[Cthulhu]

The regulator kit I see most often is Milwaukee. How good is it? Is the needle valve precise enough?

In the article on pressurised CO2 in the FAQ section, it says kits are often cheap and can have problem with the needle valve, and end of tank dump.

So now I was thinking to go with this kit
http://greenleafaquariums.com/co2-regulators/primo-co2-regulator.html

It's for the 95g I'm currently setting up. I don't want cheap stuff that will give me problems in the future and that I'll need to change. But if you tell me that the Milwaukee kit is good quality, saving 100$ is always welcome!

 

[oldpunk78]

The Milwaukee... Some people go years without a single issue. Some people hate it from day one. Some people have problems with the needle valve 'floating' some people deal with it and some people use it without issue. I'd say your success rate would probably be 70/30.

If you're more interested in saying money, go for it. If you're someone who wants something you won't have to worry about it, get the gla or learn how to build your own.

 

[Bettatail]

tackle oldpunk, he will build you one much better than GLA, :hihi:
darkblade48 too, he mainly takes care of the people in Canada
both of them have instruction threads to teach you how to DIY a system, if you want to go that route.

and welcome to the TPT

 

[Cthulhu]

I could probably assemble my own kit, it doesn't seem too hard when you know what you're doing! The main problem is getting a good regulator. I can find many brans of regulators on the web, but when I see them I have absolutely no idea if they are good or not.

Finding good solenoid and needle valves is much easier.

I had not seen the thread on assembling a CO2 regulator kit, but since you mentioned it I looked for it and just found it. So I'll go do some more reading!

 

[sbarbee54]

You can get a good single stage regulator from micro matic for 62 it has dual gauges and pressure release. Then assemble your own post body kit


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[Darkblade48]

You can get a good single stage regulator from micro matic for 62 it has dual gauges and pressure release. Then assemble your own post body kit


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

If you are willing to do some research, for that price, you can get a used dual stage regulator.

 

[ThatGuyWithTheFish]

I would not recommend it, though it is worth what it costs.

 

[Nunster]

I don't like the ones you can not adjust the pressure to the needle valve like you can with the milwaukee. With a 10lb bottle it will take a long time for the bottle pressure to change. A filled 10lb bottle that I own and just trade in for a filled one for around $25, costed me $125. So the valve can be the cheap part. If you don't like the needle valve on the milwaukee it is easily changed out to a better one. Mine is touchy but works for me. I have my bottle assembly with a bubble counter with oil outside and another bubble counter with water in it inside next to tank so at just a glance I can see it working. So then anything goes wrong with the bottle or guage assembly all that co2 will be outside instead of inside where it can harm me if I am sleeping. 700+psi. That's a lot of pressure and a lot to go wrong.
Another nice thing about being able to adjust the pressure to the needle valve assembly is if you want to run more than one needle valve you can adjust for it and when bottle pressure does go down you can adjust for that to. I have a aquaticlife guage that I didn't like because I was not able to adjust pressure. I think it was pre set to 30psi to the needle valve. I am running around 15psi with my milwaukee. And really didn't like those tiny guages on the aquaticlife.

 

[vnghost]

I had problems with my Milwaukee when I first got it. Of course I put up problem threads and blamed the regulator but after learning more about regulators I've found that it was mostly my fault, or all my fault. My Milwaukee is actually really good and reliable right now. IMO it's a good start on co2, but you will want to upgrade later on.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[switch26]

You need to drill the solenoid out before you even use it if you don't want problems down the line.. It builds up pressure, and eventually killed everything in my tank, even though i did everything instructed by them to a T.. Ive since got a new regulator that is easy to use and is more efficient