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Need urgent help my DIY CO2 kit isn't working

M

maverick786us

Member
Joined
6 Nov 2024
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44
Location
Columbus, GA
I made this DYI CO2 kit with the help of this video.



But it isn't producing CO2 I cannot see any bubbles.

If you take a look at the picture, I used 2 bottles. In the primary bottle I used 200 GM of gelatin mixed it with 2 cups of sugar, in 500 ML boiled water. I waited for it to dissolve, cool down. so I t cold from jelly inside the bottle. I took half a tablespoon of sugar and yeast in 1 cup of lukewarm water and and put it inside the bottle above the jelly. From that bottle I connected a pipe inside a clean bottle filled with water. So that CO2 passes into water, the water purifies it and that CO2 goes to to the diffuser inside the tank through the exit pipe.

But it doesn't seem to be working. How can I fix it?

1731596775191.jpeg
 
Hi all,
maverick786us said:
But it isn't producing CO2 I cannot see any bubbles.
Click to expand...
Just <"warm it up a bit">. The frothy nature of the jam / yeast mix in your picture definitely looks like there is nothing wrong there. It could be a leak, but it probably just needs a bit longer to get going.

You may find that, with the length of tubing <"and non-return valves">, that you need to elevate the bottles much nearer to tank height before any CO2 actually goes into the tank. You may also need to think about the diffuser, if it is one designed to work under pressure? Then it probably isn't going to work <"CO2 diffusion for a yeast-based system">.

cheers Darrel
 
It's been more than 12 hours. The product description doesn't show if the diffuser is designed to take pressure. But in the product description instruction the OEM wrote to insert the diffuser 2 days in water before using it. I don't know why. But I was reading user review and it's a max bag. One negative user reviewer said that the ceramic is too thick unable to transfer bubble
 
Hi all,
maverick786us said:
It's been more than 12 hours.
Click to expand...
patience-jpg.138000

Thanks to @Edvet for the image, have a look at <"How To: DIY co2. Secret Formula">
maverick786us said:
But in the product description instruction the OEM wrote to insert the diffuser 2 days in water before using it.
Click to expand...
The ceramic diffusion plate needs to be fully wet before it works.
maverick786us said:
The product description doesn't show if the diffuser is designed to take pressure.
Click to expand...
Have a look at <"which diffuser/ atomizer/ reactor?">. You need somebody who knows what they are talking about (I have no practical experience of adding CO2) but I think you need an <"old fashioned"> method of CO2 diffusion to work with DIY CO2.

cheers Darrel
 
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Those diffusers usually aren't very well standardized and you may get different behaviors from different units. They require way more pressure to work than airstones, and even if your system builds up the pressure, the risk of getting a leak at high pressure is much higher.

My suggestion is to start by doing a thorough leak check with detergent foam on all connections. If its all good, then I'd replace the diffuser with a simple airstone to see the system work and to give the diffuser time to soak, as instructed by the manufacturer. Then, after seeing the system work for a couple of days, you could try the diffuser again.

My personal experience is that DIY yeast systems work best with reactors, that work with very little pressure and have a high dissolution rate. But I can see how the extra hardware would be inconvenient for such a small tank.
 
Hi @maverick786us
The Problem with these DIY kits is that they need a certain room temperature to produce CO2!
The diffuser you are using probably is not the best choice.
 
LMuhlen said:
Those diffusers usually aren't very well standardized and you may get different behaviors from different units. They require way more pressure to work than airstones, and even if your system builds up the pressure, the risk of getting a leak at high pressure is much higher.

My suggestion is to start by doing a thorough leak check with detergent foam on all connections. If its all good, then I'd replace the diffuser with a simple airstone to see the system work and to give the diffuser time to soak, as instructed by the manufacturer. Then, after seeing the system work for a couple of days, you could try the diffuser again.

My personal experience is that DIY yeast systems work best with reactors, that work with very little pressure and have a high dissolution rate. But I can see how the extra hardware would be inconvenient for such a small tank.
Click to expand...
OK I took the bottle out and I was shocked to see that the primary bottle was still squeezed that means no pressure was build. When I observed it closely I noticed that the bottle cap I ordered

1731604977110.png

Its lid had holes letting the air escape

1731605110655.jpeg

So I took a tape to seal that hold and I also applied tapes on this caps to ensure that there is no leakage.
I took the bottles out of cabinet and placed them on a stool to provide more elevation. I will wait for another 24 hours, it doesn't work I will give up.

1731605177408.jpeg
 
G H Nelson said:
If you want to go down the CO2 route this system below would be a better choice!
Click to expand...


Yes this is the system I will eventually buy, but I cannot buy until next month when I get my paycheck. DYI system is temporary. I have some exotic plants in my newly set up tank. So I felt the need of CO2 urgently so that these plants grow, fast and do not melt.
 
@maverick786us looking at that photo and can say with certainty that it won't work, sorry. As the pressure builds, the tape will not be able to stand the pressure. Similarly, where you have attached your tubes to the lids, you have taken off the nuts. Thos nuts are designed to keep the tubing in place as the pressure builds. Without them, the tubing may pop off. Why do you need the bottle of water? I'd remove that and feed the produced CO2 straight to your airstone/diffuser. It will remove one point of failure and increase chances of success.
 
hypnogogia said:
@maverick786us looking at that photo and can say with certainty that it won't work, sorry. As the pressure builds, the tape will not be able to stand the pressure. Similarly, where you have attached your tubes to the lids, you have taken off the nuts. Thos nuts are designed to keep the tubing in place as the pressure builds. Without them, the tubing may pop off. Why do you need the bottle of water? I'd remove that and feed the produced CO2 straight to your airstone/diffuser. It will remove one point of failure and increase chances of success.
Click to expand...
Oh man thank you. I was about to make a big mistake. Talking about the second bottle I was looking DYI CO2 and I came across this video



Where he used the second bottle to purify. Can you recommend me something that I can use instead of tape to make it stable
 
When I used similar caps, I closed the unused end by plugging in a small bit of tubing and then using a end-of-line push-in. Even if you don't have one of those, it looks easier to find a creative solution to block the tube than the bottle cap.
 
Hi, One bubble a second would be a good starting point!
Purchase a Co2 Drop Checker. This will give you an indication of how much C02 is in the water column.
 
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