Looking for a good CO2 diffuser/reactor

I've noticed the disc''s performance gets worse over time if I dont' clean it. I generally clean it whenerve I take the filter apart which is about every two months.

I guess that I could probably inject it into my powerhead and not use the disc, but I'm getting good results right now. And I just hate to fix something that isn't broken(pardon the cliche). Thanks for the tips Tom!
 
FASTRKR - those photos look almost like the DIY setup I have on my 20g. some PVC, some plastic bits, a bit of time...
Take a look on my site (in sig) and I have photos of the whole deal...
The one difference is I'm using yeast CO2, so I bubbled the co2 into the powerhead to prevent water backwashing into the yeast bottle because there's less pressure involved (it did when I put co2 right into the reactor)
 
My fish are being babies!

Okay, so I looked at the one reactor made of PVC pipe that hangs inline with the filter -- very cool! A bit overwhelming for me though. I thought I would try the powerhead with the gravel cleaner tube setup. I just got a small Aquaclear 201 and as soon as I turned it on, my danios started zipping around but my big congo tetras swam over to the other side of the tank. They will not swim on the side with the powerhead. What a bunch of babies! I do love them though and don't want them to be secluded to just one side of the tank. I am thinking that maybe I will take back the powerhead and give the PVC setup a go. That one website that FASTRAKR provided has some pretty good pics. Those should help. Any suggestions or ideas?

Thanks!
 
nah, building a PVC reactor is easy - hanging it somewhere is the hard part! I ended up stocking mine on the side of an aquaclear HOB filter, with the powerhead inside the filter box. Less stuff in the tank, and I turn it off with the lights...

A few ideas, though - use straight hose fittings, not angled like I used. The sides of my reactor are clear, so it gets some algae now and then, and it's a PAIN to clean!.
also, use teflon tape on all the threaded parts, and make sure the glued-together bits are sealed good before putting it in operation. Really sucks when there's one tiny mystery leak later on!
 
i've just finished building a reactor very similar to the vortex 200, with an acrylic tube, rubber cap, and a rio50. i'll post some pics as soon as i get my camera back. i feel kind of guilty though, like i now owe vortex some money...

p.s, i'm hoping that that rubber cap would not be affected too much, if at all, by the co2.
 
Nvision -- Do tell more! :) What did you use as the acrylic tube? Gravel cleaner kit or did you use something else? And where did you find the appropriately sized rubber cap? Very curious! I'd be interested in any more details that you can offer. I'm going to try to put something together this weekend.
 
tfish, if you can find a local Tap Plastic store, www.tapplastics.com, you should really check it out. they specialize in acrylic plastic and got tons of stuff and little simple gadgets that you normally never even think about nor use... until you really need to use them.

i bought a 24" clear tube (more than enough to make 3 or 4 reactors) along with some rubber caps which were sold separately for less than 5 bucks. then i went to petsmart and bought a rigid air tube and an airstone. i've then decided not to use the airstone though, so i can actually count the bubbles coming out. but that's pretty much it. go home, add some elbow grease and drill 2 holes, one on the tube and another on the rubber cap, and that's it. your powerhead goes into the tube and the air hose goes thru the cap from the top.
 
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