# Not impressed with Pollen type diffusers



## tubamanandy (14 May 2015)

Tank is hi-tech 90 Litre - used pollen type diffusers for years with pressurised CO2.

Very recently moved over to an in-tank CO2 Reactor - what a difference. Much less CO2 needed (must be much more efficient).

Wish I had moved over earlier - pollen type diffusers maybe small/cheap and convenient but just cant see that they are that efficient and no micro-bubbles.

Anyone else agree or has moved over ?


----------



## foxfish (14 May 2015)

What do you mean by an in-tank CO2 Reactor?


----------



## tubamanandy (14 May 2015)

??? The CO2 reactors that can go in or out of a tank that attach to the output pipe of an external or run by a small powerhead (as how mine is setup) - they often have spinning wheels to chop up the CO2


----------



## John S (15 May 2015)

foxfish said:


> What do you mean by an in-tank CO2 Reactor?



This type of thing Foxfish:
http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/tmc-aquagro-co2-power-diffuser-1000-p-3854.html


----------



## Shadow (15 May 2015)

Another alternative you might want to consider is inline diffuser


----------



## Yo-han (15 May 2015)

Off course it is more efficient, almost 100%. With any pollen type you always see bubbles reach the surface so this means you don't get 100%. (closer to 50% I would guess!)


----------



## JohnC (15 May 2015)

I actually switched back from my inline "tower" reactor for a couple of reasons. I found it was killing the flow rate of my filter. I also found it was making it harder for me to regulate when the co2 was on or off. Often there was a buildup which would take hours to clear through which also varied with the filter performance between cleaning.

although i fully appreciate other user experiences may vary. 

In the end I first switched back to in tank diffusers of the glass types. Now i'm using the inline diffusers and the Bazzoka type in tank ones.


----------



## REDSTEVEO (15 May 2015)

I have gone from Glass Lily Pipes, Pollen type diffusers, in tank Aqua Do and ADA ceramic diffusers, to UP Aqua in line diffusers. I tried a Bazooka type in tank diffuser I brought back with me from Hong Kong, it worked for about two days and then wouldn't work unless I cranked the pressure right up which finished up blowing the tube off the diffuser, water in the tank was blowing round like a bloomin washing machine.

I have gone back to the UP Aqua In line diffuser, although to be honest even that has fluctuating performance, its a right pain the a$$!
There was some faults with the latest style of in line diffuser, the new model where you could unscrew the ends and replace the ceramic tube, the plastic they used was splitting causing massive leakage of Co2. I complained to UP Aqua who have since sent me some in tank ceramic diffusers to test. They are the same as any other ceramic diffuser, they work for a week or two and then get clogged up.

UP Aqua also sent me some new model in line Super Diffuser to test but it was a 12/16mm pipe fitting so I couldn't use it. I got back to them and they are now sending me the 16/22mm version to test instead.

If you want to see what they look like see the links below for details.

http://www.up-aqua.com/00-dm-page/00up_co2-118-1.jpg
http://www.up-aqua.com/00-dm-page/00up_new-diffuser.jpg

Regarding flow issues, if you are going for a reactor, which I think are probably the most efficient, you either have to bite the bullet and take the hit on the flow output from your filter, or set it up on a completely separate filter, which means more expense and hardware in the cabinet. 

Hope this helps,

Cheers,

Steve.


----------



## ajm83 (15 May 2015)

John S said:


> This type of thing Foxfish:
> http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/tmc-aquagro-co2-power-diffuser-1000-p-3854.html



Does anybody have a pic of how this setup looks in the tank, using a powerhead to drive it?


----------



## Iain Sutherland (15 May 2015)

Best methods in my experience are AquaMedic 1000 reactors with no media in for big tanks and for smaller tanks absolutely no question the tropica 3in1 in tank diffusor is bloody brilliant.  Doesnt clog, easy to use, constant micros bubbles even after 4 months with one clean.

http://www.thegreenmachineonline.com/shop/aquatics/co2-system/co2-diffusers/aqua-medic-reactor-1000
http://www.freshwatershrimp.co.uk/product.php?id_product=438


----------



## amoran45 (16 May 2015)

Lots of good information in here, im using a 3 in 1 type diffuser for my co2....i hate the micro bubbles floating around the tank all the time....what do you guys think would be the easiest way to diffuse the co2 into the water without getting annoying micro bubbles everywhere? Reactor? Thanks


----------



## tubamanandy (16 May 2015)

I've got a small powerhead (550lph) attached directly to the CO2 reactor (double spinning wheel type to chop up the CO2) in the tank. No micro-bubbles but great efficiency & use of CO2. Never going back to the wasteful pollen type diffusers again. Only down side is that there's more stuff in the tank but less maintenance and not really much to go wrong


----------



## amoran45 (16 May 2015)

Thanks tubamanandy.....ill give that a try, what's the smallest pump i could use, I've only got a 36 gallon


----------



## tubamanandy (16 May 2015)

My 550lph powerhead does the trick fine - really didnt want to connect the reactor to my exterior filter output


----------



## amoran45 (20 May 2015)

I was thinkin of that option when i get an external canister, but I've heard it slows the flow


----------

