Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)

Hi,

John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.

I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.

With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.

I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.

If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.

I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.

I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.

Thank you
Darragh Sherwin

C02 System Advice

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Mike53 (Michael)
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Junior Member

28 Sep 2012 13:41 - 28 Sep 2012 15:11 #1 by Mike53 (Michael)

C02 System Advice was created by Mike53 (Michael)

I have been considering putting a C02 system into my 330 litre tank for some time now and am unsure how best to proceed.

There are several kits available on the market which include the whole system, i.e C02 piping, solenoid regulator, bubble counter, diffuser, CO2 cylinder, direction check valve, but they are quite expensive (up to €250 and more.) And then you have the PH tester to consider, again these range up to €250 for the digital ones.

1. Can anyone recommend a good value C02 system i.e a complete package or is it better to get the parts separately. (I'm told you can get a solenoid regulator on e-bay which can be a bit cheaper.) The obvious advantage of the complete kit is they come with an instruction book on how to set it up.

2. The C02 cylinders, are these best bought from your LFS ? I'd like to get a large one that's not going to need replacing every month.

3. PH tester - how critical is this and what would anyone recommend. Are Digital controllers necessary ? (again these seem very expensive). (I have a test kit already but I'm assuming you need something more accurate once you start pumping c02 into the water.

Any advise would be much appreciated.

Mike

Last edit: 28 Sep 2012 15:11 by ().

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BillG (Bill Gray)
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Senior Member

28 Sep 2012 14:28 - 28 Sep 2012 14:30 #2 by BillG (Bill Gray)

Replied by BillG (Bill Gray) on topic C02 System Advise

Hi Mike,

You can get the set-up with the expense by going a DIY route. If you search the forum for CO2 and take a look through the threads, you will get all the advice you need, but here it is in a nutshell.

Co2 system - go the Fire extinguisher route. There are plenty available through the forum and they come up regularly for sale. They come in 2kg or 5kg sizes, for your tank a 5kg would last more than 6 months.
Easily re-filled in lots of places around the country. There is even a thread hiding somewhere with a list of places that do re-fills.

Regulator and Solenoid - source through e-bay. Just make sure they are the correct voltage rating. Again, searching the forum, you will find links to good ones used by some of the forum veterans.

Check valves and diffusers, again, e-bay or cheap enough from any of the sponsor and good LFS.

Ph tester - no need for high tech ph controllers. You could invest in these systems eventually but by no means essential. A drop checker, again through sponsors or FLS will give a good indication of the ph and they work.

GOing this route, the whole set-up would cost you between €100 and €120.

Not a very specific answer I know, but I would suggest looking through the threads and determining what would best suit you based on what you read.

Cheers,

Bill.

Last edit: 28 Sep 2012 14:30 by BillG (Bill Gray).

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28 Sep 2012 15:11 #3 by anglecichlid (ciaran hogan)

Replied by anglecichlid (ciaran hogan) on topic C02 System Advise

Hi I done up a DIY system, fairly easy to make there cheap,the only down side is that you can't turn them off at night,but I never do anyway and I don't have any problems, on the upside I've seem a dramatic increase in growth with my plants,now there all in pots for easy maintenance

Anyone with a aquarium can keep fish,
But it takes real skill to be a fish keeper,

And it's spongeBob,
SpongeBob lives in a pineapple under the sea
BLANCHARDSTOWN

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