Is co2 needed in a planted tank?

There is one thing I'm not sure at - I'd be happy to hear your thoughts.

I have heavy vegetation on my aquarium, and I think that at some point, you can remove the CO2 system and the plants will continue thriving.

Why do I think this way?
- Lately I do not change the yeast as I used to be, and the plants are doing great.
- Every morning when I come to the aquarium, I see that the fish are all at the top breathing heavily.
- I think that plants breath O2 and release CO2 at night, and the amount of CO2 after the night is enough for the day.

Anyone having a similar experience?

Hmmm, that is an interesting idea. I do know like you said that plants breath co2 during the day and oxygen at night. Of course they are producing the opposite while breathing the one. As for weather or not they produce enough co2 for the day I really don't know. The fact that your fish are breathing heavily at the surface suggests that they are not getting enough oxygen. Your plants could be producing too much co2 at night. Maybe you could add an airstone at night or trim out some plants to combat the problem.

It's probably a bad idea to run the CO2 system at night, especially because the fish seem to be short on oxygen. Lots of healthy plants are always good for an aquarium, but they do produce some carbon dioxide when it's dark. Why not try leaving the aquarium lights on all night, then seeing if the fish are gasping for air?

The CO2 system is really active during night, as the temp drop and the yeast is becoming inactive on low temp.
The light idea during the night - genius!
I'll update you.

I like the idea of leaving the light on at night.

I'm interested in trying out a CO2 system.

Please keep us posted as to what happens.

Not that I have anywhere near as many plants as you... Mine grow slowly and then some die... it takes some hardy plants in my tanks! LOL! That's why I was thinking of experimenting with some CO2...

Have you thought about using one of the clay based substrate supplements like laterite? For years, I couldn't get much to grow in Phoenix water, but then I started using Flourite in some tanks. Much less laterite is needed, so it's cheaper. Both things really work so long as you don't have fussy plants. Has anybody on here ever used one of those carbon dioxide fizzzzzzz tablets?

angela_brown wrote:

Please keep us posted as to what happens.

Not that I have anywhere near as many plants as you... Mine grow slowly and then some die... it takes some hardy plants in my tanks! LOL! That's why I was thinking of experimenting with some CO2...

I was in the exact same problem as you.
The moment I added the CO2 it gave a huge boost to the plants.
And it's not tons of CO2, it's a DIY system for a 120 gallon tank.

johnarthur wrote:

Has anybody on here ever used one of those carbon dioxide fizzzzzzz tablets?

Never tried it.
I think it adds some more chemicals to the water, but I'm not sure.
It's also quite expensive over time.

Maybe I'll look into one of those commercial fermentation systems. They should be smaller and less messy than a DIY system.

i have a tank packed with plants, and i never used a CO2 system. i started with just three plants and three gouramis, and the plants made runners and before i knew it they had dominated my tank! i guess naturally the plants and fish make an ecosystem or something. maybe you could get more fish? i wish i knew what kind of plants those were, i know i have Jave ferns though.

Why not send a picture. Maybe someone can help you identify the plants.

I have CO2 going into 2 of my tanks and I do think that it has done my plants alot of good. However, because the plants take in oxygen at night and I can't shut off my CO2 canister, I always turn on the air pumps to those tanks in the evening. I turn the air pumps off in the morning because I don't believe the fish need it during the day.
That's been working for me for the past 4 months, so I will stick with it.

Hey
I just started to build my first planted aquarium.
It's kinda low tech
10 gallon,ocean sun 10 000k fluorescent light,dwarf baby tears and java moss in black Seachem fluorite.
And i bought Co2 tablets,i gonna give them a try.About one tablets every week for a 10 gallon aquarium.
I can't tell you yet how the tablets are working because my planted tank only a 1 week old,but if anyone interested i will keep you guys updated!Thanks!

Sorry for a long comment,and for my bad english

welcome to our forum..you can use co2 injection to your aquarium when you tank is large and you do a large aquascaping..otherwise co2 injection is of no use...

Welcome to the forum. The tablets I heard are good as supplementary CO2 to help boost growth for java moss. Small tanks usually don't require a CO2 system but the tablets are good if you want the plants to grow a little faster.

Thanks for the info sir!I hope too the co2 tablets will give a little boost to the plants.
It's a great site guys with a lot's of help!!!Thanks again!!

i have a planted tank actually i have 6 planted tanks and i noticed my fish breathing at the surface i just put a air stone at night and took it out in the morning and than put it back at night and they seem to do great ,, so try that and turn off the co2 at night . hope it works for you .....

Carbon dioxide injection can also cause rapid changes in pH.