What size pvc for diy co2 reactor

[katy_bug]

I am going to make the standard pvc type co2 inline reactor. I have some questions:

1. What size (around) pvc pipe do you use for the reactor. I have a fluval 204 running into a 29 gallon tank. I know that bigger is not neccesarily better because it will slow down the flow rate.

2. How long should the reactor be?

3. Anyone know of good source for clear pvc pipe? The only place I have seen any is on the web. Does Lowes or Home Depot usually carry it?

Thanks guys!

[Ibn]

1. I used a 1" PVC (actually ABS) tube for mine (running in line with the output side of an Eheim Ecco 2231). I would use the same size tube for yours as well, since the output of your canister is greater than mine (Ecco 2231 pushes 80 gph, versus the 204 which pushes 180 gph). The bioballs also fit nicely with this diameter.

2. I just used the standard 10" tube for mine (cut down from 24"). The length of the whole thing really depends on what you use as endcaps and barbs. I couldn't find some of the parts and had to improvise with other connection (have to measure when I get home to tell you the exact length of it).

3. Don't know about Lowes, but I check 2 of the local HD and they didn't have any (I used the 24" ABS, since I couldn't fit a 10' tube of PVC into my little car). If I was to look for some however, I would check with Tap Plastics (http://www.tapplastics.com/shop/product.php?pid=141&).

BTW, here's the website that I went with for instructions (figured it out from the pictures). http://www.aquaticscape.com/articles/co2reactor.htm

[glass-gardens.com]

I don't know of any retail outlet that sells clear PVC, and acrylic pipe is sized differently than PVC so your going to have to figure out how to make the joints work if you try to use it with standard PVC fittings.

[Rex Grigg]

I have used both 2" and 1.5" tubing for reactors. The current reactor on my 29 gallon is 1.5" and is about 18" tall. Clear PVC is hard to find and IMHO expensive and not needed.

[glass-gardens.com]

I totally agree that clear PVC is too expensive for someone just wanting to build a single unit, the acrylic tubing is substantially cheaper, even if you have to buy 6' of it. If you're lucky to have a place that will sell you either material by the foot or even give you a scrap for nothing all the better.

The main reason I ultimately opted for PVC was the fact I could get correctly sized fittings.

Assuming you used acrylic tubes with PVC fittings, how did you join them? Or did you fabricate your own?

[Ibn]

Clear acrylic tubing is definitely a lot more expensive than PVC (you can pick up enough PVC tubing to build 4-5 times as many as one built with clear acrylic). The only thing that the clear acrylic would have on it would be the coolness factor, when you can see what goes on inside of it (at least until the outside becomes scratched up).

Not sure how things would fit together since I've never done one before. Acrylic is usually held together with a resin which kind of melts the pieces into each other. Not sure if that would work between acrylic and PVC fitting, however.