This was the first test of my CO2 reactor which I built. Bubble rate was very high, just to clearly illustrate that this works. Discharge was straight back into the bath so I throttled back the pump somewhat to adjust to what would be the head loss when installed into my aquarium. I am very pleased with the results, but not my build. Might rebuild another one, but at least the concept I saw easily works, as would be expected. No need for airstones, or bioballs, or any of that crap inside. I also found out that PVC Weld is not a glue, and it effectively melts the surface layer of the two items you wish to join. My end barbs to which the pump hose is attached had a 0,5mm gap (maybe a touch bigger) and obviously this is not good. I back it up with lot's of silicone but it looks ugly in my opinion. I will post a how to article when I have finally decided on the best way to make this. It has a 50mm union for easy maintenance which is something most people omit. Check out the video: DIY Inline CO2 Reactor on Vimeo
I don't think there's a vimeo embedding functionality.. Unless I'm wrong.. I think it only works with youtube
Let's try now that the software is new: And then, I starting making another CO2 reactor this weekend. I did a better job on the end caps at least:
@AdrianT , what type of epoxy or glue that you are using for the connection? looks like plaster or something? Also, how efficient is the reactor? I've made something similar, but have to up my BPS up to 3-4bps. and where did you get that clear tubing from?
Pratley original putty Smooth it with a wet finger. Works the charm Well by the time the bubbles get to the bottom they are gone, so efficiency is high. Acrylic from Maizey's. Had it a few years now from another project. Will still do a DIY "How to" on this once I am happy and satisfied. (and the LED how to... )
Pratley putty, good idea. I just made a reactor last night and thanks to seeing this used pratley putty to seal mine too. Thanks for the idea
No worries! Post a pic of your creation. I will finish mine today if I have time. Have taken off Thursday and will be home mostly so this weekend will try open the accelerator a bit and get some fish tank stuff done! I bought a bigger airstone yesterday with a bigger plastic connection - my previous one I wasn't entirely happy with. Then I put it into a vice and crushed the stone to get the plastic fitting out which is very solid. I drilled a close tolerance hole and used PVC weld (as there was no gap) but will add to that with Pratley Putty too as I don't ever want leaks. Progress as of yesterday evening so basically almost done. Very easy project actually:
An airstone for the fitting, interesting. I'll do that next time. On mine I used a plastic check valve also with PVC weld and then pratley putty. I only drilled a small hole for the inlet rather than one big enough for the body of the check valve itself. I'll hope to be using it all later this week. It seems solid but a bit of water pressure will very quickly validate my design So all that is left now is to build a second drop checker so that I can get a more accurate reading (see http://dropcheck.petalphile.com/), a bubble counter (syringe + check valve) and to get my CO2 kit setup for the first time My only concern so far is about losing flow in the tank because of the in-line reactor. I suspect I'll need to add a small submersible pump to increase flow.
Well only the fitting of the airstone, the stone itself I crushed and threw away Just to be clear in case I wasn't. You will lose a bit of flow. There are losses in pipes at reducers etc. and can actually be calculated easily. I might do that for my "how to" for interest sake. I've got a 2400 l/hour so even with a head loss of around 1,2m I should still get my desired flow. I'm running this from a sump by the way. Good plan with the check valve. But a basic connection does keep it simpler as once you've glued it on, that's it
Ja, gluing the whole airstone in would be tricky . Although to be honest I did misread it the first time... I'll let you know if my check valve pops out and dumps my tank onto the floor.
I think a greater chance of the airline itself popping off. So get a cable tie on super tight Otherwise you'll be posting some awesome photos... hehe
Yeah that's the difference when you've been an engineer for several years, and a student. The mindset changes from ideals, to reality And you stop splitting hairs when you realise they use M16 bolts as a minimum all over a plant and no one cares about the fancy calcs...
My flow calculation went something like this original flow + inline = slower slower + extra submersible = faster I've double checked the calcs and I'm reasonably happy with the numbers. I'll definitely use a cable tie or two on the airline tube, thanks.
Dart.. gotta love your calcs, superb mathematis, which works! "My flow calculation went something like this original flow + inline = slower Slower + extra submersible = faster I've double checked the calcs and I'm reasonably happy with the numbers.
