Just started CO2 DIY, how long till bubbles?

[Dave M. Picklyk]

Hey guys, I just started my CO2 2L bottle tonight about 3 hours ago. When
usually can I expect some bubble action? I have noticed that the water is
slowly being pushed out of the hose...I guess this is a good sign. But it's
hard to be patient. I might stay up all night trying to watch for that first
bubble...or should I? Does it sometimes takes a few days? Do you usually see
some froth or anything in the bottle when the reaction starts to occur? Am I
asking too many questions??

Thanx alot!

Dave.

[Eric Schreiber]

"Dave M. Picklyk" > wrote:

>Hey guys, I just started my CO2 2L bottle tonight about 3 hours ago. When
>usually can I expect some bubble action? I have noticed that the water is
>slowly being pushed out of the hose...I guess this is a good sign. But it's
>hard to be patient. I might stay up all night trying to watch for that first
>bubble...or should I? Does it sometimes takes a few days? Do you usually see
>some froth or anything in the bottle when the reaction starts to occur? Am I
>asking too many questions??

It usually starts in just a couple of hours for me. Seems to depend on
the recipe and room temperature.

You might try swirling the bottle a little. Try to not splash any of
the mix into the air line.

--
www.ericschreiber.com

[Jim Miller]

I make bread occasionally and have a yeast thermometer. I find that by the
time that I've added my hot tap water to the sugar, shaken it for a few
seconds to get it dissolved and let it set for about 10 minutes it's time to
add the yeast and a pinch of baking soda. I swirl around the water a bit to
get the yeast wet and sinking. In a minute or less you'll see some of it
rise to the surface as it begins bubbling. I get bubbles in my tank in less
than 5 minutes.

If it took several days, bread would never get made! ;-)

You may have a leak. They are hard to find. I've had the most success by
removing the bottle, lines and reactor and putting it in a deep sink or the
bath tub with the reactor the same distance under the water as if in the
tank to simulate the working pressure. The leak if any will be obvious then.

good luck

jtm

--
Remove NOSPAM for email replies
"Dave M. Picklyk" > wrote in message
a...
Hey guys, I just started my CO2 2L bottle tonight about 3 hours ago. When
usually can I expect some bubble action? I have noticed that the water is
slowly being pushed out of the hose...I guess this is a good sign. But it's
hard to be patient. I might stay up all night trying to watch for that first
bubble...or should I? Does it sometimes takes a few days? Do you usually see
some froth or anything in the bottle when the reaction starts to occur? Am I
asking too many questions??

Thanx alot!

Dave.

[Dave M. Picklyk]

It started pretty quick. This morning I'm getting 23 bubbles a minute. Is
that too much? :)
The problem is that when I turn my aquaclear filter down in the morning when
I feed, it stops bubbling and water siphons back into the hose a few inches,
then it has to clear it out again.


"Dave M. Picklyk" > wrote in message
a...
> Hey guys, I just started my CO2 2L bottle tonight about 3 hours ago. When
> usually can I expect some bubble action? I have noticed that the water is
> slowly being pushed out of the hose...I guess this is a good sign. But
it's
> hard to be patient. I might stay up all night trying to watch for that
first
> bubble...or should I? Does it sometimes takes a few days? Do you usually
see
> some froth or anything in the bottle when the reaction starts to occur? Am
I
> asking too many questions??
>
> Thanx alot!
>
> Dave.
>
>

[Dave]

"Dave M. Picklyk" > empowered us with this mighty blow
against the Patriarchy:

> It started pretty quick. This morning I'm getting 23 bubbles a minute.
> Is that too much? :)

That's probably just about right, depending on how much of it is actually
getting diffused into the water.

I've always had to wait at least 12 hours before I start getting an
adequate amount of CO2. I'm not sure why other people are able to get
enough CO2 after only a few hours.

> The problem is that when I turn my aquaclear filter down in the
> morning when I feed, it stops bubbling and water siphons back into the
> hose a few inches, then it has to clear it out again.

Err, that ain't good. It sounds like your Aquaclear is somehow actually
drawing CO2 through the line hose it's on ... if so, your CO2 mix bottle
might collapse. The CO2 should be coming from the hose on its own
(positive pressure).

[Jason Judkins]

You can stop the reverse siphon by investing in a $2 check valve (sold at
most LFS) Tetratech makes a nice one that has worked for me for a while now.

"Dave M. Picklyk" > wrote in message
a...
> It started pretty quick. This morning I'm getting 23 bubbles a minute. Is
> that too much? :)
> The problem is that when I turn my aquaclear filter down in the morning
when
> I feed, it stops bubbling and water siphons back into the hose a few
inches,
> then it has to clear it out again.
>
>
> "Dave M. Picklyk" > wrote in message
> a...
> > Hey guys, I just started my CO2 2L bottle tonight about 3 hours ago.
When
> > usually can I expect some bubble action? I have noticed that the water
is
> > slowly being pushed out of the hose...I guess this is a good sign. But
> it's
> > hard to be patient. I might stay up all night trying to watch for that
> first
> > bubble...or should I? Does it sometimes takes a few days? Do you usually
> see
> > some froth or anything in the bottle when the reaction starts to occur?
Am
> I
> > asking too many questions??
> >
> > Thanx alot!
> >
> > Dave.
> >
> >
>
>

[Dave M. Picklyk]

> > It started pretty quick. This morning I'm getting 23 bubbles a minute.
> > Is that too much? :)
>
> That's probably just about right, depending on how much of it is actually
> getting diffused into the water.
I tested it just now, I'm have about 19ppm! Just wondering when it'll slow
down to the point where I have to work another bottle in.

> > The problem is that when I turn my aquaclear filter down in the
> > morning when I feed, it stops bubbling and water siphons back into the
> > hose a few inches, then it has to clear it out again.
>
> Err, that ain't good. It sounds like your Aquaclear is somehow actually
> drawing CO2 through the line hose it's on ... if so, your CO2 mix bottle
> might collapse. The CO2 should be coming from the hose on its own
> (positive pressure).
I posted a message up here asking if putting the hose into the end of the
intake tube of the AquaClear was ok...thinking that the bubbles will be
sucked in and churned by the impeller, breaking them up and storing them
there for a while to absorb more C02 into the water instead of it
escaping...everyone thought it was a good idea and I saw other ppl doing it
too. How would you do it? I could build a reactor..but for now I was just
going to do it the simple way and see how successful I am with just getting
the damn stuff into the water.

Thanx,
Dave.

[Dave]

"Dave M. Picklyk" > empowered us with this mighty blow
against the Patriarchy:

>> > The problem is that when I turn my aquaclear filter down in the
>> > morning when I feed, it stops bubbling and water siphons back into
>> > the hose a few inches, then it has to clear it out again.
>>
>> Err, that ain't good. It sounds like your Aquaclear is somehow
>> actually drawing CO2 through the line hose it's on ... if so, your
>> CO2 mix bottle might collapse. The CO2 should be coming from the
>> hose on its own (positive pressure).
> I posted a message up here asking if putting the hose into the end of
> the intake tube of the AquaClear was ok...thinking that the bubbles
> will be sucked in and churned by the impeller, breaking them up and
> storing them there for a while to absorb more C02 into the water
> instead of it escaping...everyone thought it was a good idea and I saw
> other ppl doing it too. How would you do it?

Well, I have injected CO2 directly into filter intakes before. For a while
I was injecting into an Eheim canister filter; I had the tubing cut at an
angle and loosely strapped to the outside of the intake strainer. I was
also injecting into a Fluval canister filter, for a while with the same
method, and for a while I had the tubing actually inserted into a hole in
the intake strainer.

I'm not really familiar with the design of the AquaClear intake; it would
seem to me that you'd need to restrict the flow of water through the
strainer in order to cause enough suction to actually pull CO2 through the
tubing. Or maybe it's due to the high flowrate of the filter? I don't
know.

Right now I'm running my CO2 into a Hagen Natural CO2 system diffuser, and
I'm happy with it. I'm getting good levels of CO2, the diffuser is easy to
hide behind some plants, and I don't need to worry about locking up the
impeller of my canister filter.

[Dave M. Picklyk]

I'm getting about 26ppm (if I read my pH right at 7.1, otherwise it might be
7.0 and then 33ppm) now. Last night I was getting even bubbles coming out at
about 38 bubbles per minute. Now I get a big burst of bubbles and about 3
inches of water siphones down, then it builds up again in about 10-15
seconds and gives another burst. Why would this change overnight? I don't
have the end of my tubing cut at a 60 degree angle, should I? What
difference would it make? Excuse my stupidness in this matter :)

Thanx!
Dave.

"Dave" > wrote in message
...
> "Dave M. Picklyk" > empowered us with this mighty blow
> against the Patriarchy:
>
> >> > The problem is that when I turn my aquaclear filter down in the
> >> > morning when I feed, it stops bubbling and water siphons back into
> >> > the hose a few inches, then it has to clear it out again.
> >>
> >> Err, that ain't good. It sounds like your Aquaclear is somehow
> >> actually drawing CO2 through the line hose it's on ... if so, your
> >> CO2 mix bottle might collapse. The CO2 should be coming from the
> >> hose on its own (positive pressure).
> > I posted a message up here asking if putting the hose into the end of
> > the intake tube of the AquaClear was ok...thinking that the bubbles
> > will be sucked in and churned by the impeller, breaking them up and
> > storing them there for a while to absorb more C02 into the water
> > instead of it escaping...everyone thought it was a good idea and I saw
> > other ppl doing it too. How would you do it?
>
> Well, I have injected CO2 directly into filter intakes before. For a
while
> I was injecting into an Eheim canister filter; I had the tubing cut at an
> angle and loosely strapped to the outside of the intake strainer. I was
> also injecting into a Fluval canister filter, for a while with the same
> method, and for a while I had the tubing actually inserted into a hole in
> the intake strainer.
>
> I'm not really familiar with the design of the AquaClear intake; it would
> seem to me that you'd need to restrict the flow of water through the
> strainer in order to cause enough suction to actually pull CO2 through the
> tubing. Or maybe it's due to the high flowrate of the filter? I don't
> know.
>
> Right now I'm running my CO2 into a Hagen Natural CO2 system diffuser, and
> I'm happy with it. I'm getting good levels of CO2, the diffuser is easy
to
> hide behind some plants, and I don't need to worry about locking up the
> impeller of my canister filter.

[Dave M. Picklyk]

Just got an idea Dave. What about putting tube in the intake like I did, but
fitting an airstone on the end of it. This would make much smaller bubbles
and possibly ensure more of an even flow. What do you think?

"Dave M. Picklyk" > wrote in message
a...
> I'm getting about 26ppm (if I read my pH right at 7.1, otherwise it might
be
> 7.0 and then 33ppm) now. Last night I was getting even bubbles coming out
at
> about 38 bubbles per minute. Now I get a big burst of bubbles and about 3
> inches of water siphones down, then it builds up again in about 10-15
> seconds and gives another burst. Why would this change overnight? I don't
> have the end of my tubing cut at a 60 degree angle, should I? What
> difference would it make? Excuse my stupidness in this matter :)
>
> Thanx!
> Dave.
>
> "Dave" > wrote in message
> ...
> > "Dave M. Picklyk" > empowered us with this mighty blow
> > against the Patriarchy:
> >
> > >> > The problem is that when I turn my aquaclear filter down in the
> > >> > morning when I feed, it stops bubbling and water siphons back into
> > >> > the hose a few inches, then it has to clear it out again.
> > >>
> > >> Err, that ain't good. It sounds like your Aquaclear is somehow
> > >> actually drawing CO2 through the line hose it's on ... if so, your
> > >> CO2 mix bottle might collapse. The CO2 should be coming from the
> > >> hose on its own (positive pressure).
> > > I posted a message up here asking if putting the hose into the end of
> > > the intake tube of the AquaClear was ok...thinking that the bubbles
> > > will be sucked in and churned by the impeller, breaking them up and
> > > storing them there for a while to absorb more C02 into the water
> > > instead of it escaping...everyone thought it was a good idea and I saw
> > > other ppl doing it too. How would you do it?
> >
> > Well, I have injected CO2 directly into filter intakes before. For a
> while
> > I was injecting into an Eheim canister filter; I had the tubing cut at
an
> > angle and loosely strapped to the outside of the intake strainer. I was
> > also injecting into a Fluval canister filter, for a while with the same
> > method, and for a while I had the tubing actually inserted into a hole
in
> > the intake strainer.
> >
> > I'm not really familiar with the design of the AquaClear intake; it
would
> > seem to me that you'd need to restrict the flow of water through the
> > strainer in order to cause enough suction to actually pull CO2 through
the
> > tubing. Or maybe it's due to the high flowrate of the filter? I don't
> > know.
> >
> > Right now I'm running my CO2 into a Hagen Natural CO2 system diffuser,
and
> > I'm happy with it. I'm getting good levels of CO2, the diffuser is easy
> to
> > hide behind some plants, and I don't need to worry about locking up the
> > impeller of my canister filter.
>
>

[Dave]

I know that people have tried that ... give it a shot!

Personally I wouldn't want to do it because I just don't like connecting my
CO2 line to my filter ... it's a hassle if I want to clean the intake tube
etc. (not that that happens often). Personally I think a small diffuser
like the Hagen one I mentioned is the way to go, if it supplies enough CO2
to the tank. Easy to set up, easy to remove, easy to clean.

"Dave M. Picklyk" > empowered us with this mighty blow
against the Patriarchy:

> Just got an idea Dave. What about putting tube in the intake like I
> did, but fitting an airstone on the end of it. This would make much
> smaller bubbles and possibly ensure more of an even flow. What do you
> think?
>
> "Dave M. Picklyk" > wrote in message
> a...
>> I'm getting about 26ppm (if I read my pH right at 7.1, otherwise it
>> might
> be
>> 7.0 and then 33ppm) now. Last night I was getting even bubbles coming
>> out
> at
>> about 38 bubbles per minute. Now I get a big burst of bubbles and
>> about 3 inches of water siphones down, then it builds up again in
>> about 10-15 seconds and gives another burst. Why would this change
>> overnight? I don't have the end of my tubing cut at a 60 degree
>> angle, should I? What difference would it make? Excuse my stupidness
>> in this matter :)
>>
>> Thanx!
>> Dave.
>>
>> "Dave" > wrote in message
>> ...
>> > "Dave M. Picklyk" > empowered us with this mighty
>> > blow against the Patriarchy:
>> >
>> > >> > The problem is that when I turn my aquaclear filter down in
>> > >> > the morning when I feed, it stops bubbling and water siphons
>> > >> > back into the hose a few inches, then it has to clear it out
>> > >> > again.
>> > >>
>> > >> Err, that ain't good. It sounds like your Aquaclear is somehow
>> > >> actually drawing CO2 through the line hose it's on ... if so,
>> > >> your CO2 mix bottle might collapse. The CO2 should be coming
>> > >> from the hose on its own (positive pressure).
>> > > I posted a message up here asking if putting the hose into the
>> > > end of the intake tube of the AquaClear was ok...thinking that
>> > > the bubbles will be sucked in and churned by the impeller,
>> > > breaking them up and storing them there for a while to absorb
>> > > more C02 into the water instead of it escaping...everyone thought
>> > > it was a good idea and I saw other ppl doing it too. How would
>> > > you do it?
>> >
>> > Well, I have injected CO2 directly into filter intakes before. For
>> > a
>> while
>> > I was injecting into an Eheim canister filter; I had the tubing cut
>> > at
> an
>> > angle and loosely strapped to the outside of the intake strainer.
>> > I was also injecting into a Fluval canister filter, for a while
>> > with the same method, and for a while I had the tubing actually
>> > inserted into a hole
> in
>> > the intake strainer.
>> >
>> > I'm not really familiar with the design of the AquaClear intake; it
> would
>> > seem to me that you'd need to restrict the flow of water through
>> > the strainer in order to cause enough suction to actually pull CO2
>> > through
> the
>> > tubing. Or maybe it's due to the high flowrate of the filter? I
>> > don't know.
>> >
>> > Right now I'm running my CO2 into a Hagen Natural CO2 system
>> > diffuser,
> and
>> > I'm happy with it. I'm getting good levels of CO2, the diffuser is
>> > easy
>> to
>> > hide behind some plants, and I don't need to worry about locking up
>> > the impeller of my canister filter.
>>
>>
>
>
>