DIY Aquarium Co2 reactor

[ShinyHunterExtreme]

Is this toxic to fish? or bad for fish?

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@ShinyHunterExtreme Just like humans, fish when getting too much Co2 in their environment will get tired, fall asleep and just die. So yes, too much Co2 in the water will kill your fish. You HAVE TO monitor the co2 content in the water. There are several methods of testing this. 1) chemical test (cheapest) 2) behavior observation, unreliable and inaccurate 3) electronic tester

[jamiedarrens]

music was amazing. 

[18koopatroopa]

Really liked your video! its going to save me alot of money =) which i like. You explained everything very well. Just had one question... when you put the tube in the filter intake inside the tank what is that doing exactly? Will this work if I have a HOB filter in my tank. Will the HOB filter dissolve the CO2?

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@18koopatroopa Hey thanks for the great comment :) The problem with the HOB filter is that the Co2 will be sucked in but may just dissolve into the air when the water is stirred up inside the filter. However, chances are the Co2 will stay and enrich the water accordingly. I can't say I have tried it with my HOB filter. Just try it out, can't hurt anything unless you put too much Co2 in. Make sure you monitor the Co2 by the hour and adjust accordingly.

[18koopatroopa]

@oBseSsIoNPC So do you think getting a diffuser (ceramic disc [ino you mentioned air stones are horrible in a co2 system] or even something like glass spiral diffuser) based on your experience what do you think works best. Getting a diffuser or using the filter? thx man your alot of help

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@18koopatroopa Sorry for the late response, but I simply got too busy again (this time of the year :P) But yes, get a diffuser of any kind but the "sintered" air stones, they simply dissolve. the filter will give you a rather inconsistent result I am sure and I don't know what effect it will have on the bacteria in the system, if there is too much Co2.

[shadowfaithx]

powder*

[shadowfaithx]

ANY dry yeast power works ??

[manavchowdhury]

hi,

turns out my diy co2 was working but because it didnt froth like in your setup, i thought it wasnt working. Also, my reactor starts to work after 24 hrs of preparing the mixture. ive been getting a steady supply of co2 from my initial reactor i setup 2 weeks ago. Try to reduce the sugar and yeast if you want more 'mileage'. Sugar= 1/2 - 3/4 cup sugar max(approx 125-150ml). Yeast=1/4 -1/2 tsp max. and baking soda 1/4 tsp

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@manavchowdhury Ah yeah, in my video it was quite an aggressive mixture, which is why it got changed so many times. More yeast will result in lots of Co2 in no-time, but will eat up the sugar in no-time also. I am glad to hear it works for you now. Thx for the recipe.

[manavchowdhury]

I use active dry yeast. They are in the form of tiny granules. I store it in the freezer because that prolongs the shelf life of yeast, and also because outside the freezer yeast has a short shelf life. How long does your yeast last outside?

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@manavchowdhury I have not even paid attention to how long it lasts or whether or not the efficiency of the yeast changes over a period of time.

[manavchowdhury]

hi this is very informative. i thought that the 2nd bottle was only a bubble counter...how does it filter alcohol & is it effective?

i put sugar (1/2 cup) into 3/4 of 2 litres water. the water was slightly hotter than warm. about 30 mins later i mixed yeast into warm (slightly more than warm) water. 15 mins later there were no bubbles or frothing i mixed the lot into my 2 litre bottle, half an hour later nothing....i freeze my yeast. Use it 20 mins after removing from freezer. Anything wrong?

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@manavchowdhury I am not sure why you have the yeast in the freezer, the yeast I am using is dry and stored at room temperature. I can only point the problem towards the yeast. Try a different brand and the dry baking yeast.

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@oBseSsIoNPC Oh yeah, the bottle filters the alcohol because the alcohol is heavier than air, as it passes through the water in the bottle it will separate from the air and stay in the bottle. It is just a backup and not really necessary.

[decbouk]

I dare you to drink the remainder liquid once the CO2 is spent. Im from London and thats what we do.... we've all gone blind. but it's cheap.

X

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@decbouk Muhahah, that's...neat... :P I will not take you on the dare game tho xD

[lily1965t]

Great info, the second bottle seems like a good idea, another revelation on my steep learning curve. Thanks

[KelticFox]

The reason for the airstones breaking down so rapidly is because CO2 is acidic.

[VertigaDesignMEDIA]

So to clarify, you have 3 bottles. One is the concoction, the other is a drop checker, whats the third one for?

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@VertigaDesignMEDIA The big gone holds the mixture of sugar and yeast, the one after that is for filtering the alcohol out (contains water), the 3rd one was supposed to be for the 2nd tank. So for one tank you need 2 bottles, mix and filter.

[VertigaDesignMEDIA]

@oBseSsIoNPC I thought you only needed one bottle for one tank. Thanks for the reply but I think I am more confused now.

[aopdjasldksa]

You can always change the yeast-sugar ratio so that it'll last longer than 10 days. 2 cups sugar + 3/4tsp yeast will give you a more consistent output.

[ricardo0577]

Educativo

[cubaniton74]

I must say the video and music was very well made, but that is not a reactor you made, it is just another type of diffuser. Reactors try to keep the co2 trapped in a chamber with pently of water movement for as long as possible, but once again your video was great, God bless you.

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@cubaniton74 Thanks a bunch bud. Lots appreciated.

[vipondiu]

Hi, I want to make my own CO2 generator for hydroponics, not aquarium. I want to inject CO2 in water to reduce PH and let escape excess to atmosfere to get richer enviroment. I wonder what remains in the bottle after fermentation ends; pure white sugar +yeast will end in pure alcohol + dead yeast? (i'm not going to drink it, just curious)

[flemish4]

Wll done you won a prize for video 1000!

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@flemish4 Haha, thanks :D

[oBseSsIoNPC]

I HATE the comment sorting, this is so confusing....bad Youtube bad.....Like putting your laundry in a big barrel and when you need something, you gotta dump the darn thing to get at what you are looking for.... :(

xD

[KoN312]

I´m making a co2 unit for my cactees very nice and informative vid! keep it up!

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Thanks "KoN312", I appreciate the great comment! Good luck with the cacti, I never had any luck with them buggers, always drowned them :P I am a palm tree kinda guy, hehe.

Take care!

[KoN312]

@oBseSsIoNPC

Thx!

I put my cactee pots into water for an hour every 14 days.

Btw i tried the kind of sugar u use to cook ur own jam. Doesent work that good.

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@KoN312 You know what, I probably went through 5 different sugars by now, and one of the best was brown (cane) sugar in the mix with white sugar in the big bulk package. I mixed 60% cane and 40% white sugar and the solution kept on going for 10 days. Now I did feed both tanks so I let a lot of the pressure escape I guess, but it worked quite well. Sometimes the same mixtures does not work as good....weird...The water makes a big difference too I noticed. Warm cold, chemistry that is...

[KoN312]

@oBseSsIoNPC

This monday replaced the jam sugar mixure. with 3/4 cane 1/4 white sugar like u said. Really goes a lot better much, more bubbles. I also used some new dry yeast. The one i used before was expired in summer 2007 :)

For the mixing i use my selfmade stirrer. A Pc fan with a magnet glued in the center. This u put in a little Plastic box. Then u can put any container on top of it. Throw a magnet in the container and start the fan. There u have ur cheapo lab stirrer :)

[Crazzieflip]

are you using a rena xp canister filter? i just did my co2 reactor and what i did was i injected the tube directly to the grill of the intake. Would that be ok? thanks for uploading this video really helped a newbie like me :)

[caiocrz]

can u tell me whats in the small bottle?

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Hey @caiocrz

There is just plain water in the little bottle, for filtering reasons.

There are some more questions asked about the setup, if you have any more, read some of the comments, otherwise just ask me :D

Peace!

[stoyashot]

what the soundtrack? Nice tutorial btw!

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Thanks "stoyashot" :D

You did not watch the vid to the end eh? :P

Cuz I always write the music info there ;)

Both pieces are from "Bonobo", the first one is called "Recurring" the 2nd one is "Nightlife".

Take care!

[kingfisherfleshy]

Hmm very professional man, I think your diffusion system could use a little work, but the alcohol chambers seem to be an interesting twist.

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Thanks :D

I agree with you, but at the time I had no idea how to properly introduce the Co2 into the water, cheap but efficient.

I will post a vid soon, that shows how I did it a while back now, thx to my friends suggesting a couple things.

I should have the Vid up tomorrow, check it out if you like :)

Take care.

[AweSomo84]

and also add a note NOT TO USE A blue defuser and rether put it trough a small filter these bubbles are way to big to let the plants take up the co2 and the defuser will pulverize

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Oh yeah, I missed out on that one. Airstones start to disolve after a while.

Thanks mate!

[zainkam1]

dude,you are a genius !

excellent stuff! i am thinking to start soem plantation in my 70 gal tank(mainly cichlids)

man! i was lukin fo this kinda stuf! THANXX!

p.s when do we have to clean or refill the yeast bottle? can you please make a video explaining each and every stuff one more time?? :S (a request) so that i can clearly see one final time,and that does the quantity of sugar or yeast really matter for diff tank sizes?

m a bit anxious. =P

10 STARS!

[AweSomo84]

hey man just get anubia's fpr your cichlids and some other STRONG plants other ones they are probably take care off .

Make sure to geth the right dosis of yeast and not like my friend did here

[oBseSsIoNPC]

You are welcome and thx for the compliment, although this system is not my personal idea, I just put together tips from good friends.

And I can certainly do that for ya (put up another detailed video).

The quantities matter indeed.

The mixtures I used in the video, was a overkill to show the reaction quicker.

A proper mixture can take up to 15-24 hours to activate, which I did here in 15 minutes.

Read below for more good ideas, plus I will add these infos in the update.

Stay tuned :)

[zainkam1]

thankyou guyz! AweSomo84 & oBseSsloNPC :)

[chris23a1]

As the yeast respires it produces co2 and alcohol, this alcohol is actually toxic to the yeast and will eventually kill it. Adding bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) will act as a buffer and stabiliser which will reduce the toxicity of the alcohol and keep the yeast respiring for longer. My mixture lasts for up to 4 weeks (2 litre bottle). Also, brown sugar seems to last longer than white cane sugar .

[AweSomo84]

You shlould just add a cleanning bottle between the diy co2 bottle and aquarium , do not keep your bottle that long it will just push in bad stuff than co2 .

[Shareallicu]

So do you recommend disconnecting the bottle from the aquarium at night? or just leave it going?

Thanks!

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Good question, glad you ask.

As a matter of fact, I turned on the air pump, because that was easier than turning off the Co2 :P

Because at night, the plants use up oxygen and produce Co2 themselves.

If you were to leave the Co2 on over night, your fish will be floating on the surface the very next morning or at least look like drunk, bad hangover and all.

But yeah, stopping the Co2 injection is a must at night!

[AweSomo84]

Dude change the discription and the amount of yeast you use in this video buy adding NOTES , your learning people the wrong shit!

[AweSomo84]

just be save and turn the cap of the bottle so there will be no pressure build up ,... if there is to much co2 the water will geth sourer

peace and love

[Shareallicu]

Hi thanks for the video, do you need two little bottles to filter the alcohol? or can you use one large one?

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Hey Shareallicu,

thanks for the comment :)

You can even use 1 small one or a big one, dont really matter.

All that matters that you clean it out once the Co2 stopped flowing.

I had 2 bottles because I wanted to supply 2 tanks with them, separately.

So 1 bottle filters for each tank kinda thing, but yeah, 1 big bottle will do just fine.

[Shareallicu]

Oh I see! Great idea! I have two tanks as well! Thanks! :)

[oBseSsIoNPC]

;) any time

[snowalibaba]

so all that's in the small bottles is water? right

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Hey "ali", yes indeed, the small bottles have pur water in them, they serve as a "rough" filter.

During the process of sugar being transformed into Co2, you also get alcohol.

That is a part we dont want in the tank, plus a few bubbles of sugar-yeast-alcohol-mixture may travel through the hose.

If there was no inbetween filter, that stuff would end up in the tank.

Best regards, Dan

[zainkam1]

so Dan,you are saying that to be on the safe side,we should use 2 bottles,1 for the mixture and the other one for the alcohol,so taht it can be prevented from entering the tank? plz help me,as i am BRAND NEW ZERO METER to this stuff =P

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Precisely, 2 bottles, I will post the video today, hang in there my friend :)

[punchmau]

Please, Help... I shake the bottle and I think some of the solution when inside the tank. What do I should do???

[oBseSsIoNPC]

@punchmau Hmm, I wouldn't worry too much, just do a partial water change (25%).

It's not like poison to them, but it could trow off their appetite.

Peace!

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Well the video is up since yesterday Jan 30th 2010.

I added it as video response since I can't post a video link into a comment, just click that or the annotation in the video.

You can also go through my channel if you like.

Enjoy :)

[zainkam1]

THANX dude!! tahnx a lot !! :)

thankyou for uploading another video :)

[MilenaPalka]

Your welcome :)

You maybe better off just buying a little CO2 diffuser off eBay, (usually about $6) or a step ladder. They are both about 80% efficient.

Another thing you can try adding to your yeast mixture is either a ground up multivitamin or some tomato paste....this apparently also helps the yeast last a bit longer because they are getting more nutrients.

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Wow, are you serious? Hehe, sounds like a nice meal for them bacterias :D

Keep the great tips coming mate :)

[MilenaPalka]

2) i would add about 1 tbs of baking soda to your yeast mixture. Your recipe seems to bubble really fast but only last about 3-4 days...the baking soda should stabilize the reaction, slowing it down a bit and making it last long. some people have theirs going for 3 weeks by tinkering with the rations...

goodluck!

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Thanks for the great tips, I will apply them to my contraption!

Only problem I had with the inlet of the one filter system was (rena xp2), that the Co2 bubbles just pass the suction tube.

The tube is designed to prevent gas from beeing sucked into the filter :P .

But on the other "hang on the back" ones this works.

Thanks again mate, take care!

[MilenaPalka]

Hi, I'd just like to make 2 suggestions: 1) put the end of the hose into the intake syphon of your filter. The airstone is useless as a co2 diffuser. As you can see, bubbles come out of it and then go straight to the surface instead of being dissolved into the water. If the bubbles are going into your filter, the impeller will do a good job of breaking them up and by the time they are headed back out into the aquarium through the outake syphon they should be dissolved into a solution.

[hermidude81]

thats awsome,how often do you have to change the yeast solution

[oBseSsIoNPC]

The mixture of sugar and yeast I am using very successfully now since weeks: 1 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon yeast, then hot water, mix it, put in 1 cup cold water and the next day it produces STABLE for around 3-4 days, for me anyway :P

So yeah, every 3rd day the earliest.

In the 30 gallon tank I need to run the air pumps once in a while to keep the mixture right, thats how much Co2 is produced.

Thanks for the interest and the compliment :)

Take care!

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Hey there!

Thank you so much for the awesome comment and the rating!

I am still a noob with all this, but I don't show it xD.

You have yourself a great day!

[AweSomo84]

I love this song dmn :D, those off pitch sounds i love them!

[oBseSsIoNPC]

xD, thanks.

I thought it was a great song, too.

[AweSomo84]

:D, yeah

[AweSomo84]

Hey m8,

Thanks for pointing out to subscribe because these video's were just sitting here for me :P.

It looks excellent but I just want to add some things,

You are putting way to much yeat , I ONLY USE ONE THEE SPOON OF YEAST, oke the co2 doens't kick in after 3 hours ( just after one day or so )

But you just need a extra bottle to make your self new co2 every 2 weeks or so.

Second, It really does look excellent , i hope you have a tight fit other wise try going for the smaller hole

[AweSomo84]

and cut the tube so it is pointy and a bit can go trought the hole, just get something to pull it trought (just warm the cap / hole a few seconds before pulling it trough)

Third , your bubble machines need to go OFF in the day time!( Other wise the bubbles just push out the co2) and on in the night(optionable) ( while the plants produce their own co2 )

DIY CO2 off at night , on in the day .

4the , you need to get that air stone out because the co2 etc will make it crumble.

The best defuser

[AweSomo84]

is trough the intake of your filter so it goes all the way trough your machine chamber and will be chupped up in very thiny peaces.

I hope this will help.

Love and peace and sorry for my bad explanation and thanks --->

Feeling honoured

[oBseSsIoNPC]

xD thanks so much for the tips.

I just found out on sunday that the Co2 has a bad influence on the airstones.

I dialed in on the yeast and sugar too btw.

Just like you I use only 1 teaspoon now and it goes for 4 days.

The concentration is still prefect in all 3 tanks (14-15ppm) .

The initial Co2 load during the video was the ONLY time it bubbled that much ;)

The airpumps I put on 50% load 24/7.

Like I say, it is very stable now, thanks to your tips!

Have a wonderful day my friend!

[AweSomo84]

8) You're welcome my friend just passing on what i know , lol.

Good man i was scared that it would go in your aquarium with that high concentration of yeast.

Noproblem :). Good man you only need to push out the co2 at night :P.

Your welcome gl seeing your plants grow :D

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Umm, I thought plants use oxygen at night ONLY and transform it into Co2.

During the day they use the Co2 and make oxygen (photosynthesis).

So wouldn't it be bad to add Co2 at night?

[AweSomo84]

Hey Man,

Plants make oxygen in the night and they needed it over the day to grow!

Yes if you leave the air machines ON in the day it will just push the oxygen out.

DAYTIME : OXYGEN ON in the day ( AIRPOMPS OFF)

NIGHTTIME : OXygen off ( because the plant's make it them self , and if their is to much oxygen the water will get souwer .

So yes it will be bAD . Just make sure that you have the airpump on in the night if you do that!

[vanhalenman60]

why do you need co2 and also youre videos are cool i wish i could get enough money to do all of that stuff

[oBseSsIoNPC]

Hey, thank you so much for the comment and the fantastic compliment my friend.

You see, I spent 400 dollar on the camera and nothing on the PowerDirector (VideoEditingProgram).

I use the camera for a lot of occasions and it payed of really quick.

It is a great thing to be able to record special moments.

And the Co2 is needed for the plants.

Although we have about 3-4% Co2 in our air, and you would think that aerating the tank with air pumps would supply sufficient Co2 to the plants....

[oBseSsIoNPC]

...it is better to increase the concentration of Co2 in the water.

Plants need Co2, light and minerals to grow.

They transform these 3 ingredients into dextrose and chlorophyll (the green in the leaves) and they are green because they make use out of the other colors in the sunlight ONLY, green is reflected back.

So anyhow, more Co2 (to a certain point) is helping the plant to grow faster and stronger.

I will see if that works for me :)

Hope I helped you on that one a little.

Take care! :)