BRS CO2 Absorbent Review

xmetalfan99 · Oct 15, 2011

Like many of us, come winter time I have issues keeping my pH even close to 8.0. I decided to try out the BRS CO2 absorbent with an air filter attached to my skimmer so that the skimmer would be putting O2 and not CO2 into the water. I will post photos this weekend of the setup and keep track of my pH via graphs here as well so we can see how quickly and well the product works.

I will add a new graph and update to this post every Friday night.

10/8/11 - 10/15/11

I don't expect to see any results until Monday at the earliest.

10/15/11
as of 9:32AM EST, my pH dropped to 7.58. I turned my Alk doser off last night due to my newly acquired Hanna Checker saying my alk was higher than what I wanted. I believe this pH is due to no Alk being dosed during the night.

10/17/11
I woke up today for the 2nd straight morning of having a pH of 8.09 at 9AM. So far, the media is working well. It seems as though my pH hits roughly 8.3 by the time the lights go off.

10/20/11
Well, it is close enough to Friday. I will let the graph spek for itself. The media throughout the reactor is already turning purple though. I am hoping that the media will last longer than a month.

BTW, idk what the large increase on Sunday was about.

turfster26 · Oct 15, 2011

Tagging along....GREAT topic and hopefully a very nice review....many thx.

xmetalfan99 · Oct 15, 2011

turfster26 said:
Tagging along....GREAT topic and hopefully a very nice review....many thx.

When looking up info on these, all I could find was "they work". No actual details on how well or quickly they work. I plan on keeping the original post well detailed with graphs and the progress of raising the pH.

neuwave · Oct 15, 2011

Here in Florida we have this problem almost year round. With the crazy heat/humidy we have to keep the house tightly shut. The co2 builds up and drops our ph not matter how much buffer we use. I have been using a co2 scrubber on my skimmer for a couple of months now. Within 24 hrs the ph went from 7.8 to 8.2. I made a DIY co2 scrubber with no complaints. But just recenty anther person moved in with three large dogs the co2 has increased even more and I need to add anther co2 canister.

CJO · Oct 17, 2011

You've basically made yourself a CO2 scrubber. The results should be almost immediate (within several hours to a day):
https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/do-yourself-diy/57609-easy-way-increase-your-tanks-ph.html

CJ

neuwave · Oct 17, 2011

CJO said:
You've basically made yourself a CO2 scrubber. The results should be almost immediate (within several hours to a day):
https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/do-yourself-diy/57609-easy-way-increase-your-tanks-ph.html

CJ

Mine is similar but I did buy the soda lime from Airgas. Simply added the soda lime to two empyt canister filters from BRS and hooked them up to skimmer intake. Then Voila! After I let it set for 24 hours the ph went up to 8.2. from 7.8. Though the house I'm renting is only a couple of years old so it is air tight and the co2 concentration grows pretty rapidly with 3 adults, 1 cat and 3 large labs. So with two canisters on the skimmer the soda lime lasts about 2 weeks before I have to replace the media. Everyone around the area who has one of these setups has about the same length of time for the media. One of the best investments ever for ph here in Florida.

Chompers · Oct 17, 2011

How much was the soda lime from AirGas?

Nuocmam · Oct 17, 2011

Following. Thanks for the link. I'm going to try this.

neuwave · Oct 17, 2011

Chompers said:
How much was the soda lime from AirGas?

Hey choppers I see your in town, I bought it from the airgas dowtown. It was the only location I could find that had it. Charged me $80 for a five gal bucket.

xmetalfan99 · Oct 18, 2011

10/17/11
I woke up today for the 2nd straight morning of having a pH of 8.09 at 9AM. So far, the media is working well. It seems as though my pH hits roughly 8.3 by the time the lights go off.

Reef UP · Oct 18, 2011

Also an easy fix is to run your skimmers airline outside if feasible

CJO · Oct 18, 2011

Reef UP said:
Also an easy fix is to run your skimmers airline outside if feasible

Then you have to worry about the temperature outside

Also, many houses have a similar CO2 level immediately outside the house as they do inside it. You have to go several feet outside before it starts lowering.

CJ

neuwave · Oct 18, 2011

Reef UP said:
Also an easy fix is to run your skimmers airline outside if feasible

Not so easy. That's a big No No down here in Florida. With the heat and humidity any holes in the wall will kill your ac. It's kinda funny how everyone from up north says that drilling a hole works. But there is also the problem of.... I rent. Landlord wouldn't be happy with me drilling into his wall.

xmetalfan99 · Oct 20, 2011

10/20/11

Well, it is close enough to Friday. I will let the graph spek for itself. The media throughout the reactor is already turning purple though. I am hoping that the media will last longer than a month.

BTW, idk what the large increase on Sunday was about.

Like neuwave said, cutting a hole in your house is not always an option.