Spraybar "Burping" CO2

[Coys]

CO2 has suddenly started collecting in my spraybar and "burping" large bubbles every few seconds after almost three months of operating silently and exhaling the usual bubble mist.

Could this be due to a high bubble count and/or dirty/clogged atomizer? The atomizer is an UP model connected to the filter output hose.

 

[foxfish]

This is not uncommon but seeing as it was not doing this for three months... I would suspect your atomiser needs cleaning.

 

[EdwinK]

It could be that gas in your CO2 bottle is coming to an end and you have higher gas pressure than usual.

 

[Coys]

It could be that gas in your CO2 bottle is coming to an end and you have higher gas pressure than usual.

I wondered if that could be the case. The gauge now it reads about 750 psi and if I remember rightly it was closer to 1000 psi when the bottle was new. Is that a sign that the bottle should be changed or is that quite normal?

 

[kadoxu]

CO2 bottles have CO2 in both liquid and gas form. When gas depletes, liquid evaporates and keeps the pressure in the bottle constant. Pressure starts to drop when there is no more liquid in the bottle to evaporate and maintain it, so when pressure drops, your CO2 bottle is nearly depleted.

 

[Coys]

CO2 bottles have CO2 in both liquid and gas form. When gas depletes, liquid evaporates and keeps the pressure in the bottle constant. Pressure starts to drop when there is no more liquid in the bottle to evaporate and maintain it, so when pressure drops, your CO2 bottle is nearly depleted.

OK. would you expect it to stabilize for a while (it's been at about 750psi for at least one week) or drop constantly within a set period?

 

[papa_c]

check the spray bar . I have an eheim 16/22 spray bar and I always get a larger bubble or co2 at the end of the bar where there I no hole to allow gas to escape, seems the water movement always pushes some micro bubbles to the end that develop into one large bubble, this is regardless of the pressure in the bottle. It never causes a problem and always clears itself. I have never been able to stop this happening, I run about 4bps, and filter flow is from a 1000lph filter.

 

[kadoxu]

OK. would you expect it to stabilize for a while (it's been at about 750psi for at least one week) or drop constantly within a set period?

Once it starts going down, I would expect it to keep slowly going down. I haven't experienced it myself yet, I'm just saying what I've been told/read here in the forum by our experts. 🙂

I'm not sure on what I'm gonna say next... but I believe it could also drop a bit with lower temperatures.

 

[Coys]

Once it starts going down, I would expect it to keep slowly going down. I haven't experienced it myself yet, I'm just saying what I've been told/read here in the forum by our experts. 🙂

That's what I understood too.

I'm not sure on what I'm gonna say next... but I believe it could also drop a bit with lower temperatures.

I was thinking the same thing too; I installed the system in August when the ambient temperature was higher than I heat the aquarium to. Now of course it's at least ten degrees lower. That's probably it.

 

[Coys]

This is not uncommon but seeing as it was not doing this for three months... I would suspect your atomiser needs cleaning.

It did. I bought a new ceramic tube, installed it this morning and the CO2 is back to a fine mist. Now I can clean the old one for swapping next time it happens.