co2 reactor working properly?

[mids1999]

Is my co2 reactor working properly?
It is an Ultralife co2 reactor
I am useing a minijet 404 water pump

Here is what is happening
the co2 is bubbling up to the top through the spinning bio balls
then the co2 is reaching the top and staying up there creating an air pocket on the inside top of the reactor. The water is comming out of the power head splashing onto the far side of the reactor and spinning around where this co2 pocket is making a swirling motion in the water inside the reactor.

Is is mounted vertically with the co2 intake on the bottom and the waterpump on the top.

No co2 is comming out the bottom

[Buck]

I look at it this way, as long as the CO2 pocket does not visibly bubble to the top of the water surface it is dissolving into the water column...the trick is figuring out if it is enough for the volume of the tank.
All the bio-balls in a reactor do is create a disturbance to make more of the CO2 come in contact with the water.
So I would say yes, its working...

In a small tank, an upside down bowl with a pocket of CO2 in it and a little water current passing by it can supply enough CO2 for the tank.

[IUnknown]

Why not test your water to be sure?

[mids1999]

According to the chart at http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_co2chart.htm
my co2 level is 7.988 with 1 bps

ph 6.8
gh 30x 0.056 = 1.68 dgh

results are from hagen test kits

[mids1999]

Heres a picture showing how the reactor is setup and what is happening
co2 in going in the bottom

[Wasserpest]

When calculating CO2, you need to measure kH, not GH! Also, if the measured kH is very low (3 degrees or less) it would be safer to increase it to 4-5 using baking soda, to avoid any pH crashes when kH drops further.

I don't think the reactor is working the way it should... Either the pump is too weak, or the amount of CO2 too high... If you remove all the air/CO2 bubble from the reactor, how long does it take to build up again?

You might want to try removing the bioballs to get more turbulence going in the upper part, not sure if that would improve things.

[malkore]

Wasser covered my comment, make sure you're measuring Kh, not Gh. Gh doesn't mean squat in terms of determining CO2 levels.

[mids1999]

If I remove all the air from the reactor it fills up again to that point within 24 hrs.

I am sorry with misstating the gh what I meant to say was kh.

I am currently using 1 bps co2

Parameters are now

ph 6.72
kh 35ppm

[Sgtreef]

Originally Posted by mids1999

If I remove all the air from the reactor it fills up again to that point within 24 hrs.

I am sorry with misstating the gh what I meant to say was kh.

I am currently using 1 bps co2

Parameters are now

ph 6.72
kh 35ppm

Holy Cow batman 35 mine is 5 or 8 at tops.
As I said holy cow batman.
Maybe somebody can set this straight.

[mids1999]

The problem with the reactor is still there

to the above post
maby I have ppm confused with something else.

Someone familiar with the nutrafin gh/kh test kit should be able to set me straight.

It takes between 3 and 4 drops to change the color.
(color starts to change at 3 then comes back to blue and is fully changed and stays blue at 4 drops)

the result is equal to 1.96 dkh

[Wasserpest]

Just the usual confusion between degrees and ppm of hardness/alkalinity.

2 degrees is really low, if it drops further the pH might "crash" because the water has not enough buffering. I would increase it to 4 or 5 degrees (~70 ppm) to make things more stable.

Regarding the reactor... as I said... pump too weak, bottom of reactor blocked, not enough flow, all same thing leading to CO2 accumulating instead of dissolving.

[mids1999]

What water pump would you suggest for the ultralife co2 reactor?
70 gph is what ultralife suggests I am now trying the minijet 606 the co2 buildup is still happening but not as quickly

I do have a small amount of filter pad at the bottom to restrict co2 from entering the aquarium.

I guess this could be cutting off some of the water flow but I do feel a strong stream of water from the output.

How much baking soda should I start with?

[Wasserpest]

The flow ratings of powerheads are a little misleading... the 404 rates at about 100gal/hour, but that is only for unobstructed flow! It goes down pretty drastically if something is adding backpressure. You could try switching to a 606 instead, or something in the Rio line, etc.

Regarding baking soda, read here: http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/water-parameters/6515-5-0-ph.html

[mids1999]

I just swapped in an aquaclear 402 power head
lets see what happens now 250 gph
still no co2 escaping out the bottom

[mids1999]

I let the 402 run on the reactor for two days and the same thing is happening (the co2 buildup on the top of the reactor)

I dont know what else to try, I even removed the filter floss from the bottom of the reactor.

I have a really strong water flow through the reactor now but the co2 is still building up at the top of the reactor.

anyone have any suggestions?