# regulating DIY CO2



## singolz (Oct 27, 2011)

Hello APC,

I've always wanted to have my co2 at optimum levels and just simply cant afford injected co2 at this moment. ive browsed around the internet a few times to see if anyone has came up with a consistent way to have the DIY system somewhat consistent, but i havent really found much of anything. so lately I've been tinkering around with the whole DIY CO2 setup I have on my tank, and to my surprise I believe I've found a way to just about keep my CO2 regulated 25-30 ppm and I haven't had a problem yet. 

The setup is on a 10 gallon tank. I am using 2x 2 liter bottles, which are led into their check valves, then connected into a T fitting. I am using a ceramic diffuser I bought from the LFS for 5 bucks or so. diffuser needs a decent amount of pressure to get started.
in 2 liter bottle #1 I am mixing 1/8 teaspoon of ActiveDry Fleischmann's yeast with 2 cups of sugar. in bottle #2 I am mixing 1/4 teaspoon of RapidRise "highly active yeast" brand is Fleischmann's. they came in packets of 3, which I prefer so that way I discard the packet i use and use a whole new one on the next replacement. garuntees the yeast is fresh and it cuts out a few more variables that could alter the performance.
every 2 weeks I replace bottle #1. 
every 1 week I replace bottle #2.
The idea is to have a stable low pressure producing output of yeast from bottle number 1 and have bottle 2 provide the high pressure. 2 bottles would be necessary to limit the down time while you do your changes to
the mix. 
to get started connect all tubing to bottles, T fitting, check valves, etc. should go somthing like this:
bottle--checkvalve--Tfitting--etc
bottle--checkvalve--Tfitting--
mix up and Connect bottle 2 (you may not have enough pressure to get the diffuser going). 2-3 days later mix and connect bottle 1. the idea behind mixing and connecting bottle 2 first is due to the extreme rise in CO2 the DIY system is notorious for. bottle number 1 will take longer than bottle number 2 to fully activate due to the smaller amount of yeast. bottle #1 should hit peak performance after around 3-5 days or so. waiting 2-3 days to attach bottle number 1 gives bottle number 2 a chance to peak and start acting more regular. you should see somthing stable within 
5-7 days.

after 7 days of bottle 2 running, take off of the system and redo the mixture. you shouldnt have to worry about letting the built up pressure out, because of the checkvalve. the idea of putting check valves before the T fitting and after the bottle, allows you to take bottles off of the system without sacrificing the pressure built up in the system.

this is all done in a 10 gallon aquarium I could only imagine results would vary on different sizes of tanks. 

any questions or comments feel free. hope I helped some one out there.

cheers


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## singolz (Oct 27, 2011)

forgot the goods....
enjoy


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## alysonpeaches (Jun 30, 2008)

Which diffuser is that please?


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## singolz (Oct 27, 2011)

http://www.afishybusiness.com/Ista_...dftrk=gdfV23840_a_7c1870_a_7c7857_a_7cIS00563


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