how long should DIY CO2 last?

[Thebluyak]

Im using a 2 liter bottle with about 1.25 liters of water, 1 cup white sugar, 1 whole package (2 1/4) tsp of yeast and im only seeing steady co2 for about three days then it dithers off. If i shake it it will put out a ton of bubbles right away but then it stops again. Am I doing the formula wrong or what?

Ryan

 

[rich311k]

Only need a 1/4 of a tsp of yeast. With as much as your are putting in it is consuming the sugar quickly. I put 3 cups in a 3 liter bottle with 1/4 tsp of yeast and it happly bubles for 3 weeks, which is as long as I let a bottle go in my rotation. I imagine form the production when I remove them that it would go a week or two longer.

 

[Thebluyak]

so only use a 1/4 of bakers yest? Last time I only used that much I never got the co2 to produce. are you using champagne yest or bakers?

 

[rich311k]

Regular bakers yeast from the super market. I bought the little jar. You only need a little it reproduces as it bubbles along. If you add a lot it reproduces quickly consumes all the sugar creates a lot of alcohol quickly and dies.

 

[mr funktastic]

i use bakers yeast. in a 2 litre bottle i use 2 cups of sugar(completly dissolve it in hot water) then i add some cold water to balance it out to luke warm. mix 1/2 tbs(i use 1/2 a tsp casue i like faster production for a shorter time) in some luke warm water. add to the sugar water and then fill the bottle up to the beginning of the neck in luke water. starts producing in about 15-20 min and goes strong for about 2 weeks. if u use a little less yeast u will get longer production but not as much. this recipe gives me really high levels and has never dissapointed.

 

[Thebluyak]

huh, well then I will have to try that I was wondering why mine was going away so fast, thanks guys!!

 

[mr funktastic]

glad to help. i got that recipe from glenC and if u look at his tank then u will feel very confident in doing it.

 

[Zezmo]

DIY CO2 can last 4-6 weeks (or more) if done properly. A long lasting recipe will start a little slower and build to full production over a few days. However, you should see some CO2 bubles within a few hours with any mixture.

 

[mr funktastic]

i would rather change mine out every week or every other week to get much higher levels. when they produce for that long they produce much slower and u get lower levels. but that is just my personal experience with it. my hagen system would produce for like 6 weeks but i didnt get anywhere near the results compared to what i get now.

 

[rich311k]

I never let a bottle go more than 3 weeks. I do 3 bottles in rotation, works well for me. The CO2 stays above 20ppm whenever I test it.

 

[mr funktastic]

lol see with my mixture in my 20 gal i get well over 50 ppm at all times. i use 2 2 litre bottles though so that helps.

 

[JRagg]

The newer mix I tried with 1C sugar, 1tsp molasses, 1tsp nonfat powdered milk, 1/4 tsp yeast produced very strong for 2 weeks (faded out about 3 days after the 2 weeks were up). That recipe is also supposed to have 1tsp of Baking soda in it (which I used this time).

The molasses and powdered milk (or protein drink) add amino acids that the yeast uses to reproduce and keeps it from "starving" to death as will happen with 2C of sugar in a 2L bottle. You have a lot of sugar left over if you use the 2C in 2L mix.

http://www.aquatic-gardeners.org/Nyberg_yeast.ppt is a link to the mix I'm running now.

 

[maxwell1295]

I get about 4 weeks with my Jello/wine yeast mix...