 system... and then directly to a CO2 Atomizer that I bought at King Ed's for $14.95 (included the price as it may give you an idea which one it is). Is the placement of the atomizer/diffuser critical?

[2wheelsx2]

Thanks, I think I saw that you got pressurized on another thread (might even have been an old regulator of mine ) but am not sure what atomizer you are using. It's a ceramic glass diffuser that you are putting in the tank? I assume that it's not an inline atomizer since you're using a HOB.

Edit: Oops, I see it in the pic. It's the one in the right hand front corner? We normally call those diffusers.

Anyway, to get back to the original question, you want to put the diffuser where the flow around the tank is greatest so it can reach all parts of the tank, so if that area is where the "down-draft" of the HOB is greatest, that might be the best place.

[cdsgo1974]

Thanks, I think I saw that you got pressurized on another thread (might even have been an old regulator of mine ) but am not sure what atomizer you are using. It's a ceramic glass diffuser that you are putting in the tank? I assume that it's not an inline atomizer since you're using a HOB.

Edit: Oops, I see it in the pic. It's the one in the right hand front corner? We normally call those diffusers.

Anyway, to get back to the original question, you want to put the diffuser where the flow around the tank is greatest so it can reach all parts of the tank, so if that area is where the "down-draft" of the HOB is greatest, that might be the best place.

I still have the packing and it says atomizer but that's what I thought too... that it's simply a diffuser.

Thanks again!

[2wheelsx2]

I think some countries have other conventions and call them atomizers, but most of the people in North America call them diffusers. Either way, they're not the most efficient way of using CO2, but I like it, so I use it. In my 125, I have an inline atomizer and an ceramic diffuser because of the long length of the tank (6'). But I've always used a diffuser in my smaller tanks. And I'm about to use one in my ADA cube too.

[cdsgo1974]

Thanks for all the information... very much appreciated. Have you had any experience using the Red Sea CO2 Reactor (Red Sea C02 Reactor (Reaktor) 500 Using HOB filters, this may be a viable option for me if they do work.

[cdsgo1974]

Thanks to everyone who responded to my questions!! I bought a used CO2 reactor and Red Sea submersible water pump from Robert Luongo (forum member, not the NHL player ). Looks like it's doing a great job diffusing the CO2. I guess time will tell.

Closing this thread.