Which reactor?

[JCason]

I am going to co2 injection b/c I am tired of spending the money on little things that never seem to add the co2 they claim. I have a fluval 304 filter and was wondering if there is a reactor that uses the same size tubing for the inlet. Basically I want to take the oulet from the filter into the reactor and then to the tank saving me from buying a powerhead. If not, home depot should have adapters right?

[Timmain42]

Yes, the Depot has plastic fittings for just about any size of tubing, up to and over 2" ID. I just built my own reactor after spending a day in the Depot. I used this design as a basis for an industrial-sized version:

http://www.hoftiezer.net/personal/aquaria/

[bobalston]

How about this DIY reacter:

http://www.hoftiezer.net/personal/aquaria/

Bob

[Toro Driver]

This one is far less complicated. If you have a small IFS that you visit frequently they will sell you the small quantity of bio balls cheap. I put this together in just under an hour. I used pvc cement to attach the CO2 fitting instead of what the author recommended. It was quick and easy.

http://www.aquaticscape.com/articles/co2reactor.htm

[superjohnny]

bob & tim,
I like those reactors, but I like this one (http://www.hoftiezer.net/personal/aquaria/)better.

:p

James seems to have used a number of superfluous parts, I've been meaning to ask him about it. You can catch him as a moderator at www.aquabotanic.com. Try PM'ing him.

You'll want to add the reactor before your filter. Adding it after can severely reduce water-flow. Or so I've heard...

[NJ Devils Fan]

Check the one on the DiY page (http://members.tripod.com/njdevilsfan130/do_it_yourself.htm) of my site, its very easy and you get 100% diffusion.

[NJ Devils Fan]

woops, i thought you said diffuser, sorry about that.

[JCason]

If I put the reactor before, isn't there more of a chance of me getting my impellor locked up in the canister filter or is that by just running only co2 into the filter?

[bobalston]

Superjohhny -

I am confused. The link to the one you like better is the same link I gave????

Bob :confused:

[superjohnny]

Sorry bob, you & tim gave the same link...

bad attempt at humor, pardon me ;)

[DIYMatt]

JCason- If the reactor does what it is supposed to do it should not airlock your filter. The reactor should dissolve all the CO2 into the water. But, to do that you have to put a peice of foam or mesh in the reactor which lends itself to clogging. I don't really see a way around that either. I had one on the input line and it clogged in about 4 weeks for me. So, I moved it over to the output line and it started to clog in about 10 weeks. BTW- I had little to no reduction in outlfow. But, then again I do not have any fine particulate filtration in my filters. So, if you do build an inline reactor make sure you can open it to clean it. Since filter maintenance is the bane of my existance I switched over to a diffuser similar to the one NJ Devils fan suggested. Mine is a little less complicated and smaller. Also, my tank is large so there are lots of places to hide it.

If you want an inline reactor I actually have two I would be willing to sell to you. One that I used with clear tubing, the other has never been used and is made out of white PVC. If you are interested, let me know and I will send you pictures. And yes you can open both of them:).