DJKronik57

I have used old juice jugs used as CO2 generators for two of my tanks and I've always struggled to seal the tubing into the hole in the lid. I tried using hot glue at first, but this would crack and was inflexible and would have to be re-glued every time I moved or refilled the generators. I just bought some silicone sealant and tried this, but its much more tacky and doesn't seem to form a good seal either.

What have other people used? How do you seal DIY CO2 generators?

John N.

I don't seal my DIY CO2 bottles with glues. I do instead drill, or hammer a small nail to create a hole to squeeze the tubing through. The hole must be smaller then the diameter of the tubing itself. This will create a naturally tight seal around the connection.

-John N.

aquariageek

I used Epoxy on mine. It creates a pretty good seal. It is the Epoxy that comes in two seperate bottles with the Epoxy and the Catalyst. It has worked so far. The only problem is getting the right mixture of the epoxy/catalyst or else its too tacky.

Im glad you said that about the silicone sealant. I was going to go buy some. Im going to go with John N.'s idea. He always has good ideas!

DJKronik57

I tried John N.'s method but can't vouch for the results since I found out afterwards the seal on the orange juice jug I was using was the culprit. Switched to an Ocean Spray bottle and it's working wonderfully now.

For future reference, despite their large size, don't use orange juice jugs, screw top milk jugs, or any similar jugs. The caps just don't seal tightly enough!

John N.

Thanks Aquariageek. I had good results with Ocean Spray, Gatorade, and other store Juice bottles (apple juice cranberry,etc). Be gentle when screwing or hammering the nail into the cap. I've split and crack the top of the cap rendering it useless. No bigger disappointment then to drink so much juice in a day, and then when it's empty you mess up the cap.

Now I buy two bottles of juice, and always seem to drink both in two days...just for the cap.

-John N.

erijnal

if you have a hard time getting the tube through, cut the end at an angle and poke the resulting sharp end into the hole. then clamp down on the nib that's poking through with pliers and pull.

just in case, just use a teeny bit of elmer's glue around the tube and cap and it'll take care of any miniscule openings

redstrat

Just to give my two cents, I have used gatoraid 1gal bottles with a hole smaller than the tubing like John N. was saying then I used silicone both on the inside and outside of the cap all round the tubing and I haven't had any leaks yet. I also didn't just use a little silicone though I really stacked it on there then gently smeared it just to be sure it made contact all around.