CO2 regulator fail causing 6.2 PH in tank

[waynemah]

Well, I had my first major failure... CO2 regulator failed in some way where all of the CO2 left the 10lb bottle and vented into the sump area.

The PH of the tank was 6.2 in the tank and everything was VERY unhappy :redface:. I immediately increased surface flow and held a tunze powerhead close to the water creating a crazy amount of bubbles in the tank. I also added a couple shots of BRS ALK to help boost it a bit.

A couple of losses so far are: 1x blue streak cardinal (other fish are not showing up yet) and my trusty light skirt that suffered major damage while thrashing around trying to get fresh air into the basement (was stepped on with vengance).

I guess I'm creating this post to get some good information from people who have suffered a similar experience (what's next?) and advise me on what regulator to get for my C02 bottle (current one is a Milwaukee with solinoid).

[eli@fijireefrock.com]

I had a similar problem in the past,place as many power heads as possible inyour tank or sump with 1/4" tubing near each intake of power head and draw as much air bubbles as you can into your tank and within an hour the you should have a considerable rise in your Ph.I don't recomend moving any of your inhabitant as this will cause more stress(anyways all the fish should be in hiding)I would even run a 1/4" line into your main pump as well. Draw as much fresh air into the room your tank is in.

[whatcaneyedo]

I had the same thing happen to me as well. Turn off the lights to help the stressed fish relax, perform a water change and aerate. Then go buy a system to monitor/control the pH in your tank as well as your Ca reactor to try and keep this from happening again.

Or at least thats what I did.

[vaporize]

brand of co2 regulator?

[whatcaneyedo]

At the bottom of his post:


(current one is a Milwaukee with solinoid).

After my incident in 2006 I switched to a regulator from aquariumplants.com which was suppose to be the best at the time. I've been told that their products and services have improved since then but all I can say is that I was not impressed.

[waynemah]

Interesting, I was about to pull the trigger on a "CarbonDoser Electronic CO2 regulator" from them. Do you have any other suggestions as far as brands?

On another note, I'm running a profilux controller which was alarming me when I got home. I instantly knew what was going on and where to look, I tried to setup email alerts with no success. I suppose I'll try harder now.

[vaporize]

After my incident in 2006 I switched to a regulator from aquariumplants.com which was suppose to be the best at the time. I've been told that their products and services have improved since then but all I can say is that I was not impressed.

Thanks got it.

On the second note, so you are saying that you are not satisfy with the "aquariumplants.com" regulator & solenoid? What are the issues? [I am almost ready to get that one instead]

[whatcaneyedo]

I'm actually in the same boat right now. I'd like to get a new CO2 regulator too but I'm not sure what the best is anymore either...

Keep in mind that it was about 5 years ago when i bought my stuff from aquariumplants.com so my house brand unit isn't even listed on their site anymore. But at the time it was promoted as 'the best' on Reef Central.

It took over a month for me to receive my package and they did not reply to any of my emails or answering machine messages.
The regulator seizes up several times each year (somewhere inside the unit before the solenoid) forcing me to dismantle and fiddle with it before it starts working again. Twice this has happened while I've been out of town...
I've never been able to get it to maintain a steady flow.

Note: I've got a check valve on the output to keep saltwater from ever backing up inside. I also run RO/DI water in the bubble counter which has another check valve below. My Apex switches the solenoid open and closed to maintain the Calcium Reactors pH between 6.5 and 6.6.

[Dez]

I run a Milwaukee Regulator and it's probably 12 years old and rusty. It is controlled by an aquacontroller 3 ( controls the solenoid). So far so good. I guess you could run 2 solenoids with the controller controlling both set at slightly different values. Hope this helps.

[Beverly]

I run a Milwaukee Regulator and it's probably 12 years old and rusty.

Hi Dez, wouldn't it be time to replace this regulator - just to be safe?!

[vaporize]

It took over a month for me to receive my package and they did not reply to any of my emails or answering machine messages.
The regulator seizes up several times each year (somewhere inside the unit before the solenoid) forcing me to dismantle and fiddle with it before it starts working again. Twice this has happened while I've been out of town...
I've never been able to get it to maintain a steady flow.


Thanks for this comment, so it basically shows that it is not any better than any other regulator, still have those stuck on/off issues et al.

Not worth to pay $200 :)

[waynemah]

I took my regulator and bottle to OxyPro to have it checked out... I can't say enough good things about them, honestly amazing. They sent me to the tech to have the regulator looked at, I had a faulty seal which he diagnosed and replaced on the spot. He then went to check over the rest of the unit and replaced anything that seemed worn. During the test he found a bad gague which he replaced with a medical unit ($17).

If anyone runs into an issue with a bad regulator or even wanted it serviced, I would reccomend these people 100%.

[tang daddy]

Ive heard the same story with milwakee regulators failing, but mostly on planted tanks where they would do exactly like you described, dump co2....

While dual stage regs are the cream of the crop they are also very pricey, I would go for something inbetween like this tunze....

looks reliable.

http://www.marinedepot.com/Tunze_Pressure_Regulator_7077_3_for_CO2_CO2_Regula tors_for_Aquariums-Tunze-TZ1113-FICORE-vi.html

[waynemah]

This dumped out of the safety valve and filled the sump area with CO2, I'm thinking the skimmer pulled in the CO2 and mixed it in. The rebuilt unit is in the exact same place and working fine now... I guess we will see what happens.

[Werbo]

Anyone have any feedback on the quality of the reefgeek CO2 regulator?

http://www.reefgeek.com/equipment/CO2_Supplies/Regulators/Deluxe_CO2_Regulator_by_Reef_Fanatic

[paddyob]

Sorry... but just curious...

I have never used anything like a CO2 regulator... so really not sure the purpose of adding one.

And my ph is always fine.

SO I guess, the question I am wondering, is there something else in your tank that is directly related to the CO2 regulator and due to malfunction drops your ph?

I keep a simple reef, so I never have these technical headaches I see others having.

Good luck.

[waynemah]

The CO2 regulator is attached to the calcium reactor which breaks down the media in the reactor. This then adds calcium to the tank.

There is no CO2 added to the tank itself. In my case, the safety valve dumped all CO2 into the sump area where it mixed with the water and brought the PH down.

[paddyob]

The CO2 regulator is attached to the calcium reactor which breaks down the media in the reactor. This then adds calcium to the tank.

There is no CO2 added to the tank itself. In my case, the safety valve dumped all CO2 into the sump area where it mixed with the water and brought the PH down.

Ah I see. Thanks for that!