C02 System Questions

[mdwheeler]

So I just received my regulator with solenoid. According to the meter its for a tank that holds up to 2000psi of gas.

My question is: what size tank should I get? 5 or 10 pounder?

And with 3.3 wpg how many bubbles a second and at that amount how long does before the tank runs dry? Also the lights are adjustable (theres four) so I can knock the wpg down to 1.7 wpg (and i'll most likely have it that low most of the time. (Maybe 3.3 wpg for like 2-3 hours, and only 1.7 for 3 hours before and after). And at that how many bubbles a second. Its a 29 gallon aquarium.

 

[RadaR]

I'd go with the 10lbs.
With the reg, set the inside pressure to 1BAR (14PSI) and the outgoing pressure to 60BAR (232).
There is no set rule for bubbles per second. There are so many factors other than just light.

Maybe 3.3 wpg for like 2-3 hours, and only 1.7 for 3 hours before and after)

I like this idea.
Try 2-3 bubbles per second to start with. Act accordingly and observe the fish and plants/algae. Use a drop checker filled with 4dkh solution and bromo blue and place it all round the tank. The colour should be lime green within 2hours. Ensure circulation is all over the tank and that the tiny CO2 bubbles go everyhwere.

 

[mdwheeler]

I'd go with the 10lbs.
With the reg, set the inside pressure to 1BAR (14PSI) and the outgoing pressure to 60BAR (232).
There is no set rule for bubbles per second. There are so many factors other than just light.

Maybe 3.3 wpg for like 2-3 hours, and only 1.7 for 3 hours before and after)

I like this idea.
Try 2-3 bubbles per second to start with. Act accordingly and observe the fish and plants/algae. Use a drop checker filled with 4dkh solution and bromo blue and place it all round the tank. The colour should be lime green within 2hours. Ensure circulation is all over the tank and that the tiny CO2 bubbles go everyhwere.

Wow thanks for the info! Exactly what I was needing! Also, what if I bought a digital co2 monitor instead of a drop checker? Would that give me reasonably accurate readings?

Also i'm not necessarily sure how to read the regulator. Heres what it looks like: Uniweld R1358 . Is the meter on the left my outgoing pressure and my right the inside pressure? Or vice versa?


Edit: I can't get the link to work. If you google "Uniweld R1358 co2 Regulator" under shopping its the one and only result. It'll send you to the ebay page and from there you can make the pic bigger.

 

[RadaR]

Wow thanks for the info! Exactly what I was needing! Also, what if I bought a digital co2 monitor instead of a drop checker? Would that give me reasonably accurate readings?

No. Dont go with a digital (pH) monitor. They play havoc with Co2 concentrations. It "reads" the CO2 concentration by measuring the change in pH. So it assumes any pH change is soley down to carbonic acid which forms when CO2 dissolves in water. This isnt the case though. There are so many other acids that could cause the pH to decreease. Phosphates are one of them.
Hence why we measure CO2 with drop checkers filled with 4dkh water, because we know exactly what's in there.
I'm not so good with regs. But I think the gauge with the lower numbers is the inside pressure