DIY CO2 Diffuser

My plants aren't thriving as well as I'd like.

My KH is 20ppm, which should be okay considering my pH is at 7.4. But it needs a boost of CO2 so it can reach 30ppm. (The only reason I just wrote that was to sound nerdy. I really still don't understand what KH/GH is all about...something about hardness of the water...All I know is I need to raise CO2 levels in the tank to get better plant growth!)

So I decided to try my hand at a Do-It-Yourself CO2 diffuser. I'm cheap and CO2 canisters cost a lot! I watched a YouTube instruction video and assembled the following things:

- Empty 2L Soda bottle (or you can use any other plastic container/jug)
- Rubber cork/stopper
- Airline tubing
-Check valve
- Airstone
- Yeast
-Sugar
-Water


What you do:

1. Rinse plastic bottle.
2. Drill a hole through the stopper, which should fit snugly into opening of bottle.
3. Insert airline tubing (used for air pumps) into the coke bottle for fitting.
4. Combine some sugar, yeast, and water in the coke bottle.
5. Stopper the bottle and shake.
6. Attach the receiving end of the airline onto an airstone (if desired).
7. CO2 bubbles will then be released.
8. Check valve turns CO2 on and off.
9. Do not use an air pump simultaneously as that will drive the CO2 out of the tank.
10. Replace as needed.


I will assemble this in the next few days and report my findings. After my fish tank is done with its Maracyn regime, I will start CO2 fertilizers and see if my plants thrive better.