# Best pressurised co2 system for 19l



## Matnez (23 Jan 2013)

Hi, I have been reading around a lot of different threads and I'm trying to work out what the best type of co2 system would be for my 19l Fluval Spec. 

I'm getting really confused about all the different regs and thread sizes. I have been very interested in this set up Cheap pressurised CO2 system DIY guide | UK Aquatic Plant Society but I'm still unsure if it is the best way to go, I have heard stories of where the regulator dumps co2 into the tank when the canister is nearly empty killing all the live stock.

I have seen this regulator  EASY AQUA Co2 Plant Aquarium Simple Regulator Manometer | eBay but again I'm unsure if it is any good and what bottles I can use it on.

I was wondering if any of you could recommend a simple cost effect system for my nano tank. I am very 'hands on' so constructing a system is not a problem.

Many thanks,

Matt


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## GillesF (23 Jan 2013)

Both setups have crappy needle wheels which make it very difficult (and dangerous) to keep a constant CO2 rate, especially on a 19 litre.

I'm not sure where you can get different models than these though, since I'm not from the UK.


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## wazuck (23 Jan 2013)

End of tank dump can be an issue on every single stage regulator. It's not a common issue, just one to be aware of. As far as I am aware there is no company manufacturing aquarium dual stage regulators. This means that if you did feel the need for a dual stage you would have to make it up yourself which can be a real headache of a process as you need to know thread standards etc. now there are many options out there of co2 systems. What we would need to know to begin with is how much space you have to house a system and how much money you would be looking to spend? Also with regards to the poor needle valve post you can always upgrade the needle valve to one which will out perform any currently manufactured aquarium valve. There are always options available.


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## nayr88 (23 Jan 2013)

Hello mate.

I'm just the same, when people mention thread sizes and this reg and that solenoid and blah blah it gets abit much I need to see and touch to understand how it all works.

Right your need list 

•Fire extinguisher 2kg;
ebay or a local fire safety firm.

•Regulator;
Always worth having a solenoid attached item as it saves co2 and also keeps co2 consistent.

Item 300838698376 on ebay is perfect and well priced. BUY IT!!!

Bubble counter- counts...bubbles  used to give you an idea roughly how much co2 you adding. 

Item 200780032331 well priced quality bubble counter

•Drop checker;
Indicates by the use of fluid(which u an get from the for sale section of the forum) what your co2 level is in the tank. Blue is too low green is right and yellow is danger! Haha the liquid changes colour as the water gets enriched.

Item - 221047964284 cheap and comes with solution 


Stop valve;

Stops siphon effect of co2 tubing. So no back flow of water into the solenoid wen co2 is not running.

You'll find these easy on ebay

Same as co2 tubing 

Now for the best bit! The diffuser...
I FUMIN love the fluval diffuser, I've owned super mist atomisers nice glass diffusers and I owned the fluval. It beas them hands down!! So please take my recommendation an get one 

Item 190543873883  

That's all ya need. Don't waste your time with nano kits as soda stream. It's just pointless, the nano kits cost a tone to run, the soda stream is ok but the 30quid adapter you need is just more ££ 

Co2 from an FE will last you 9 months I reckon. It lasted me hat long anyways...maybe longer 

I strongly recommend checking out our sponsors for all of these items before making the ebay purchase, I used those as quick examples . You will hae  better warranty and a better level of care with the forum sponsers. 

Happy camping


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## Matnez (23 Jan 2013)

wazuck said:


> End of tank dump can be an issue on every single stage regulator. It's not a common issue, just one to be aware of. As far as I am aware there is no company manufacturing aquarium dual stage regulators. This means that if you did feel the need for a dual stage you would have to make it up yourself which can be a real headache of a process as you need to know thread standards etc. now there are many options out there of co2 systems. What we would need to know to begin with is how much space you have to house a system and how much money you would be looking to spend? Also with regards to the poor needle valve post you can always upgrade the needle valve to one which will out perform any currently manufactured aquarium valve. There are always options available.


 
Thanks for that, I was under the impression that tank dumps only happened on non-aquarium regulators so that makes me feel a little better that it is not a very common issue.

In regards to space, I do have a reasonable amount of space to play with, I think a 2KG FE would be the maximum maybe a little too big... And I don't really want to have to spend more than £100 if I can avoid it, thats why the welding co2 thread appealed to me.





nayr88 said:


> Hello mate.
> 
> I'm just the same, when people mention thread sizes and this reg and that solenoid and blah blah it gets abit much I need to see and touch to understand how it all works.
> 
> ...


 

Wow thank you for all that info, I will have a look at all the things you recommend and add it all up  What height does you 2KG FE stand at with the reg fitted? I just wondering if it would fit in my cabinet.

Thanks again


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## wazuck (23 Jan 2013)

Just to add to the bottle options. A 20oz paintball tank will be smaller than an FE. There are din477 (brittish co2 thread standard) to CGA320(paintball thread standard) adapters. The bottle will cost you around £20 with a bit of searching and refills will be fairly cheap aswell. It's not as money saving as an FE but is an option to keep things smaller. If you did want to save money you could use an FE or even a bigger co2 bottle that you could keep somewhere else in your house and refill the paintball system yourself. Plenty of videos online to show you how to do it. I ran 88g disposable bottles on my 28L tank and was using almost a bottle a week. At £7 a bottle things can get expensive really fast. Another option is disposable welding co2 bottles. Again a different thread size. But works out cheaper than 88g bottles and you
Can order them online rather than having to find a place to refill them.


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## wazuck (23 Jan 2013)

Matnez said:


> Thanks for that, I was under the impression that tank dumps only happened on non-aquarium regulators so that makes me feel a little better that it is not a very common issue.
> 
> In regards to space, I do have a reasonable amount of space to play with, I think a 2KG FE would be the maximum maybe a little too big... And I don't really want to have to spend more than £100 if I can avoid it, thats why the welding co2 thread appealed to me.



I will have a quick look around and try to find an adaptor that will allow you to run welding bottles from a din477 reg. you are miles better off buying a din477 reg and adapting it to run on different bottles than buying a reg for the bottle you want. People will more than likely
Buy a din477 reg and any other if you were to sell it on at any point. Another things to look at is working pressure. Some diffusers need a high working pressure to be able to work. An adjustable reg would be a must for this.


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## Matnez (23 Jan 2013)

wazuck said:


> Just to add to the bottle options. A 20oz paintball tank will be smaller than an FE. There are din477 (brittish co2 thread standard) to CGA320(paintball thread standard) adapters. The bottle will cost you around £20 with a bit of searching and refills will be fairly cheap aswell. It's not as money saving as an FE but is an option to keep things smaller. If you did want to save money you could use an FE or even a bigger co2 bottle that you could keep somewhere else in your house and refill the paintball system yourself. Plenty of videos online to show you how to do it. I ran 88g disposable bottles on my 28L tank and was using almost a bottle a week. At £7 a bottle things can get expensive really fast. Another option is disposable welding co2 bottles. Again a different thread size. But works out cheaper than 88g bottles and you
> Can order them online rather than having to find a place to refill them.


Thanks for that I will have a look into the paintball option as well  I am very keen on the disposable welding co2 route due to the small out lay cost, in the thread on here the guy set a very simple one up for £50..


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## Matnez (23 Jan 2013)

wazuck said:


> I will have a quick look around and try to find an adaptor that will allow you to run welding bottles from a din477 reg. you are miles better off buying a din477 reg and adapting it to run on different bottles than buying a reg for the bottle you want. People will more than likely
> Buy a din477 reg and any other if you were to sell it on at any point. Another things to look at is working pressure. Some diffusers need a high working pressure to be able to work. An adjustable reg would be a must for this.


Thanks for that, very useful advice


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## wazuck (23 Jan 2013)

Looking at your budget an UPaqua regulator, FE and all the required tubing, check valve, bubble counter and diffuser would come in at around £100. This system IMO would be a good option. The welding setup would be cheap but it may not to be the ideal setup. I'll take a look and price one up anyway just for pure interest.


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## nayr88 (23 Jan 2013)

Welding co2 is ok I guess. Used it and didnt  like it. The cheap regs are terrible, n messing around with adapters is a waste of ££


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## wazuck (23 Jan 2013)

A quick look at the regs and £35 for one with a single gauge. This is before factoring in the solenoid and needle valve. The money saved wouldnt be that great tbh. Plus the savings from using an FE would make the FE system cheaper in the long run.


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## wazuck (23 Jan 2013)

nayr88 said:


> Welding co2 is ok I guess. Used it and didnt  like it. The cheap regs are terrible, n messing around with adapters is a waste of ££



I actually disagree with the adapters being a waste of money. If a big bottle of co2 had just run out and I was unable to get it refilled. Having an adaptor and a disposable co2 bottle on hand would get my tank full of co2 until I was able to make the trip. Plus I like the idea of being able to use one regulator in many different situations.


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## Ady34 (23 Jan 2013)

for some of the bits and pieces you may need theres a thread just popped up in the for sale section.... bubble counter, drop checkers, diffusers etc plus regulator and solenoid too. Maybe worth a look:
http://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/tank-breakdown-co2-system-glassware-gravel-plants-etc.25328/
Its always worth doing a search in the for sale section once you know what you need, you can get some good deals from other members 
Cheerio,
Ady.


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## Matnez (23 Jan 2013)

Thanks for all this information guys, I'm beginning to get a good idea of what is needed and that cheap is defiantly not always best.
I think that the FE route is going to be the best option. I just need to work out the size of it all and if it would fit in my cabinet.


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## Matnez (23 Jan 2013)

Matnez said:


> Thanks for all this information guys, I'm beginning to get a good idea of what is needed and that cheap is defiantly not always best.
> I think that the FE route is going to be the best option. I just need to work out the size of it all and if it would fit in my cabinet.


Nice one, will take a look


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## Rockwell (2 Feb 2013)

nayr88 said:


> Hello mate.
> 
> I'm just the same, when people mention thread sizes and this reg and that solenoid and blah blah it gets abit much I need to see and touch to understand how it all works.
> 
> ...


 
I used this post as a shopping list and used the FE tutorials as a guide and set up my first pressurized co2 today... Went like a dream. Thanks Nayr88


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## nayr88 (2 Feb 2013)

Mate cheers for that
Means alot


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## Rockwell (3 Feb 2013)

No worries!


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## Matnez (3 Feb 2013)

Rockwell said:


> I used this post as a shopping list and used the FE tutorials as a guide and set up my first pressurized co2 today... Went like a dream. Thanks Nayr88


I'm glad you found it helpful Rockwell. I have brought everything from this shopping list too, all the bit should be here next week. Can not wait.

A massive thank you too to Nayr88, breaking it all down as you did made the whole process a lot less daunting and doable, cheers buddy.

Now all there is to do is build the system  fingers crossed


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## Rockwell (3 Feb 2013)

Hey... As long as you've got an variable wrench and follow all the instructions, you'll be fine. I found my solenoid was a bit noisy, but I looked on line and a bit of a tap with the rubber end of a screwdriver did the trick. Also, the fluval ceramic diffuser was really unimpressive to start with, just a few massive bubbles to start with, but after 15 minutes or so it started producing a really fine mist.
Good luck.


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## nayr88 (4 Feb 2013)

Matnez said:


> I'm glad you found it helpful Rockwell. I have brought everything from this shopping list too, all the bit should be here next week. Can not wait.
> 
> A massive thank you too to Nayr88, breaking it all down as you did made the whole process a lot less daunting and doable, cheers buddy.
> 
> Now all there is to do is build the system  fingers crossed


Great to hear mate 

It can be quite daunting picking it out and worrying you might get the wrong item.
If you want me to walk you through actually setting it up PM me when your going to start and il can walk you through it.


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## James87 (4 Mar 2013)

wazuck said:


> Just to add to the bottle options. A 20oz paintball tank will be smaller than an FE. There are din477 (brittish co2 thread standard) to CGA320(paintball thread standard) adapters. The bottle will cost you around £20 with a bit of searching and refills will be fairly cheap aswell
> .


 
Hi, can anyone confirm for me are the paintball co2 bottles definitely CGA320 fitting? I have a din 477 regulator and an adapter to CGA320 but after reading through lots of posts I can't figure out if paintball tanks are actually CGA320. Partly because they are mostly American posts. 

Thanks


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## James87 (4 Mar 2013)

I also keep seeing "CGA320 to paintball" adapters which leads me to think the paintball bottles can't be CGA320?


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## wazuck (4 Mar 2013)

CGA320 is the paintball standard. They may well be the common adaptor that allows you to run 88g disposable bottles on your gun. I have one of these for my TMC v2 pro reg.


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## James87 (5 Mar 2013)

Thanks, and is your TMC v2 pro reg a CGA 320 thread, and does it fit straight onto a normal paintball cannister? I am asking because I have a Din 477 to CGA 320 Adapter made by TMC, which says it will only work on TMC bottles/regulators. Surely all Din 477's and all CGA 320's are made equal?... and this is just a marketing ploy to get me to buy their equipment?.. At least I hope so.


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## wazuck (5 Mar 2013)

My reg is the cga320 version. I own that adaptor aswell. Yes it will fit any paintball tank. Handy if you need to use a smaller bottle to save space. It's a Shame I can't find an adaptor to use my reg on an fe tho.


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## tim (7 Mar 2013)

James87 said:


> Hi, can anyone confirm for me are the paintball co2 bottles definitely CGA320 fitting? I have a din 477 regulator and an adapter to CGA320 but after reading through lots of posts I can't figure out if paintball tanks are actually CGA320. Partly because they are mostly American posts.
> 
> Thanks


If you have the din477 reg why don't you use a co2 fe ?


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## James87 (7 Mar 2013)

That's what I'm doing now since most paintball sites have switched to compressed air. Still trying to find out:
A) do I need the solenoid off/on and valve open/closed when I press the lever to avoid blowing my gauges etc. 
B) where can I get a 90° elbow joint to go straight on the FE so my reg will be the right way up as it would have been on a paintball bottle


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## scuttler (10 Mar 2013)

nayr88 said:


> Hello mate.
> 
> I'm just the same, when people mention thread sizes and this reg and that solenoid and blah blah it gets abit much I need to see and touch to understand how it all works.
> 
> ...


 

Big thanks Its helpful to see links to up to date item links, instead of trying to work out what that item was from 2011


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