# Bubbles forming on the side and top of tank



## sactown9 (Oct 28, 2007)

Is there a way to help eliminate the bubbles from forming on the side and top of the tank without changing my Ista Max Mix Co2 reactor or turning off my Co2? Most of the bubbles show up when the Co2 is turned on. BPS is about 3 to 5.

Here are several pictures showing the bubbles:


















































Thanks.


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## rjordan393 (Nov 23, 2012)

I checked the reviews on your reactor at drs. foster & smith and the manufacturer's description.
The CO2 bubbles should be completely dissolved or nearly so. So your settings on either the water flow, bubble count and/or the CO2 pressure setting may need to be adjusted. Either one or all three may need to be adjusted.
On a properly set up CO2 reactor, you should see maybe a few tiny bubbles when you are up close to the aquarium or none at all.
I believe the best reactor design is one that has the water flow leaving the bottom of the reactor and entering the top. The CO2 should enter about 2 to 3 inches below the top. This creates opposing forces. The CO2 tries to float to the top and the water flow tries to push it back down. This action completely dissolves the CO2 unless your settings need adjustment.
First go over the manufacturers specs on your reactor as to proper water flow, CO2 pressure and bubble count. If no success, then you need to make your own adjustments.
I would try lowering the CO2 pressure to 7 psi (10 psi is recommended but I have mine set at 7) and give it about 20 minutes before the next adjustment. After which set your bubble count to 3 bps. Next would be check your flow against the manufacturers specs.

Now on some reactors (mine included) the waterflow is lowered too much and I had to add a separate pump to the reactor.


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## sactown9 (Oct 28, 2007)

Thanks rjordan393. I will play with the settings. If this doesn't work, then I may look for a different Co2 reactor.


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## rjordan393 (Nov 23, 2012)

Also consider purchasing a CO2 checker. This is a handy device with a suction cup that you place in the aquarium that will tell you if you have sufficient CO2 dissolved in the water. Along with the CO2 checker, you need to purchase a bottle of 4 dKH standard solution and a dropper bottle of pH indicator. These should be available from the same retailers or mail order companies.
After following the instructions on your checker, the solution in the drop checker will be bright clear blue color. when it turns green, you have sufficient CO2. If it turns green/yellow or yellow, then its telling you that too much CO2 is being added and you must make adjustments. The bubble count is arbitrary; if you feel its not enough, then tweak it back to 4 or 5 bps.

Have you considered making your own CO2 reactor. Take a look at Rex Grigg CO2 reactor design on the web. This is what I have. All parts are available at Home depot or Lowes. I have a 75 gallon tank and I used 2 inch pvc pipe and fittings. Bigger tanks may require 3 or 4 inch pipe. The only thing I did not like about his design is that Rex says to drill a 1/4 inch hole for the insertion of 1/4 inch od hose. I feel that this is a accident waiting to happen if the CO2 hose ever slips out. So I drilled the right size hole for a 1/8 npt to thread the hole. Then you need to purchase a 1/8 inch male npt to 1/4 inch Jaco fitting; either an elbow or a straight fitting for your CO2 connection. U.S. Plastics has a good supply of fittings or you can check your lfs.
Also I made a metal bracket for the reactor to keep it from falling over.


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## sactown9 (Oct 28, 2007)

I do have a C02 checker and it turns lime green after the C02 is on for several hours. I think my problem is the Ista reactor is too big for my Xp3 filter. Although my filter is rated at 350 GPH but with full accessories/media, it' only 160GPH. That's a fairly big difference. I may end up ordering the medium size.

I have tried building my own reactor but it didn't work very well. I think it was too short (~9") and did not create any reaction. The water and C02 looked like it just flowed right through. If I do build another reactor, I might try the cerges. I found an old filter housing that my company was getting ready to discard and might give this a try.


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## rjordan393 (Nov 23, 2012)

Just remember that any CO2 reactor design that has the water leaving the top of it and the CO2 is injected near the top, then you will still get bubbles coming out of the tank discharge or spraybar.
It does not matter if the water flow goes to the bottom of the reactor via a tube and then out at the top.
The water flow must oppose the CO2 flow for good mixing and dissolving. This is why I say the water flow must enter the top and the CO2 injected near the top will attempt to oppose the water flow and get dissolved and then both leave at the bottom of the reactor with very few tiny bubbles or none at all. 
I have a 5 lb. CO2 cylinder that was installed on 12/11/12 and my regulator if its reading correctly says I got 1000 lbs. pressure left in the cylinder. Now that's efficiency.


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## sactown9 (Oct 28, 2007)

I'm thinking of relocating my Ista reactor closer to the canister inside the cabinet instead of inside my tank. I think the longer travel distance from the reactor to water will allow the C02 extra time to dissolve. Although, I am a little concern about the possibility of the hose leaking one day and also, the noise generated from the reactor once it's outside the tank. I haven't tested while its inside the cabinet but it's really loud when I had it hanging at the back of the tank.

Right now, I'm still getting bubbles clinging to the wall of my tank and also on top of the water. The current setup does not appear to be very efficient.


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## rjordan393 (Nov 23, 2012)

I think you will still get bubbles. The moment of contact of the CO2 bubbles and the water flow is where the mixing and dissolving takes place in my reactor. But try relocating it; I may be wrong.


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## jseyfert3 (Apr 9, 2012)

rjordan393 said:


> I have a 5 lb. CO2 cylinder that was installed on 12/11/12 and my regulator if its reading correctly says I got 1000 lbs. pressure left in the cylinder. Now that's efficiency.


The pressure of the CO2 in your cylinder is _not_ an indication of the level of CO2 in the tank until it gets really low.

The reason for this is CO2 is a gas that turns into a liquid at room temperatures and under enough pressure. This pressure is around 800-1000 psi, depending on the ambient air temp. For as long as there is liquid in the tank, the tank will stay at around 800-1000 psi (about 1000 psi, in your case). This means the level of liquid could be 1/4" at the bottom, and the gauge would _still_ read 1000 psi. Once all the liquid is gone, however, the pressure will start to drop. At this point you'll know you have to change out the cylinder within a short period of time. (2-3 weeks, from what I've read. Haven't got my own tank yet.).

If you want to know the level, instead of pressure, use weight. A 5 lb tank holds about 5 lb of CO2 when full, so when it empties, you could get its weight, including the regulator. Then have it filled, and weight it with it's regulator again. Should be approximately 5 lbs heavier, now. Then, to find out how much you have left, simply weigh the tank at any time and subtract the weight of the empty tank and regulator. Get a percent (if desired) by taking current weight of CO2 divided by amount of CO2 when full: 3.25 lbs left / 5 lbs full * 100 = 65% full

Hope that's helpful!


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## rjordan393 (Nov 23, 2012)

Thanks,
I just had my 5 lb. tank refilled and when I placed it in service, the pressure was about 900 psi and went to 1000 psi a few days later. But when I had it filled the first time, the pressure was 1500 psi. So I am not sure what happened.


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## Daniil (Oct 30, 2009)

I had this happened to my tank. It is not co2 that is not dissolved, it is O2. 
Do you have surface skimmer? If not consider to installing one. It will help to remove most of the bobbles. And on the front glass according to the last pic, the bobbles are produced by some algae on the glass.

That is just my two cent.

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## Daniil (Oct 30, 2009)

PS. Beautiful tank. I love the layout.

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