CO2 System Setup in Vivarium

[Studdlygoof]

I don't have any experience with growing live plants in an aquarium and wanted to grow some in my vivarium at home...my pond area of the vivarium is approx 30 gal of water with a sump underneath this...i've done some web surfing on what i would need to set this up and found out that plants do the best when a CO2 Reactor/Diffuser is incorperated...my question lies in is it possible to put the diffuser in the sump or does that defeat the whole purpose of dissolving the CO2 in the water...any help would be appreciated...

[Rex Grigg]

Is not the sump part of the water system?

[Mgamer20o0]

sump most of the time really gases out the co2. if there is only 30 gal if water try excel. you could also go with lower light plants. other then that you need to try to seal off the sump so no air can get out. i would just put the co2 next to the out take in the sump.

[Studdlygoof]

Semper Fi there Rex...the sump is part of the water system but my return comes back into the tank via a waterfall...im a little worried about losing the CO2 as it goes over the falls...is this a legit concern?

[Rex Grigg]

If the return is over a waterfall it's not going to do a lot of good to run the CO2 into the sump. The other problem you could run into is much higher levels of CO2 in the Vivarium.

And that can happen no matter where the CO2 is injected. You have to look at the entire system. Injecting CO2 anywhere in the water will mean it's everywhere in the water. And it will end up going over the waterfall and out gassing.

[Studdlygoof]

So are you suggesting not running a CO2 system at all?

[ergo sum]

Why would you need it?
We would need a lot more information to really help you. What is it you want to grow? How much light do you have? What is in the tank? How deep is the water? How much land space is there? Etc.

[Rex Grigg]

So are you suggesting not running a CO2 system at all?

Unless you have air movement to remove the released CO2. Are you sure you really need CO2 injection?

[Studdlygoof]

What is it you want to grow? How much light do you have? What is in the tank? How deep is the water? How much land space is there? Etc.

I don't know anything about the CO2 systems or planted tanks for that fact so i'm glad I came here to chit chat with you guys...ill start from the beginning and show you what I have and tell you what I want to do that way you guys can give me some better advice....

Here is my tank so far...

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e105/Studdlygoof/Vivarium/WilliamsburgMaritimeMuseum122.jpg

Its a 30 gal. tank that I have modified into a vivarium setup...excuse the mess in the tank but its still in the construction process...in the top out of water section i'm installing various tropical plants on a false background with an automated misting system...you can see the land area I have so far and the waterfall section in the left hand corner of the tank...

here is a closup of the waterfall...

http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e105/Studdlygoof/Vivarium/WilliamsburgMaritimeMuseum120.jpg

As far as the tank goes...I have a UGF attached to a sump that is located underneath the tank...water is then returned to the tank via the waterfall...

What i would like to do is have a successful aquatic plant section in the 30 gal part of the setup...not quite too sure about what plants yet because i havent gotten that far but from the pictures i have seen in this forum's gallery it will be something along those lines...(background, middle ground and foreground plants included with rocks and driftwood)...i'm not too concerned really about having much live animals/fish in it and if anything probably just a school of tetras and a pleco...

Lighting for the tank i havent thought about much either...definatly some type of florescent plant lights in a ballast system (3-4 florescent tubes)...maybe you can help as well as suggestions as to what type of lights would be best...

Do you think this setup requires a CO2 system or do you think i could have a successful aquatic plant base without it...hopefully this helps fill in some of the holes as far as my current setup and i would greatly appreciate the help...thanks...

[ergo sum]

If I understand those pictures you are building a large open space above a 30g tank. Unless you plan on putting some lights under the land mass you have built, you are going to have almost no light in the tank itself. I think before you worry about co2 you need to think about getting light into the tank.

Perhaps you might be better off starting your land mass on the bottom of the tank You could then put about 10 to 15 gallons of water in there and grow most of the plants emersed. That would still give you room for a few fish, it would be easier to light and would not need co2.

[Studdlygoof]

Yeah I was worried about the distance of the water from the lights...i've been searching for maybe some type of submersible lights that I could attach to the bottoms of the land mass's...is there such a thing?...would it be possible to seal regular lights in something such as acrylic tubing w/o the tubing blocking the neccisary essentials for the plants?...thanks