Start of a long relationship (planted tank journal)

[daileene]

following still....

 

[Crepe]

Get that bad boy set up!

 

[mfdrookie516]

Ok... light is here.. light is on the tank... wow it's much brighter than the crappy shop light I had.

Co2 cylinder is full. Never thought about how cold it would be when they filled it. Lesson learned, wear gloves next time.

Reactor is in the building stages. Pics to come!

 

[fort384]

Nice!! Get some pics of the reactor build... never hurts to have them for future reference.

...and you are a wuss with the CO2 cylinder... a little frostbite never hurt anybody !

 

[mfdrookie516]

Alright... so here are the lights...

coming out of the box:

On the tank:

Horrible above the tank shot:

Note: I have removed the glass tops... at least for now. If evap isn't a big issue, I'll most likely leave them off. If not, well, I will put them back on. I guess we will see.

 

[mfdrookie516]

And here's my DIY Co2 Reactor.

Parts needed:
1x 1' 2" PVC
2x 2" coupler
2x 2" to 3/4" threaded reducer
2x 3/4" thread, 1/2" hose barb
1x Cleaner
1x Pipe Cement
1x pocket knife

I would advise against doing this on your relatively new kitchen table. I was lucky that I laid down a garbage bag, that cleaner melts foam plates

It's curing right now. As soon as the glue is all dry and ready to be put on, I'm going to run some hot water through it for a few minutes, then I'll install it on the tank and take some more pics.


I've also got my regulator set up, oil filled, and tested. Everything is ready to set up, just waitin on the glue to dry.

 

[daileene]

good job....

 

[fort384]

looks good! that came together quick. So I take it you elected to not put anything inside the reactor?

 

[mfdrookie516]

You are correct sir. I thought about it, but that 1% just didn't seem important enough to wait on finding the needed materials. I'm kind of antsy if you can't tell lol. I almost made it 2' long. I found 2' sections at home depot, but opted to cut it in half so that I'll have another one when the time comes to build one for either the 140g if I get it, or the 150g when I convert it.

 

[fort384]

very nice... it should work great. I should have mentioned it before, are you using CO2 safe tubing or plain airline?

 

[mfdrookie516]

It came with 25' of co2 safe tubing... I wanna say its silicone?

 

[fort384]

ok good... regular airline works for awhile... but it does degrade over time. I use it with CO2 in some places... but if I was pulling it into a reactor that was gonna be sealed, I would want to use the CO2 safe stuff. Good work.

 

[mfdrookie516]

How fast do you think I should start with the co2? I know you can do x number of bubbles per second as a kind of guideline, then start testing to get where you want. Any ideas there?

 

[fort384]

Start with a little less than 1bps. If you aren't gonna buy a drop checker you will want to test at various points in the day to see how you are doing. Beginning and end of the photoperiod would be a good start.

 

[mfdrookie516]

I'm planning on buying a drop checker, just haven't really looked around much for one yet. Any suggestions on where to get one, or just anywhere?

 

[fort384]

Also, on a new tank you will have to adjust the needlevalve every couple hours to start. After a day of this, it will be good to go for the duration.

 

[fort384]

I'm planning on buying a drop checker, just haven't really looked around much for one yet. Any suggestions on where to get one, or just anywhere?

eBay is the best option.

 

[mfdrookie516]

Good deal.. off to ebay now

 

[mfdrookie516]

Shew, are there any that are made in the USA where I can get it in the next few days??? Every one I've seen has an estimated arrival time of march 15-30

 

[fort384]

Usually there are some US sources on there for a few dollars more, but it looks like it is all coming out of asia...

For a lot more, the only US source I know of outside off ebay is either Aqua Design Amano USA/ADGshop.com- now available in the U.S.A, prouldy offered by Aquarium Design Group. The finest planted aquarium products. or aqua forest aquarium but those are the ADA ones... big bucks. I will look for some other options...