# DIY CO2 Question



## Richard2510 (23 Oct 2009)

Hi guys,

Need a bit of help again please.  I have this morning filled my Rio 180 up.  It currently just contains the substrate.  The decor is going in tomorrow when I'll partial empty and then re-fill the tank (I had to check it was water tight and the heater and filter work, which they do   )

Anyway, I have put together a home made CO2 generator using sugar (2 cups), water (warm, but not hot) and a sachet of Champagne yeast from the local brewers shop.  Now everywhere I read says about adding 1/4 or 1/2 a teaspoon of yeast, but the guy in the shop said to pour the whole sachet in (about 2 teaspoons full).  Well after a fair few hours all I have is a brown foam on the surface of the bottle and not a single bubble of CO2 to be seen anywhere.  Am I just too impatient, or has the mixture gone wrong somewhere?

Appreciate your help

Richard


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## Voo (23 Oct 2009)

Been a long while since i've made my own DIY CO2, but i remember never putting in a whole packet at once. If you was brewing something then you probably would use the whole thing, but for CO2 you don't need that much. 

It can also take a few hours to get started too. Just make sure none of the foam/mixture gets into the tank!


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## Richard2510 (24 Oct 2009)

Voo said:
			
		

> Been a long while since i've made my own DIY CO2, but i remember never putting in a whole packet at once. If you was brewing something then you probably would use the whole thing, but for CO2 you don't need that much.
> 
> It can also take a few hours to get started too. Just make sure none of the foam/mixture gets into the tank!



HHMMMM, I think the guy in the shop may have got this one wrong, although he did know it was for a fish tank and he did seem like he knew about it.  This morning still nothing.   The brown foam is now more of a white foam.  I presume these DIY CO mixtures produce enough pressure to pass through such things as non-return valves?

Any more advice greatly appreciated.

Richard


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## LondonDragon (24 Oct 2009)

How big is the bottle? How much water you putting in?


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## Richard2510 (24 Oct 2009)

LondonDragon said:
			
		

> How big is the bottle? How much water you putting in?



It's a 2 litre coke bottle and I've filled it up to just before the start of the curve at the top of th bottle.  

Richard


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## LondonDragon (25 Oct 2009)

Recipe for a 2 litre bottle:

Fill bottle 2/3 thirds with luke warm water, 2-3 cups of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of yeast and 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

It will always take a few hours for it to start off, I used DIY CO2 in the past to good effect but the size of your tank might need a little more, depends on the lighting you have. Also remember that the more yeast you had the more bubbles you get but the solution will eat up the sugar quicker therefore last a lot less.

Its always better to have two bottles going, replace one one week and the other then next with two diffusers, with DIY CO2 you also run the risk of poisoning your fish, so I would recommend an air pump during lights out, plants do not take up CO2 without any lights on, just turn the air pump off a couple of hours before lights on. I did that and never had any problems with my tank, I did run two bottles, replaced one on a Sunday and the other on a Wednesday, but they were smaller bottles.

I used this yeast: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Doves-Farm-Quick- ... 3ca664d2f6 125g lasted me for the whole time I used DIY CO2 and still had some let after a year.

Good luck


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## Richard2510 (25 Oct 2009)

Thank you.  I really appreciate the advice.


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## LondonDragon (25 Oct 2009)

Richard2510 said:
			
		

> Thank you.  I really appreciate the advice.


Anytime  

Also worth remembering that room temperature also can influence the mixture, if the room is too cold it might kill it off, quality of the yeast also a problem sometimes, I only ever used the one in my previous post and worked a treat.
Also ensure your check valves are on the right way round or not broken, quick test is just to remove it, a bubble counter is also useful has you can see if there is any flow rate and also any liquid that escapes the mixture gets trapped in the bubble counter and not in the tank, and also good to see when it run outs or is about to.

I used one of these and it was great: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Brand-New-Bubble- ... 3a4a906ba7

Only thing to note also you must have a diffuser designed for DIY CO2, most diffusers need so much pressure that the DIY will not cope and most likely can give you problems and make a lot of mess. The only glass diffusers that I would recommend are the nano ones: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/CO2-Aquarium-Fish ... 29fe3b3d7f

Any questions just fire them at us


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## Voo (25 Oct 2009)

Also make sure there's no leaks! How have you attached the airline to the coke bottle? I often found that the glue would work it's way loose from the lid after some time.


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## LondonDragon (25 Oct 2009)

Voo said:
			
		

> Also make sure there's no leaks! How have you attached the airline to the coke bottle? I often found that the glue would work it's way loose from the lid after some time.


Reason I purchased two Nutrafin Kits and then just used a DIY solution, because their bottle are very good and designed to hold the pressure, and no leaks


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## Richard2510 (26 Oct 2009)

AAARRRGGGHHH!!! After literally hours of trying different formulas, checking for leaks, replacing bottle top with new silicone sealer (enough to seal around 400 fish tanks I'd say), it turns out the air taps ALL leak.  I have 3, 1 on each bottle and 1 to control the over all out put, and they all just p**s air out   

Does anyone now of a type of air tap that doesn't leak?  These three are all Algarde. 

Cheers

Richard


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## LondonDragon (26 Oct 2009)

Richard2510 said:
			
		

> Does anyone now of a type of air tap that doesn't leak?  These three are all Algarde.


Air taps?


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## Richard2510 (26 Oct 2009)

Um, the little blue taps that you can use to control the flow.  Can't think what else they'd be called.  :idea:  Like this - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170380850513&ssPageName=STRK:MEBDIX:IT


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## LondonDragon (26 Oct 2009)

Richard2510 said:
			
		

> Um, the little blue taps that you can use to control the flow.  Can't think what else they'd be called.  :idea:  Like this - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170380850513&ssPageName=STRK:MEBDIX:IT


You cannot use this on a DIY solution, if too much pressure builds up inside the bottle it will just explode and make a mess lol good luck cleaning that afterwards 
That's why I recommend using an air pump during lights out, I don't think a 2 litre bottle will be enough anyway for a 180 litre tank so you don't have to worry about the taps


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## Richard2510 (26 Oct 2009)

Ok, really appreciate the advice.  Starting to re-think the whole DIY CO2 system now.  I'll have a look around for a good value system.


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## LondonDragon (26 Oct 2009)

Richard2510 said:
			
		

> Ok, really appreciate the advice.  Starting to re-think the whole DIY CO2 system now.  I'll have a look around for a good value system.



Just use bottle -> non return valve -> bubble counter -> non return valve -> nano diffuser

You should also use a drop checker just to monitor the CO2 in the tank, had a second bottle if necessary.


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## Richard2510 (26 Oct 2009)

LondonDragon said:
			
		

> Voo said:
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Just had a quick look at these.  I think I'll get a couple.  How do you control the flow rate? 

Richard


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## LondonDragon (26 Oct 2009)

Richard2510 said:
			
		

> Just had a quick look at these.  I think I'll get a couple.  How do you control the flow rate?


With DIY you can't, just let it all go into the tank 24/7, that's why you need to start with one bottle and measure it with a drop checker and then if you need to had the second bottle, the air pump during lights out will give the fish a break and prevent them being poisoned.

EDIT: Corrected punctuation as made aware by Mark, cheers


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## vauxhallmark (26 Oct 2009)

LondonDragon said:
			
		

> Richard2510 said:
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London Dragon, you're right as ever, I don't need to contribute to this thread, as you've got it all in hand, but your post above needs a comma in it, otherwise it means the opposite of what I'm sure you're trying to say, which is:

Q How do you control the flow rate?

A With DIY you can't*,* just let it go into the tank 24/7

Not wanting to hijack, hope you don't mind me adding this in.

Best regards,

Mark


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## LondonDragon (26 Oct 2009)

No worries Mark, glad you spotted my mistake  I sometimes forget about the punctuation hehe


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## Richard2510 (26 Oct 2009)

LondonDragon said:
			
		

> Richard2510 said:
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Right, I'm with you.  I'm gonna order one, get it up and running (with an air pump running on a timmer set to the opposite of the light) then keep an eye on it using the drop checker and then see if I need a 2nd one.  

Cheers   

Richard


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## LondonDragon (26 Oct 2009)

Richard2510 said:
			
		

> Right, I'm with you.  I'm gonna order one, get it up and running (with an air pump running on a timmer set to the opposite of the light) then keep an eye on it using the drop checker and then see if I need a 2nd one.
> Cheers
> Richard


Any time, just turn off the air pump two hours before the lights come on, to enable the CO2 to build up in the water so that when the lights come on there is plenty of CO2 available for the plants. You could try it without the air pump at first and see how your fish react, but its risky business with DIY, I almost wiped my entire stock when I started using DIY CO2.


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## Richard2510 (28 Oct 2009)

1st Hagen CO2 system arrived today.  I'll monitor the levels and if necessary order a second unit.  I now just need to get an air pump to work through the night and hopefully I'll be sorted.


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## LondonDragon (28 Oct 2009)

Richard2510 said:
			
		

> 1st Hagen CO2 system arrived today.  I'll monitor the levels and if necessary order a second unit.  I now just need to get an air pump to work through the night and hopefully I'll be sorted.



DIY Recipe for Nutrafin CO2:

I fill sugar up to the line indicated in the Hagen canister, add 1/4 tsp yeast, 1 tsp baking soda, and then fill water up to the top line.


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