[Bendingsea]

Hello,

I thought I would share my thoughts on my diy co2 experience. Well it works, but............. I'm using the citric acid and baking soda recipe. I've watched some videos and read some guides and at 1 bps it should last about a month. Not in my case may be at best 2.5 weeks. Which gets to be a pain. Perhaps there a leak somewhere.

Some other issues I have,

I tend to make a mess when setting it up, wife gets mad lol.

I run out of my mixture at odd time like right before work or late at night.

And most importantly, I have a hard time dialing in the right amount of co2 every morning before I leave. The valve is very touchy.

Overall it's not a bad setup for someone who has some time to maintain it. I constantly find myself always checking if it's running properly.

I think it might be time to look into a pressurized system.
Any suggestions on a reliable regulator that won't break the bank?

 

[bennyjam]

I wwnt feom diy co2 to pressurized and got the Milwaukee MA957. Its got everything you need minus the tank for $85-$90. I've had it running for a couple years now wirhout any problems. You have to tweak the needle valve every time you swap out the tank, but it's not too bad. It gets the job done.

Sent from my LG-H811 using Tapatalk

 

[Julie7778]

I have DIY CO2 with the Nutrafin System on my 20g. I just changed the diffuser and honestly I'm very pleased with it. I'm even considering buying the system for my 2 Nanos.

 

[Mikeygmzmg]

Spend a 100$ and get a pressurized one!

 

[Doogy262]

I wwnt feom diy co2 to pressurized and got the Milwaukee MA957. Its got everything you need minus the tank for $85-$90. I've had it running for a couple years now wirhout any problems. You have to tweak the needle valve every time you swap out the tank, but it's not too bad. It gets the job done.

Sent from my LG-H811 using Tapatalk

Couldn't agree more.I have two of these one for over two years and as stated only issue is a needle valve that takes some tweaking.Great starter system.

 

[No.92]

Hello,
Not in my case may be at best 2.5 weeks. Which gets to be a pain. Perhaps there a leak somewhere.

...

I run out of my mixture at odd time like right before work or late at night.

So I'm probably going the pressurized way shortly but I need to finish the citric acid I bought. Baking soda is useful in other ways.

One thing I did in my last cycle was I doubled everything (water, citric acid, baking soda). So far it definitely lasted longer. I went 11 days with about 1bps with the recommended amounts. I am still going this time with citric acid left and it's been 12 days, BUT I've been running it at 2bps or higher.

Also, you should try to find leaks in your system. But you will not get 1 month running it 24/7 at 1bps. I believe the docs say running 8hrs/day at 1bps will get you 1 month.

Also, if you want to save money,[censored]buy the baking soda and citric acid on Amazon. And you can buy baking soda at Costco really cheap too. Buy it in bulk. Much cheaper that way.

Check out my comments here:
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/2...tric-acid-baking-soda-co2-40.html#post9204113

 

[Bendingsea]

I wwnt feom diy co2 to pressurized and got the Milwaukee MA957. Its got everything you need minus the tank for $85-$90. I've had it running for a couple years now wirhout any problems. You have to tweak the needle valve every time you swap out the tank, but it's not too bad. It gets the job done.

Sent from my LG-H811 using Tapatalk

That's good to hear. I've actually seen the Milwaukee regulators and they seem reasonably priced.

some people have very strong feelings on some forums against the Milwaukee regulators. Not sure why. Two years without any problems sound like a win to me.

Sent from my KFFOWI using Tapatalk

So I'm probably going the pressurized way shortly but I need to finish the citric acid I bought. Baking soda is useful in other ways.

One thing I did in my last cycle was I doubled everything (water, citric acid, baking soda). So far it definitely lasted longer. I went 11 days with about 1bps with the recommended amounts. I am still going this time with citric acid left and it's been 12 days, BUT I've been running it at 2bps or higher.

Also, you should try to find leaks in your system. But you will not get 1 month running it 24/7 at 1bps. I believe the docs say running 8hrs/day at 1bps will get you 1 month.

Also, if you want to save money,[censored]buy the baking soda and citric acid on Amazon. And you can buy baking soda at Costco really cheap too. Buy it in bulk. Much cheaper that way.

Check out my comments here:
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/2...tric-acid-baking-soda-co2-40.html#post9204113

I thought about doubling the recipe too. I actually bought my citric acid from Amazon because I couldn't find it locally anywhere.

It's still a bit pricey for the citric acid and I'm sure a pressurized system would be cheaper to maintain in the long run.

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