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My new experiment!

Clint

Stay chooned in for more!
My new experiment... JUST EXPLODED!!!!

I'm gonna start pumping pressurized co2 into my terrarium! I'm gonna see if it makes them grow at an accelerated rate. I plan on using approximately 2/3rds of an ounce of co2 per day. (that means i'll go through 20 oz. per month, but co2 is cheap!) The co2 ppm of your average air is about 3 ppm (and probably less in terraria!) and I'm going to increase it to at least 10 times that amount. I'm going to use a "drop checker" with come pure water with a KH of 4 and some bromethyl blue to tell me the ppm of the co2 in the air.


Ok, how should I go about taking pics? What intervals should I take pics and any ideas on how to improve my experiment? I was going to leave my terrarium open-topped since the co2 will sink the the bottom where the plants are anyway. OR should I leave the terrarium closed without circulation (since it wouldn't be totally sealed)? I can't see a problem with leaving it open as long as there is no ceiling fan on.

I'm pretty excited about this and I bet Bugweed will be interested lol

One more question. Should the experiment take place in my 75 gallon GH style terrarium with a 250 watt MH, or in a 10 gallon planted aquarium with a 65 watt PC?
 
sounds very interesting JLAP, i use to inject co2 in my dupla style natural aquariums and it made a big diff, you will probably find that with the increased CO2 you may need to increase the other variables like nutrients or light levels to fully make use of it, at some point one of them or even maybe the plants genetics will become the limiting factor, maybe increase the levels in stages

I do think i would turn it off if the lights were not on, but you are wayyy out of my league on this :hail:

very kewl, keep us posted
Av
 
Oh yes of course. That's where my handy-dandy solenoid valve comes in :) It's all automatic and i'll only have to full with it when it's time to get a refill.


More light than a 250 MH? Lol, I guess I can just move it closer lol.

I just put in the order for the regulator (I used to use it for an aquarium but I gave up when the regulator broke) and it should be here soon.
 
I figure one of 3 things will happen,

1. You wake up... look in the mirror and see "bog man"
2. DEA arrives unannounced
3. Your plants do well

sounds like a fun experiment to me JLAP, way to go

Av
 
Lol, bog man?

Our town is pretty corrupt lol. If they don't worry over the meth problem but do worry about a small terrarium then something's seriously wrong lol.
 
You forgot step 4 and 5.

4. ? ? ? ?
5. Profit


Sorry. Obligatory. :rolleyes:
 
Are you going to have some sort of control group that does not receive the CO2? Like, if you have a bunch of weedy plants like a cape sundew you could get two that were about the same size and leave one outside (but it probably wouldn't receive the same lighting? I'm not sure what your setup is but if possible you should try to get a control plant with similar variables (with additional CO2) so you can somewhat compare growth.

xvart.
 
Sounds like a cool experiment.

and if it works then I might give it a try. heck, some of my plants need to grow a little faster.
 
Well, the fedex man should bring my new regulator tomorrow and I'll get my tank filled up today :)

I'll take a pic of my terrarium as it is now today and then take another one ever week and you guys can tell me what you think :)

Xvart, no I won't have a control group, so this experiment isn't real lol. I will have a 75 gallon terrarium with higher light and humidity , however. I expect the co2 low light terrarium to grow faster than my 75 high light one. If this is the case then i'll have to consolidate them.
 
  • #10
I was wondering if CO2 could be used to kill aphids. Put an infested plant in a black trash can, fill it full of CO2 and cover it for a few hours. The CO2 shouldn't harm the plant and without light the plant won't photosynthesize the CO2 into O2.

The CO2 may not kill the aphid eggs, but then it might since the eggs need some oxygen too.
 
  • #11
Oh yes I imagine it would do that easily. Just most people don't have a system so it's not practical :)

I wonder what it would do to fungi that we all hate. Not pure c02, but 10X of normal air.

I got my regulator today and i'm happy :) I should hopefully have it up and running by tonight.
 
  • #12
the Co2 might not make them grow faster nessecarily but they should maybe grow a little bigger, because that means that they would be able to get more Co2 to each cell (wow, feels really different saying that considering that I only really imagine and think of Oxygen getting to human and/or animal cells)
 
  • #13
Oh yes I imagine it would do that easily. Just most people don't have a system so it's not practical :)

I wonder what it would do to fungi that we all hate. Not pure c02, but 10X of normal air.

I got my regulator today and i'm happy :) I should hopefully have it up and running by tonight.

It would be easy enough to generate a lot of CO2 with baking soda and vinegar - think fire extinguishers. :)
 
  • #14
is that how they work? and is that what they shoot out?
 
  • #15
The ones that you have to turn upside down and shake up pretty much are.
 
  • #16
cool!!!!
what are the ones that shoot out that white stuff filled with?


oh and JLAP: How much does the regulator cost?
and how long of a time span is this going to be like?
 
  • #17
The ones with the big cone nozzles and squeeze triggers are mostly compressed CO2. Sometimes they add chemical foams to both types. You can get frost burns from the compressed CO2 and it sometimes even forms dry ice.
 
  • #18
I used yeast and sugar water for my smaller planted aquariums... back in the day LOL, they would generate a nice constant supply for 2-3 weeks, but man you talk about funky... when it came time to dump the old mix omg

had to walk up hill both ways to get to my aquariums, and scrape the yeast from the skin of grapes hehehehe :crazy:

JLAP, I was watching a documentay about the dead sea area a couple weeks ago... one of the lowest places on earth (if not the lowest) anyhow... they talked about the israelis having ag setups there, because of the lower altitude C02 and oxy levels are 6% higher then most of the world... another cool fact, very little UV, you dont get sun burns there

Av
 
  • #19
JESUS CHRIST!

Ok, I JUST put my regulator on. BAM! Blew a hole straight threw the neck of it and SSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Co2 started SPEWING out and I was just sitting there and my mom started SCREAMING and FREAKING out because she was afraid it would blow up and then my dad comes in and grabs it and RUNS outside and then later on I go back out and the tank was frosty and frozen and still going lmao.

it blew a HOLE right through it! I'm gonna take a pic lol. HOLY CRAP!


So, this experiment might be called off you guys. My parents are considering if I can get a new one or not. I might have to just get a refund and sell all of my other co2 stuff and buy Cp's with the money lmao
 
  • #20
Lol, I REALLY don't think my parents will let me have another :( I'm gonna TRY to convince them but after this i'm kind of thinking screw it lol

The hole is kind of hard to see due to the reflection of the metal, but it's easy to see in real life. You can even see straight through it! In this pic it's the dark spot towards the bottom.

DSC01272.jpg




DSC01270.jpg



DSC01268.jpg




Sorry for the messy house lol
 
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