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Milwaukee MA 957 CO2 Regulator

4K views 32 replies 14 participants last post by  houseofcards 
#1 ·
Does this thing suck or what? I have to keep messing with the bubble counter every couple of hours. I read the thread Momotaro wrote and followed those instruction also, just can't set it and forget it.
Anyone else having a problem too?
 
#2 ·
You have to know how to set the thing.

Make sure the tank valve is open all the way. Make sure the working pressure is up to about 30 psi (if your bubble rate is variable at lower pressures), and adjust the needle valve until it becomes steady.

Of course you can avoid doing this by building your own regulator.
 
#4 ·
It is challenging to get a consistent bubble rate with the basic needle valve it comes with, but it can be done. Did you open the co2 valve for a second without the regulator attached? Sometimes debris can get in there, and if you didn't clear it out it could get into your regulator and cause inconsistency. Odds are that probably didn't happen, and the needle valve (combined with a fluctuating low pressure) is just working against you.
I am having luck with my running pressure at 10psi. I still check them twice a day, but my bubble rates seem to be staying right where i set them. Good luck!
 
#7 ·
I'm doing diy co2 right now. Hopefully soon pressurized I have the 10 lb tank already. All in all is the pressurized system the way to go? Sounds like more maintence than what it's worth. I have an open mind. So far so good with the diy and very little maintence. Thoughts? There are some azoo regualtors on ebay ranging from $40-$60 with shipping. That's why I'm asking.
 
#8 ·
Thanks for the information, I did turn the tank on before attaching the Regulator. I have the pressure set a little lower than 10lbs and now it seems to be ok. I'm wondering if the temp. change in the room might effect it, one of my air conditioners is in that room.
 
#12 ·
Milwaukee Regulators are the only thing I have been using for the past 12 years. Worth every dollar especially if you look at the prices of the others. If you have the money to blow on high end equipment good. I don't like to spend money on those $200.00 sports shoes because the JCPenny New Balance work just as well. Infact I saw some shoes at JC Penny for one price and the very same shoe at the high end shoe store on the other end of the mall and they were 25% higher. Go figure. OH the same shoe for more money are better.

I'll stick with Milwaukee products. In the end they do the very same objective as the expensive ones, supply CO2 into a very low pressure system.

Now let me enjoy my triple scoop of RiteAid Ice Cream!!!
 
#20 ·
This topic always seems to come up, and there is always division between current and/or ex (or even non) Milwaukee MA957 users.

Most of the time, the MA957 is fine. Sometimes you will get poor needle valves which will cause the CO2 to float. I have experienced this. I personally know someone that also (had) a MA957 that experienced not only floating, but also EOTD with the Milwaukee.

However, this is not to say that it is a bad regulator. Overgeneralization is a bad thing ;) If you see a plane crash on the news, are you never going to fly in a plane again?
 
#22 ·
I run the milwaukee MA957 on my tank. Hasn't given me any problems so far ( only had it for 3 months.) My CO2 rate is stable with my pressure set to 20 PSI.

There's a lot of brand name snobbery in every hobby. (I'm not directing that at anyone. Don't reply with an angry, defensive rant.) You can buy a Cavalier, or you can buy a Corvette. Both will get you down the road. One gets you down the road in style, the other gets you down the road with $35,000 still in your bank account.
 
#23 ·
Thanks for your posts, I think I found out what my problem was, I made a defuser using one of the ideas I found here using a house water filter and tied it to my FX5 filter, I think the FX5 was pushing so much water through the defuser it was building to much pressure against the CO2 line and was hard getting the the bubbles at a steady flow.
I took the CO2 line and just put a air stone on the end and stuck it in the intake of my sump and I did not have to mess with it all day. Problem solved, I hope.
 
#25 ·
Hi Green024,
I have no idea, I'm new to all this, I ran salt water fish and reef tanks for the longest time, I got out of it because it was costing to much to maintain (been out of work for a while), so I figured I go Planted, if something dies it only cost me 10 bucks instead of 50 :)
This is one of the reasons I join this BBS, to get feedback from people like you. So you think I should take out the wet dry filter? Right now I run 2 filters, the Fluval FX5 and the wet dry sump.
 
#27 ·
By all means keep running both filtration methods, I was just curious about cO2 and sumps, and was making sure you knew about the possible issues that come from it with cO2.

you can always compensate by reducing the amount of turbulence in the sump and also by increasing your injection rate of CO2.
Thanks for clarifying this for us Darkblade48.
 
#29 ·
i've had a little experience with using a couple different regulators, including the MA957, high-end commercial version, and DIY dual-stage Victor with Parker metering valve. i've noticed that the bubble rate performance had a lot to do with the way i implemented the system from bottle to tank. things like where i placed the check valve, type of check valve, diffusion method all affect bubble rate stability. generally a person who gets a high end regulator uses quality parts throughput (tubing, check valve), while a person looking for a cheap solution will not.

using a diffuser versus a reactor played a big role on bubble rate stability over long time scales (since disks get clogged, etc). until very recently, the MA957 had the most stable rate of the bunch and has been running the longest. i think the reason is that i used a reactor with high quality check valve close to its inlet with a short tubing run. if the check valve is too far from the injection point, water can back fill the tubing and cause a slow bubble rate until the water is purged. so if you are trying to set the bubble rate right when you first turn on the CO2, it will start slow and when all the water is purge reach its steady state value. the steady state rate is what you are really trying to set. i sometimes give the system a blast of CO2 and then set my rate.

the check valve also played a big role for my systems. even my dual-stage with metering valve setup had bubble rate issues until i replaced the check valve with a better quality one. in this case, the chain was only as good as its weakest link.
 
#30 ·
Maybe it is a hit or miss on how they work... I have owned 2. One worked well enough for a couple months, then dumped a bunch of CO2 into my saltwater tank, killing several expensive fish. It was not EOTD. The 2nd I bought lat year and spent far too long trying to get a consistent bubble rate. I followed instructions precisely, and tried every other way, still would either stop letting out OC2 or dump a ton in.

Lesson learned, and I will not go with cheap regulator setups ever again.
Hey man...haven't you heard...there's no difference between Milwaukee's and their stock needle valves and Victor Dual Stages with a Parker HR Series Precision Metering Valve, stainless steel inline pattern body, with turns counter handle, .0200 Cv, and fluorocarbon rubber seals :) ...just like Sharkfood said...chevy cavaliers and corvettes...they're all the same! I bet there is just as high a percentage of people upset with their Dual Stage high purity regulators and their Ideal/Parker/Swagelok needle valves as there are with the stock needle valves on the Mil's...wait I can't do it anymore...LOLOLOL **wipes tears from eyes**
 
#31 ·
I've only ever used distilled water in my bubble counters, but I know some use mineral oil or other liquids. I wonder if changes in temperature changing viscosity of the counter fluid could make it appear that your bubble rate has changed. Small variances of say +/- 10F from day to day wouldn't have much impact I wouldn't think, but if it's 90F in the summer, and 60F in the room in the winter, could that have any considerable effect?
 
#32 ·
Temperature should not have a significant effect on the viscosity of the counter fluid. However, what liquid you use will naturally have some effect. 3 BPS with water as the counter fluid compared to 3 BPS using glycerin will probably give you a different amount of gas.

What is important is not the bubble rate, but the actual amount of CO2 that is in your aquarium (i.e. monitored via a drop checker). 1 BPS for one person may be different for 1 BPS for another person. A bubble counter only serves as an easy way to visualize that your CO2 is not out of control.
 
#33 ·
Temperature should not have a significant effect on the viscosity of the counter fluid. However, what liquid you use will naturally have some effect. 3 BPS with water as the counter fluid compared to 3 BPS using glycerin will probably give you a different amount of gas.

What is important is not the bubble rate, but the actual amount of CO2 that is in your aquarium (i.e. monitored via a drop checker). 1 BPS for one person may be different for 1 BPS for another person. A bubble counter only serves as an easy way to visualize that your CO2 is not out of control.
I agree, most of time it's really just a visual check. Most setups have a ceramic diffuser and a drop checker as well so there are several checkpoints along the way to make sure co2 isn't out of whack.
 
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