# [Wet Thumb Forum]-Cleaning ceramic difusers part duex.



## Spaceman Spiff (Feb 22, 2003)

I tried the vinegar soak and the diluted bleach soak, but I still can't get the disk clean.

Let me elaborate a little more. I have a combo difuser and bubble counter in 1 unit. I would be a little hesitant to put it into the microwave because the water inside of the bubble counter would break the sidewall once it heated up hot.

I can barely fit a tooth brush into the top to try and scrub the disk.
I've tried soaking it a few different ways, but nothing yet had helped.

Suggestions anyone? Thanks.

Later.

Doug.


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## Spaceman Spiff (Feb 22, 2003)

I tried the vinegar soak and the diluted bleach soak, but I still can't get the disk clean.

Let me elaborate a little more. I have a combo difuser and bubble counter in 1 unit. I would be a little hesitant to put it into the microwave because the water inside of the bubble counter would break the sidewall once it heated up hot.

I can barely fit a tooth brush into the top to try and scrub the disk.
I've tried soaking it a few different ways, but nothing yet had helped.

Suggestions anyone? Thanks.

Later.

Doug.


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## Ron Nelson (Apr 2, 2003)

I use straight bleach on my eheim difuser disk. I let it soak for about 10 minutes. Then I rinse several times in water with a lot of declorinator... This seems to get it clean.

Ron


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## Spaceman Spiff (Feb 22, 2003)

I let mine sit in the 1 part bleach and 19 parts water for a half hour last time and nothing happend.

What I'm afraid of is the bleach leaching thru the disk into the where the water is for the bubble counter. I tried running an air pump thru the thing to force air thru it while it soaked and that was a waste of time.

| |
| |
|==| This is the disc
| |
| |
|+ | tube
|+ |
\ /
||
||
|| Stem

This is what it basicly looks like.

Any other suggestions?

Later.

Doug.


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## gsmollin (Feb 3, 2003)

Well first of all, if it doesn't come apart for cleaning, I think you should throw it away. I'm serious. I finally threw mine away, and it DID come apart for cleaning. Diffusers are a royal pain in the a** because they are always dirty, and then they waste CO2. A lot of CO2- about half of it. Add that up, and it may provide the financial incentive to replace the diffuser.

Now about cleaning- You need 100% bleach, dilute no more that 50-50 with water. After that, brush off the dead algae with a toothbrush, or test-tube brush. The diffuser also needs demineralization. Soak it in vineagar. If that doesn't work, then soak it in hot vinegar. You can heat the whole thing floating in vinegar in a small pyrex custard dish over the stove. If you don't like that, then muriatic acid will strip off the minerals chop-chop. I recommend diluting the muriatic acid (32% HCl) to about 10% strength. Remember to add acid to water slowly. Use goggles, and work outside because the fumes of HCl are poisonous.

Really, its much easier to get a reactor.


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## Doomer (Feb 2, 2003)

> quote:
> 
> muriatic acid will strip off the minerals


Make sure that no part of it is plastic. I soaked a showerhead in diluted Muriatic acid and it totally destroyed it. The plastic turned into a crumbly mess.


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## Vicki (Jan 31, 2003)

I'm with Glenn. Anything that's that hard to clean isn't worth the trouble; I've pitched all my sintered glass diffusers too, and THEY came apart, at least. If you're not into DIY, PlantGuild's reactor is a great alternative--100% diffusion, ridiculously easy to clean and the CO2 outflow inside the reactor chamber makes a very easy to use bubble counter. At best, glass and ceramic diffusers waste CO2 and require WAY too frequent cleaning to work up to their inefficient standard. Just the time you save makes the money for a pump driven reactor worthwhile, not to mention the improvement in CO2 use.

http://www.wheelpost.com


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## Spaceman Spiff (Feb 22, 2003)

The thing worked great when I first got it. However now it's acting like an airstone. I would like to modify it to keep the bubble counter, but that isn't going to work. 

I've made a reactor out of an old clear plastic tube, some bioballs and some rubber plumbing caps. I saw one in the store where I buy my aquarium supplies and decided to make my own for 1/3 the price. Now I need to get another bubble counter.

I'll try a couple of other cleaning ideas and see what happens.

Thanks guys.

Later.

Doug.


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## Tenor1 (Mar 3, 2003)

Doug are you using the Eheim diffuser? I've been using 2 discs the last year and noticed the bubbles released are much larger now instead of the fine mist. 

My tank is only 36 gallons and I think Robert had a mini reactor for small tanks.

Thanks for generating this discussion. Vicki helped me decide to change.

Carlos

==============================
I try to keep the tank plain and simple but it never stays that way!


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## Spaceman Spiff (Feb 22, 2003)

I built the reactor last night and attached that, however that isn't working that great. The co2 line goes into it ok, but I don't see any bubble action inside the reactor thru the clear tube. If I shake the tube, I get a large discharge of bubbles into the tank. 

SO it looks like this method isn't working that great either.

Any other suggesttions.

Later.

Doug.


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## Justin Fournier (Jan 27, 2004)

Doug,

Please post some pics of your setup, or failing that please explain in detail your setup, water direction, amount of flow, bubble count ect.


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## Spaceman Spiff (Feb 22, 2003)

66 gallon, eihem 2226, output of filter goes into a reactor I made.

--||--
|** |
|** |
|** |
|** |
|** |
--||--

CO2 comes in from the bottom and flows past the bioballs. However I found that the CO2 was pooling at the top of the reactor since the ends are flat and at 90 degrees. What is happening is that the co2 is pooling at the top and is not reacting with anything. They are flowing past the bioballs and collecting at the top. I'm going to have to rework this I think and try a different reactor. I'm going back to the combo bubble counter & defuser when I get home tonight. That at least worked and I don't have to worry about flooding the place if a connection comes loose off the canister. Less connectors, less problems.

Later.

Doug.


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## Spaceman Spiff (Feb 22, 2003)

I pulled everything apart and looked at the reactor. there is a lip inside of the bottom and top and what was happening is that the CO2 is getting trapped in this lip which supports the output and input connectors.

A redesign is required here.

back to the difuser for now.

If I can only get the difuser to mist again, not bubble.

Later.

Doug.


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## bishop (Feb 10, 2004)

There are places online which sell these sintered glass discs for ~3 bux... you could possibly make a new one with a replacable disc?


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