Making A DIY C02 Unit and C02 Mixture Article

Feb 25, 2004
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Florence, AL
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#43
that seems like it would pinch the tube shut if i inserted it into the grill. should i modify the grill slightly by cutting out a small piece with an exacto knife?

also, if you have a bubble counter hooked up, doesnt that cut your CO2 going to the tank in half? maybe if you have it hooked up the way i would do it...
 

Jul 7, 2005
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Sydney, Australia
#47
having just purchased a Co2 kit by Dupla, the sugar/water/yeast formula seems pretty much the same. One thing worth noting is the small submersible pump approx 1 inch sqaure that is pumping water from the tank across where the hose from the reactor comes into the tank, which does 2 things, creates a vacuum and also disperses the CO2 bubbles as they enter the tank.

Will take pics and post.
 

Firebug

Large Fish
Jun 15, 2004
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Colorado
#48
I'm just getting ready to make the mixture, but I wanted to find out if the quanities of sugar, yeast, or water would change, since I'm using it for a 50 gallon? If so, what would you recommend? Thanks! :D
 

#49
Depends how long you wanna use it, 2cups of sugar along with 1/2tsp of yeast is a good amount and can last for about 2 to 3 weeks (usualy its still producing long after the 3 weeks but the co2 production declines greatly after 3 weeks). What i do is i make a batch and leave it alone for 3 days then shake it up and wait a day or two and stick it in then it runs for 2 weeks and make a new mix and repeat. For a 50g you will need at least 2 2L bottles of the mix. You might also wanna get a pH test and a kH test so you can see how much co2 is in the tank. The quantities i use is- 1 1/2 cups of sugar, 1/2tsp yeast, and water to the beggining of the curve. I think thats the same as DepthC's recipe but maybe a tad bit differnt. Also on your spray bar what i would do is if its creating lots of surface agitation is aim the water flow down a little so the water isn't moving at the top and that'll keep a lot more co2 in the water.
 

Jan 17, 2005
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Dundee, MI US
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#52
I have had a lot of luck with the DIY C02 unit but have a question about it. Does anyone know if it's necessary to have light in order to produce C02? I'm assuming that it is necessary but wondered if anyone has tried it or knows about chemistry and knew the answer.
 

hyunelan2

Large Fish
Jun 1, 2005
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Near Chicago, IL
#53
Maybe I read over this too fast and didn't see this, but: I made on of these DIY setups about 2 days ago. I used the 1/2txp : 2cups sugar mix in a 2L pop bottle. I ran a basic air hose into the tank, and put a stone on the end of it. Today my airstone has a white furry buildup on it (looks like mold). Is this normal? Did I do something wrong?
 

#54
edlockhart- its not necassary to have light for co2 to be produced by the diy mix, i have my bottle in the cabinet thing under the tank, no light. Also the hagen co2 ladder system comes with a bottle that isn't even see through and no light whatsoever gets into that but it still produces co2.

hyunelan2- lots of people get that white jelly looking thing there. Some people do and some don't but especially with co2 airstones they do. I've found that the jelly white stuff is caused from water that moves back in forth because i had this one filter that dripped a drop every 5 seconds and in this corner there was the mold build up stuff. Also bubbles go out of the airstone every like 3 seconds depending on your mix so it displaces the water around it for a second then the water flows back and i've found that is what causes the moldy white thing.
 

timisu87

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Oct 15, 2004
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#56
Hey guys, I'm trying to create the CO2 reactor with my 6 gallon tank. I am going to use the 2 L bottle with 2 cups of sugar and a half teaspoon of yeast? The thing I dont understand is where do I stick the tubing after the reactor is complete? I hear many different things. I have no airstone in the tank currently. All I have in there is a gourami and 1 pleco.
 

#57
I wouldn't do a reactor in the tank, i would get a co2 diffuser like one of those wooden airstones or a diffusing ladder which is probably going to give you way better results ten the airstone would. The reason why i wouldn't do a reactor is because diy reactors are usualy pretty big cause you have to fit half of a gravel cleaner along with a powerhead and in a 6g that takes up a lot of space and its a little overkill. Check out bigalsonline.com and type in diffusing ladder and it should bring you to the co2 ladder which is like $10 (cheaper then a powerhead and doesn't require electricity).
 

Firebug

Large Fish
Jun 15, 2004
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Colorado
#59
dslr.cow- I have my aquarium in my bedroom as well, and I haven't noticed a smell, so I'm pretty sure that (unless you did something wrong), you shouldn't smell anything that you don't already smell! :)
 

jaglar

Large Fish
Sep 20, 2005
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Victoria, BC
#60
I Am interested in doing a diy co2 system, and was wondering about feeding the co2 line into my filter, wouldnt the suction of the impreller 'suck' the yeast/sugar formula into the tank?