# how do you know diy co2 is working?



## jjm619 (Oct 16, 2009)

So i've been researching for the pasts month on diy co2 and finally did one last night based mainly off of one I found in this site. I have the air tube connected to a 1.75L bottle that's on top of my aquarium goin to a plastic check valve, then the air tube is fed up the intake of my penguin filter. My question is that are there suppose to be tiny little bubbles going through the tube because there are giant air bubbles that creep slowly through the tube and when they go up the intake it makes this sloshing/sucking noise. The noise happens probably about 2-4times a minute.

Also I believe I read somewhere that it's better to have the check valve closer to the intake than the bottle, is this true?

One more thing, I've also read that it's bad to leave the co2 going at night, can I just unscrew the cap off the co2 bottle and put it back on in the morning or will that mess things up?

I am a total newbie any advice is appreciated.


----------



## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi jjm619,

First of all I see this is your first post on APC, welcome! This is a great site with lots of helpful information and friendly people to lend a hand if you need it. Glad you joined!

It sounds like your system is working correctly. The sound you hear after the bubble goes up the intake tube of your filter is the bubble hitting the impeller and breaking up into lots of smaller bubbles which is easier for the water to absorb. As long as the check valve is above the water, you should be good. With DIY CO2 there is no need to stop it at night, you probably cannot generate enough CO2 to cause the fish any distress.


----------



## jjm619 (Oct 16, 2009)

Glad to join...Ok cool, now hopefully the half-dead hairgrass i got will stop browning ha...

Also I was reading on a forum that penguin filters aren't the best for CO2, I can't find it but I think they were saying that a lot of co2 is lost and the bio-wheel is also a problem...


----------



## Seattle_Aquarist (Mar 7, 2008)

Hi jjm619,

Some CO2 is better than no CO2! Do what I did, remove the biowheel.


----------



## jjm619 (Oct 16, 2009)

Sounds good, thanks for the advice!


----------



## tug (Jul 23, 2009)

Hi jjm619, Welcome to APC.
:fear: CO2 is not something you should be able to see as a bubble "creeping slowly" anywhere. What you have is yeast growing inside your air line. Once that stuff gets in the tubing it's hard to get it out and you might need to replace the line. To make sure that the air line from the DIY isn't running directly to the tank create an air space by adding a bubble counter (I do not add water to the bubble counter, the air space stops yeast from breading up the line and into the filter). Use the diffuser for a bubble counter. You might take a look at this powerhead/needlewheel concept for some more ideas. http://www.barrreport.com/co2-aquatic-plant-fertilization/6231-diy-co2-reactor-surface-skimmer.html

I unhook the yeast bottle from the co2 line at night to let the yeast breath. It can't hurt and IMHO I get a longer yeast life because of it. Unscrewing the whole top from the bottle could get messy though.


----------



## tug (Jul 23, 2009)

Seattle_Aquarist said:


> Some CO2 is better than no CO2! Do what I did, remove the biowheel.


I agree with Seattle_Aquarist, but unless your CO2 is non-limiting, (20ppm) you will continue to have algae problems.


----------



## jjm619 (Oct 16, 2009)

the other night i made a diy diffuser out of a mini elite filter based on one of the old threads in this forum and ever since then i haven't seen any bubbles creeping in the tube...do i still need to worry about yeast growing in there?


----------



## tug (Jul 23, 2009)

Very nice! Not sure I would call it a reactor in the strictest sense of the word but you should see a big difference in CO2 levels almost right away and in plant growth within a week or two.

As far as using the old CO2 line, I can only suggest keep an eye out for a viscous, translucent material. I used some old fouled line by mistake once. It had been sitting for months and after a week or two of being attached to the DIY CO2 a yeast slime was coming out of the line into my filter. It is not harmful as far as I know. It is just that it slows down the rate of CO2, clogs check valves, that sort of thing. It might also be a good idea to create an air space like the one mentioned earlier as another precaution. It saved me once when the DIY was too full and yeast was spewing up the line.
:brushteet








The check valve keeps the CO2 from gassing out of the line when I remove the cap/tubing from the bottle.


----------



## tug (Jul 23, 2009)

*Wast not want not*

A big problem with DIY is getting consistent levels of enough CO2 (20ppm) dispersed evenly throughout the tank. Think of ways to maximize CO2 levels around the whole tank like a power head. If your adding CO2 and it's just gassing off to the surface it wont be much help to your plants. Challenges w/CO2; not killing the fish with low O2 levels and enough water flow to disperse the CO2 away from the diffuser, down into the tank and into solution. A reactor does a great job raising co2 levels but can be bulky. Misting (little bubbles) is a good method if the bubbles are circulating around the plants. I'm not trying to beat my own drum here but the reactor/needlewheel concept I linked to earlier using the DJ 100 combines the best of both worlds, IMHO.
If I could only find someone to try them both and do a comparison.


----------

