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CO2 Equipment
Eheim CO2 Diffuser/Bubble Counter
by Bob Buettner 5/11/99
This is a small plastic device about 3" tall and 2" wide, with a small inlet (sized for mini airline tubing) designed to force CO2 from your cylinder at aproximately 15 PSI, through a ceramic disc. There is a suction cup that pushes on an extrusion on the back of the unit for attaching to your aquarium's glass. At this pressure it is considered a "high pressure" diffuser as the low pressure units run at considerably lower pressure and require what can be a fairly expensive needle valve to reduce the flow rate. The kit also comes with a small one-way check valve to prevent water from siphoning into your air line and tank valve.The advantage of this diffuser is it's relatively low cost (around $22.00) and the fact that it also functions as a bubble counter so you can adjust the rate of flow. I have had to clean it every couple of weeks of use or the bubbles get too large and they do not dissapate completely in the tank water, after a thorough cleaning the bubbles are back to a fine mist.The first time I removed the mini air line tubing from the Eheim the small inlet extrusion snapped off inside the air line! So a word of warning is to remove the tubing from the included air check valve, not the base of the diffuser for cleaning. I drilled out the broken off inlet fitting and epoxied a fitting frome one of those flexible air stones from my LFS into the base. This now allows me to use standard size (silicone) airline tubing to connect the diffuser to my CO2 cylinder. To overcome the large bubble problem I devised the following procedure. Now I don't have to clean the diffuser as often as the larger bubbles are pulverized completely in the filter impeller and none exits the filter outlet. I have placed a piece of 1" clear, rigid tubing over the Eheim CO2 diffuser output to vent the CO2 bubbles directly into the intake strainer of a Magnum H.O.T filter (bottom of the strainer has been drilled out as it is solid from the factory), a Penguin sponge prefilter ( a replacement for their powerhead, is placed over the HOT's intake strainer and the clear 1" tubing fits through the hole in the sponge pre filter and over the intake strainer by about 1". I drilled several holes in the lower portion of the 1" tube near the base that sits on the Eheim diffuser and cut a piece of pre filter sponge to slip over the tubing so as water is drawn through the holes to mix with the CO2 , debris is filtered out) The CO2 bubbles are completely dissolved by the time the water exits the Magnum H.O.T. Click here to see a picture of this setup. Unfortunately the only other alternative high pressure diffuser that I have been able to find is made by ADA (Pollen Glass Diffuser) and is fairly expensive ( around $55.00 mailorder for the small one) and does not come with a bubble counter (another $20.00 to $30.00). I have received email that this is a very excellent diffuser though. Click here for a site showing the Eheim diffuser in a complete high pressure kit.
On Line Mail Order Plant sellers
Arizona Aquatic Gardens
by Katie Z. -1/30/00
When I became interested in completely aquascaping my tanks with live plants, I first made a trip to my local fish store. Although my local fish store is great in other areas, the area of plant offerings was problematic for them. Frustrated with the selection and quality at my LFS, I began to do research online for a plant source. The resources for aquatic plants page within The Krib website (http://www.thekrib.com/ ) listed Arizona Aquatic Gardens. I gave them a try and my experience with them has been wonderful. They say they are a "big small company" and I agree. They resemble a large company in their selection, stock and prices. Their selection is huge - many, many species. They also include ready-to-go "authentic habitat plant packages" to help you create a biotope tank to better replicate the natural habitat of the fishes you keep. They have a new "discus habitat" that should be of interest to many. It isn't necessary to do hours and hours of research to find the species you need, and then additional hours finding who has them - Arizona Aquatic Gardens has done the research and has the selection. They also have aquarium plant tools, fertilizers, substrates and water conditioners, lighting, medicines, books, posters, caves and volcanic decor, chemicals, CO2 systems, fish food, medications, lilies and lotus plants, terrarium plants, pond plants and they even carry banana, pineapple and other tropical fruit trees. When it comes to the scope of what they offer and the vast selection of species within the aquarium plants section alone, they really have the qualities of a very big company. Their prices also reflect what one might find with a large company that does a lot of volume - I was shocked, after what I paid at my LFS, to see the prices listed for the aquarium plants. They are, as Arizona Aquatic Gardens puts it, ridiculously low. With all the benefits of a large company, the Arizona Aquatic Gardens customer also gets all the caveats of dealing with a small company. When I called, I received personalized advice and help that is one of the benefits of dealing with a small company. In addition, Peter, the person who helped me, spent quite some time on the phone with me learning about my tanks and needs, and thoughtfully recommended appropriate plant choices. Also, most of the times that I phone, I get a live person on the line - another huge benefit of dealing with a small company. When I called again to place my second order, all my information was in my customer file - no need to re-state any shipping or billing information. Once someone is an established customer, they can order by phone, fax or e-mail - simple and easy. I like the fact that they like to speak to first-time customers on the phone to gather all the information at once to create a customer file - this not only makes subsequent ordering easier, but gives the customer a chance to ask questions and get some advice. Arizona Aquatic Gardens lets you know, on their website, what ordering deadlines are for specific shipping dates, and after shipping, you can call them to get the tracking number for your shipment. You are also informed what day to expect your shipment so you can be prepared. This is important, as I like to be home to receive the plants so I can get them unpacked and in the tanks quickly. Finally, I must mention the quality of the plants I received. They were larger than I expected, especially considering the prices I paid. The amount of stems in each of the bunch plants was generous. Some of the plants were in plastic pots with rock wool, with well-developed root systems. They were bright and healthy with no shipping damage. There were very, very few damaged leaves or pieces that had to be trimmed - on most of the plants there was no "grooming" necessary. They were nothing short of robust. I planted them right away, and they were free of snails, snail eggs and algae, and were extremely clean. New growth was very apparent within the first week. I have been very pleased with Arizona Aquatic Gardens. Take a look at their website at: http://www.azgardens.com/
Substrates and Additives
Seachem's Flourite
by -Robert Paul H.-Aqua Botanic-5/12/99
I recently converted my 100 gallon tank
from a sand/laterite substrateto Seachems Flourite. I have been
very happy with the results
What is Flourite?
Flourite is a fracted, porus, clay gravel. According to Seachem,
it has been tested to provide ferric iron and manganese.Ferric
iron is oxidized iron that becomes available to plant uptake once
it has been converted to Fe2++ by organic acids. The supply of
iron is basically endless, and the gravel does not decompose.
Positive Points
*color and appearance: I like the deep, earthy, reddish brown
color. It looks very natural, and when decorating with red
plants, it blends together nicely.
*Its safe: You dont need to worry about overdoing the substrate
or making it too rich as you do with laterite or soil additives.
*It does not alter the pH.
*CEC: Presumably it has a high cation exchange capacity
*Size: Its the perfect granular size for an aquarium. Both for
appearance and to prevent compacting.
*It does not need to be replenished
*Ease of use
Negatives
*Cost! It is expensive, particularly for large tanks. Hopefully
with more competition the price will come down.
Myths
* The pieces are sharp enough to damage the barbels of
corys...NOT!
*It can contain chemical additives that are harmfull to fish: I
have seen no evidence of this, and it is a natural product
* It will alter the pH: It has never altered mine
* It will cloud your water AFTER being put in the tank: The
accumulated dust is from shipping and the pieces rubbing
together. Once in the tank I have seen no evidence of this
happening during use. The product should be rinsed in a bucket 3
or 4 times before being added to the tank. Even after this there
is some cloudiness, but this goes away fairly quickly When your
water looks cloudy, it is not a reason to be concerned. At the
worst case you would simply need to change part of the water.
For those who follow a plan to add various trace elements, PMDD
balls to the substrate to have a controlled source of nutrients
other than just iron, this can still be done using Flourite. In
fact its probably safer than when you use laterite enhanced
products or soils because you know that there is nothing
measurable in the substrate other than iron, and manganese. I
have no long term experience with this product yet, but so far I
could'nt be happier!
Click here to
visit the manufacturer's web site.
Plant Supplements and Fertilizers
Ingredients list for 18 commercial plant supplements
by Robert Paul H- Aqua Botanic 11/14/99
This is a link to a very good listing of the ingredients in 18 different commercial aquatic plant fertilizer/supplements. It was compiled by Robert Paul H. and published with his permission. You can email him by clicking on his name. Please also visit his web site, Aqua Botanic
Click here to return to my main Products Review Page
Last modified 03/05/2000