sukhkawal

cool, thanks for the help, and i appreciate you still updating your thread even after TWO YEARS
and BTW, i always fill my tank all the way to the top, so my hob filter doesnt stir up the water..

so here are the tips i got from all the previous pages.

1) add an airstoen before putting co2 tube into filter. (increases efficiency).
2) add sponge to the filters output (increases efficiency).
3) make sure co2 tubing is not too close to impeller, or it can suck air,gas,liquid from co2 bottle.
4) To avoid the CO2 from accumulating in the filter when the pump is off, mount the pump sideways. So the gas can escape through the strainer bars.

hey niko, please update first page on thread and add these tips, add any i missed, and change if necessary. THANKS

Hurriken

I just installed this on my 10G. It isn't bad looking. It is black and my background is black. It is also smaller and easier to hide than the bubble ladder!

Some questions:

1) Do I leave the venturi that comes with it off or should I hook it up?

2)I removed the green lever and inserted the tube but it is pinched. Is that OK or should I enlarge the hole?

3) I saw many people use an air stone but I had a ceramic diffuser and the DIY CO2 didn't have enough pressure to push the CO2 through. Should I just leave it the way it is?

4) I'm confused about the discussion of whether to turn it off or not. How do you turn off the CO2 Or do you mean I should turn off the filter and just let the CO2 dissipate?

Thanks for posting this and thanks for the help. This exactly what I've been looking for.

niko

Hurriken,

Plug up the venturi. I usually just heat it up slightly and pinch it shut.

The CO2-tubing being pinched is fine. The bubble will find its way out and that's all that matters.

There is no need for an airstone. I don't understand why people believe that using an airstone increases the efficiency of the super-duper-cheap rector. It's ultra efficient as it is, no airstone. Using an airstone will reduce or eliminate the gentle sound that the bubble makes when hitting the impeller. That may be the only reason to use an airstone. But you loose the "audio bubble counter".

There is not a single proof that turning off the CO2 at night will make a considerably better planted tank. Amano shuts off his Co2 at night and adds O2 so everybody nowadays thinks that shutting off the CO2 at night is the best thing ever. There is no need to shut off the CO2 at night. You will save some CO2 but you will introduce variations of the CO2 and pH. Takes 30 min for all the CO2 to leave the tank at night. Takes 1-3 hours to build back up in the morning. Inconsitency is enemy #1 of any planted tank. Try it and see for yourself but what's simplest is the best.

--Nikolay

Hurriken

Thanks Nikolay, I can hear the bubbles "ticking" now. They are not steady but I just set it up tonight. I'm glad you said I don't have to shut it off. What I want is simple and easy. I think the current it put off is an added bonus to help with algae.

In the videos I see people mounting it down low in the tank, is that best?

niko

With the sponge over the outtake (where the water comes out) you should not have a lot of flow. There is just minimal flow because the water has to make its way out of the sponge. But for a 10 gal. tank it will be a good addition the the water flow.

Putting the pump as low as possible in the tank helps to improve the efficiency. Tiny, duslike bubbles will make their way out of the sponge. There aren't many of them but if the pump is as deep as possible these tiny bubbles have to make it to the surface. While floating up they continue to disolve.

Also - it's easier to hide the pump near the bottom. If it's high up it will always be visible.

The first few hours after setting up the CO2 the gas flow is pretty erratic. You need to stay there and adjust it every so often until it gets constant. The sound coming from the pump really helps - it's actually an easier way to gauge bubble rate than counting bubbles.

Now have in mind that this cheap reactor will REALLY improve the CO2 solubilization. You will have to decrease the bubble rate about 50% from what you used to have. Otherwise your fish will suffocate in no time.

If you leave the reactor on 24/7 make sure that floating debries don't accumulate on the intake strainer. They will reduce the water flow and your CO2 will fluctuate. Just make sure that the pump strainer is always clean.

--Nikolay

Hurriken

How do you adjust CO2? Install a mechanical valve?

niko

The CO2 comes from a pressurized bottle. The bottle has a regulator installed that reduces the very high pressure to a usable low pressure. A small "needle valve" is used to regulate the CO2 flow going into the super-duper-ultra-imperial-panda-Chinese reactor.

--Nikolay