DIY CO2 Question...

[danielcp]

Howdy everyone First post from a new guy but not so much a newbie (I love to investigate and read before I do) So I've a question for those wiser than me.

Ok, in all of the CO2 discussions i've read it mentions bubble count.. but what is a bubble... a bubble from say an airstone or a bubble directly from the air line coming from the container with the yeast/sugar mixture? Right now I've got a CO2 setup in a test tank (29G) with a few swordtails and mostly plants. Its creating a constant stream of CO2 and with the block airstone I've got its creating a stream of tiny bubbles to the top of the tank... so that is where I am confused .

I want to make sure I have the proper amount of CO2 entering the tank before I tie the CO2 line directly to the impeller of my Penguin 330 (I know the biowheels are not the best thing to have with the CO2 and all but I'll worry about that after the CO2 rises and the plants grow to stabilize the tank where I no longer need them).

Any help would be most appreciated.

 

[madasafish]

The bubble count refers to the stream of bubbles coming from a standard 3/8" (I think that's the diameter) airtube. If you've got a airstone, then you'll be seeing a fast stream of tiny bubbles coming out of the tiny apertures. Take out the stone and check out the stream of bubbles coming from the tube...

People generally count bubbles with a bubble counter--a small glass and copper device filled with water, that is installed between a regulator (on a CO2 tank) and an air tube (going to the fish tank). In the bubble counter you can see the stream of bubbles moving towards the tank, and you can regulate it (the amount of CO2 coming from the tank) by adjusting the needle valve on the regulator.

This might be a bit harder to regulate with a DIY set-up... The only way to truly regulate with a constant stream of bubbles is to determine how much the CO2 interacts with the water. If the dissolved CO2 level in your tank is low, try mixing the bubbles in with the water better, or giving the bubbles a longer route from the end of the tube to the water surface (a regulator with greater surface area/longer ramps).

 

[danielcp]

Ahh, I see now, thats the one part I wasn't really sure about, I'll run a test tomorrow to see what my current bubble rate is.. I believe the standard starting should be around 30-50pm but of course with the DIY the only way to change it is by changing my amount of yeast but I can still control it fairly well.

Also what CO2 test kits would you recommend, I've got the redsea kit and I suppose it does ok but its giving extremely high readings (100ppm...) I have a feeling that the kit is off, old or otherwise flawed as none of my fish in my 29g test tank have any signs of stress, gasping, not eating etc... they seem to be doing just fine.. (Plants are growing like weeds though )