# Eheim CO2 reactor



## Minnie (Feb 12, 2005)

I got the Eheim CO2 reactor. I have a question about the tubing that came with it. I set up the little reactor thing with the clear tubing that came with it, but I put the regular CO2 tubing from the reactor to the tank because the Eheim tubing looks too small to fit onto the bubble counter. However, this doesn't seem to be working. There is no air bubbling through the reactor at all. Is there a trick to making this work? What am I doing wrong?


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## jhoetzl (Feb 7, 2005)

What is your co2 source? If it is DIY, it may not be generating enough pressure to push through the sintered glass.

If it is pressurized, it must be something else...check valve wrong direction?


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## pta (Feb 23, 2005)

I have the Eheim diffuser (not sure if same as reactor). Anyway, I have pressurized CO2 with a Milwaukee regulator and mine did the same thing initially, but then I read somewhere (can't remember the site) that the Eheim diffuser was meant for high pressure systems (not 100% sure what that means). Anyway, I think my regulator has "low pressure" output (set at 10-20 psi) and subsequently it could not generate enough pressure to get through the check valve or something. I just ended up removing the check valve from the setup and it works fine. BTW, I also ran regular size tubing instead of using the tiny clear stuff it came with.


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## hOAGART (May 13, 2004)

if its pressurized and it has a check valve, im sure he would know if it was in the wrong direction soon enough. :hihi:


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## jhoetzl (Feb 7, 2005)

Haven't heard anything on the news yet and I am one state over :icon_roll


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## Minnie (Feb 12, 2005)

I ended up taking that little piece, which I guess is the check valve, off and just using the regular tubing. Now it is working, air is coming out the reactor but every now and again a bubble escapes from the bottom. It is pressurized CO2. I wish the Eheim stuff came with better directions, especially for those of us that are new to this hobby. 

I wonder if the occasional stray bubble is going to be problematic? I'd rather have my CO2 tank run out a little faster than have to re-prime my canister because air has jammed it again.


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## jhoetzl (Feb 7, 2005)

Minnie said:


> I ended up taking that little piece, which I guess is the check valve, off and just using the regular tubing. Now it is working, air is coming out the reactor but every now and again a bubble escapes from the bottom. It is pressurized CO2. I wish the Eheim stuff came with better directions, especially for those of us that are new to this hobby.
> I wonder if the occasional stray bubble is going to be problematic? I'd rather have my CO2 tank run out a little faster than have to re-prime my canister because air has jammed it again.


OK, really concerned and confused.
Is this what you have? 
http://www.thatpetplace.com/Product...tems/T1/F12+0013+0386/EDP/18582/Itemdy00.aspx

I don't understand how using that would have anything to do with re-priming the canister!? 
I also don't understand about the stray bubble escaping out the bottom of that?
Concerned, because since this is a pressurized setup, and you aren't running a check valve, you might wind up blowing your regulator and/or do other damage.


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## Minnie (Feb 12, 2005)

Yes, that is what I have and it is set up to look like the picture. There was an additional piece that is in the little photo of the parts.

The pressurized tank is set up with the JBJ reg with solenoid and bubble counter.

I had originally just had the CO2 running in to the filter intake, as someone had suggested on this forum, however the filter kept getting jammed with air, so I purchased the Eheim CO2 reactor so that the CO2 wouldn't be running directly into the filter. Now it just bubble in to the tank. 

Sorry to be ignorant, but please explain to me what problems this may cause. I really need to be walked through this stuff. I'm also leaving to go on vacation for a week, so I won't be back on here till after then. Thanks.


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## Marc (Oct 13, 2004)

From reading your post it sounds like you are not using the tubing that came with the diffuser. To make everything work- you need to get a reducer to fit between the large co2 line comming off the ragulator and the small line going to the diffuser. You should be able to pick that up at you LFS. This will save you from wasting co2. Co2 is cheap but a hassel to refill. 
Let me know if that helped- Ive been using one for a long time and i love this little unit. It may not be as effecient as an inline reactor but its simplicity is a big plus.

For what its worth- i also took out the check valve- it gave me problems just like yours.


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## TeeItUp (Mar 18, 2004)

And to sum it up if you want to use the check valve you don’t need the external bubble counter and needle valve. Just supply pressure around 20 to get it started. You can count the bubbles in the lower chamber of the Eheim (that should be full of tank water by the way). I ran mine that way for several months but read a few reports of the check valve going bad and dumping excessive amounts of CO2 in the tank. In one case killing all the fish. I have since removed the check valve and am using an external needle valve with a reducer to the standard Eheim tubing. I used a Clippard MNV-4K2. My supply pressure is low (6-8 lbs) and I have no problem maintaining 65-70 bpm.

I have my diffuser located under a very large growth of Bolbitus so it does not get much light. If your diffuser gets much light some algae can grow on the disc screwing up the nice small bubble size. When this happens soak it in a bleach water mix for 10 minutes, rinse good (I even add some de-clor) and re-install. It will be like new again.

I have had internal reactors and external reactors and this thing works as good if not better than them. It is extremely small and not tank intrusive and in my opinion “highly” over looked. I do recommend the removal of the check valve however and use your standard needle valve.


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## Greg H (Dec 7, 2004)

I just set up my tank using this reactor and so far I am less than impressed with it. The bubbles of CO2 rise all the way to the top of the tank - I can't see any of them actually being absorbed. And I'm having a heck of time getting my Ph down. I've had the CO2 running continuously for three days now at about 30 bubbles per minute and Ph has dropped like .2. And I have a 30" tall tank so the bubbles are rising a long way. I may move the reactor over under the water intake and see how the cannister does with the bubbles.

Greg H.


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## Cheeseybacon (Feb 13, 2005)

Greg H said:


> I just set up my tank using this reactor and so far I am less than impressed with it. The bubbles of CO2 rise all the way to the top of the tank - I can't see any of them actually being absorbed. And I'm having a heck of time getting my Ph down. I've had the CO2 running continuously for three days now at about 30 bubbles per minute and Ph has dropped like .2. And I have a 30" tall tank so the bubbles are rising a long way. I may move the reactor over under the water intake and see how the cannister does with the bubbles.
> 
> Greg H.


Why don't you try building yourself an Inline C02 reactor out of PVC? It's cheap, you'll probably get better results, and it's one less peice of equipment to clutter up the inside of your tank.


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## Greg H (Dec 7, 2004)

Cheeseybacon said:


> Why don't you try building yourself an Inline C02 reactor out of PVC? It's cheap, you'll probably get better results, and it's one less peice of equipment to clutter up the inside of your tank.


Thanks for the link. That was actually going to be my next project and question: Can I run an inline reactor with an Ehiem 2026 with about 6' of head? Would I need to add another pump in-line? Thanks,

Greg H.


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## Momotaro (Feb 21, 2003)

You have 6' of head on the 2026 already, or will the reactor make the total head 6'?

I think you would be fine with the DIY reactor on the 2026. 

Mike


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## Greg H (Dec 7, 2004)

I think I'd have just under 6 feet of head with the addition of the in-line reactor. My out-flow is pretty healthy so I suppose it will work fine. Thanks for the help - now I have to dig up some clear PVC.

Greg H.


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## Greg H (Dec 7, 2004)

I'll just add a post-mortem to this thread. I moved the Ehiem reactor under the intake on my Ehiem 2026. At first I still couldn't get my ph down. I finally did a search on this fine forum and found out my bubble count was way too low. I had it set at about 1 Bubble per second (BPS). Last night I bumped it up to about 2.5 BPS and my Ph dropped to 7.0, where the controller was set. I reset the controller to my 6.8 target and upped the BPS to just under 3 and we'll see how it does today with the lights on. So far the filter doesn't seem to mind the C02 - no burbs of any kind and no bubbles at all in the output.

Greg H.


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## actioncia (Jun 9, 2005)

*Re: Eheim CO2*

I have one of the Eheim CO2 Reactor you are talking about. If you use CO2 silicon tubing, that will fit nicely onto the check valve intake of the Eheim and you can make it work that way. Feel free to drop me an email if you should have additional questions. Regards, JC.


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