BEST CO2 SYSTEM FOR BEGINNERS?🤔 CO2 SYSTEM BUYING GUIDE!💵

Buying a CO2 system can be pretty overwhelming, especially for beginners... Today we will take a look at 6 different CO2 systems ranging from very cheap to very expensive!

1: DIY CO2 System with yeast and sugar

2: CO2 System with disposable cylinders
Could not find this in the US unfortunately

3: Sodastream CO2 system

4: Citric acid & Baking soda System

5: CO2Art Pro System (My favorite)

6: $$$$$ System

Equipment I like to use (affiliate links)

Tank
Light
Filter
Clear Filter Pipes
Substrate
Wood (similar)
Rocks (similar)
Dwarf Hairgrass (Eleocharis parvula)
Umbrella Hair Grass (Eleocharis Vivipara)
Riccardia moss
Juncus repens
Crypt parva
Crypt lutea
Crypt walkeri

👉🏻 Use Code ''amsterdam'' for 10% off CO2art products

0:00 - Chapters cuz uncle MJ cares about your time
1:14 - DIY System (sugar & yeast)
4:49 - Disposable cylinder system
7:46 - Soda stream system
10:33 - CO2 generator (citric acid & baking soda)
13:20 - CO2Art + 2kg cylinder
14:59 - Plantedbox reg + 2kg cyl + Intaqo

#plantedtank #aquascape #mjaquascaping

[liljeremyshell]

by watching your videos i decided to try co2 injection, i bought a amazon regulator, a paintball tank to start and the plant growth since adding co2 is absolutely amazing, i dont know how anyone grows plants without co2. Thank you friend, hope you return to youtube soon

[gridezeridez]

I recently entered the hobby and your videos are the best for obtaining accurate information without a bunch of nonsense talk. I appreciate that you aren't going over the top trying to entertain me and you go straight to the meat of the issue. I'm here for education. If I wanted entertainment I'd watch netflix lol. But I do like our personality as well.

[leesapollo]

I’m on DIY co2 with two plastic bottles, citric acid and baking soda…lasts about three weeks. Thinking about upgrading to the DIY reactor cylinder for the solenoid feature and better container material.

[privateportall]

So... I was enthousiastic about DIY systems and used it for months but ended up getting a 2kg cylinder with co2art regulator. The citric acid/baking soda setup had to be refilled WEEKLY on a 180L so it ends up more expensive in materials than a pressurised system. I would say the biggest downside to DIY CO2 are the fluctuations. You'll end up adjusting your needle valve daily to account for over or under reacting of your mix. It became too frustrating and plants are suffering. It shows as nutrient deficiencies (holes in leaves and general necrosis) and ofcourse staghorn...BBA and string algae. All the products marketed close to 200, - are not worth it...not even close.

Dank voor de videos Mark!

[erikachavelas]

Man thank you. I just resolved my problem to choose the Co2 best to me. Thank you again

[rafaelr]

When using a co2 reactor instead of filling it up with water use ice. It takes longer for the reaction to occur but your yield is way way higher. With 400g of each I should get over 6mo of use.

[David-lbrh]

citric acid and baking soda way can be stopped at night. You can use a valve between two bottles and let it stop reacting.

[elric]

There's also the disposable canisters like the Tropica CO2 System 60 where the CO2 is injected into a container in the tank and it slowly dissolves over the course of a day. Those are reasonably cheap too.

[BravoDNonly]

Good video as always MJ. I'm like you diy co2 in every tank.

[tomelliottguitartutor]

I bought the Dennerle carbo soda, without the solenoid it sucks. You have to turn on/off the pressure valve which releases some CO2 which is a waste. Also the needle valve is tricky to adjust as you turning the main pressure on and off. It’s to easy to forget at night and risk gassing any live stock. Your right about the bottle, it can’t be exchanged, but once you have the soda stream bottles it is a great system, a 60 ltr bottle lasts about 3 to 4 months depending on size of tank ( iHave used no bigger than 70ltr) and are cheap at £12 for refill. I will look in to a solenoid as I am kind of committed and then I think it would be great. Dennerle should just include the solenoid and not the bottle or at least provide one with a serial number so it can be exchanged. Hope you’re able to feed this back to them. Regulating CO2 is essential and no solenoid is hassle and can lead to disaster.

[patrickbertone]

Bought a certified co2 2kg fire extinguisher for 22 euros (in a fire extinguisher company), refill is 22 euros, they just swap the extinguisher by a filled one.

[Jonasofzo]

Started my first diy co2 setup last week, added a bunch of plants in that tank to grow myself a supply of fresh growing plants for my main tank. Curious to see how it will go😊

[youtubeviewer]

Loved this video! I have wanted to put co2 in my tank for ages, but have never had success with diy, and proper co2 is too expensive

[griffynmester]

Wow that's a lot of information, thanks for the comparison!!!

[MeanOldLady]

Yeah... I like my 1L soda bottle option especially as I'm feeding daphnia yeast as well.
Cheap & pretty decent for a refill every couple days. The plants are perfectly fine without it, but it's nice to do green-ups every once in awhile. =)

[Getz]

Good stuffs! Really helps beginner into this hobby.

[rbog]

Tip for diy: get a medical 3 way valve and at night redirect the co2 somewhere else, through the window for example

[JC_]

Good overview, I think its pretty clear that there is no substitute for pressurised systems but if you are new to the hobby or on a budget you can get fairly decent results with DIY.

[JuanSalazar-j]

I use the soda stream system for 30 liter aquariums and it works very well. It costs 10 dollars to refill every 2 months, of course if you have a solenoid valve it will last longer.

[TheRealTMar]

I´m planning to set up a 1, 2 m aquarium after the flat´s been renovated and if my plants may need additional CO2, I think I´ll just spend some more money and get a good system. DIY looks cool, but it´s also a bit of work. But I might use it on a small shrimp tank or something.