[Joeymozzer]

I was at the LFS and the owner recommend looking into a c02 reactor, anyone have any experience with one compared to a full c02 set up?

 

[WalaxR]

Do a little searching and you will find the cerges and Rex Greg reactors on this site and how to make them. Reactors are a way of diffusing the co2 into the water.

 

[Mathman]

This is a co2 reactor:

This is a co2 system

Both are used together to provide co2 in your aquarium.

Don't forget the co2 tank.

 

[exv152]

I was at the LFS and the owner recommend looking into a c02 reactor, anyone have any experience with one compared to a full c02 set up?

I think your LFS guy is most likely referring to a DIY reactor with yeast, vs a reactor used with pressurized co2. They're really two different things. Both work, but one is better than the other in my opinion .

 

[ray-the-pilot]

I was at the LFS and the owner recommend looking into a c02 reactor, anyone have any experience with one compared to a full c02 set up?

I think the posters above are poking fun at your nubieness!
A CO2 reactor is a way of putting CO2 into your tank water. It is only a small part of a CO2 system and cannot work by itself. You need a supply and control system as well. Do some research.

 

[PlantedRich]

I was at the LFS and the owner recommend looking into a c02 reactor, anyone have any experience with one compared to a full c02 set up?

Hard to say what the LFS may have meant. Some are better than others.

But what many of us think of as reactors is an end item that does the final job of mixing the gas into the water. Reactors, diffusers and atomizers are all different items to do that. What comes before is vital as well. You can DIY with bottles and mixing sugar and things to ferment and make CO2. Others use a pressure CO2 with a regulator and equipment to control what you get more precisely.

Deep subject with much to learn??

 

[Joeymozzer]

From what I remember he mentioned mixing it with sugar? Hmmmm?

Lol fun is just the beginning of the learning process lol, can't wait until I can turn the tables

 

[PlantedRich]

Okay. I can see where one might call a DIY setup a reactor. It is something of a chemical reaction to make CO2. Just that at least here I read reactor as being the part that mixes that CO2 into the water. What we say is not always what the other person hears and all that good stuff?
I would advise to not get too concerned about the learning process. I think there may be about 3600 paths to learn and all of them are steep so no use to rush to the top! About the time I get there, I find they have added several more levels. Like a video game that never ends?

 

[exv152]

From what I remember he mentioned mixing it with sugar? Hmmmm?

Lol fun is just the beginning of the learning process lol, can't wait until I can turn the tables

It's like I was saying earlier, some folks refer to a DIY yeast and sugar mix as a co2 reactor. But for those using pressurized co2 setups, a reactor refers to a chamber that mixes co2 with water to ideally completely dissolve co2. You should read up on which one best suits you. Here is a good place to begin researching....http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/showthread.php?t=107312