Calcium reactor help

bahamasmls

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Not sure if this is an emergency but frustrating.

Hi I am having an issue with my calcium reactor setup. I’ve read the instructions and been watching YouTube for hours.

I have the main pump running and a feed pump.

I have my ph probe set up to run 6.4-6.6 ph.

I am having an issue getting my ph to drop down to that level in the reactor. And there doesn’t seem to be air bubbles in the bubble counter. I have slowed the flow on the outlet to a drop per second. But the only way the ph will drop is if I speed up the outlet flow. I thought at first the c02 wasn’t getting into the reactor but it seems to be.
Need help.
 
Pushing water into your reactor can put a lot of pressure inside of it. When I push water in from a feed pump I keep the whole thing in a plastic tub with a water alarm in case it leaks. If your flow control is at the end of the line and you slow down the flow, you will put back pressure on the system. When you get enough pressure to match your tank or regulator, the co2 feed will stop.

Is your control valve for the feed before or after your reactor? If it is, try moving your flow control valve to the feed side, meaning before the reactor, and see if it makes the difference.
 
I think you are right about the pressure. I have a leak on one of the pipes. Yes there is a control valve before the feed line comes into the reactor. What do you mean to the feed side?

Also this korallin reactor has 2 outlets. Not sure why, maybe to add another area for more media.
 
Picture of leak.

0E7D9389-FD59-4539-9886-1703219E2310.jpeg
 
That is the same as the first reactor I purchased. I liked it enough that I bought a second one for another tank I had..

It has been a while but from what I remember. The line from the output of the Eheim pump should be going back to your tank with no obstructions (valve open always).

The line on the intake side of the Eheim pump should be coming from your tank with a flow adjusting valve on it. The third line coming from the top of the reactor is a purge valve you can use to get the last of the bubbles out of the unit so that the pumps will prime easier. I remember it being tricky to get the circulation pump to prime. Seems like there was enough suction on the intake side of the pump that it pulled water on its own.

I would check the fitting where the leak is and just be sure the gasket is clean. If the line going back to your tank has to push water up much higher than the reactor then you may want to try to keep everything level.

I really liked that reactor. Once it was up and running there was no trouble. I knocked it over one time and broke the PVC elbow and it was no trouble to get a replacement part. I think you will be happy with it once things are working.
 
I now have bubbles in the regulator bubble counter. But it goes from about 1 a second to 4 a minute within a minute or 2. It only goes back up if i raise the psi to over 20. But then it slows down again. Is there too much pressure in the reactor? If so how do i fix this.
Fixed the leak though!
 
Also i have no bubbles going to the smaller canister off the reactor from the check valve. Should there be?
 
Picture of leak.

0E7D9389-FD59-4539-9886-1703219E2310.jpeg
Check the seal and snug it- Do Not overtighten as you will squeeze it to create a leak. Try taking coupling off and inspect the gasket. If good, snug it and turn on unit. If you get the leaking, tighten slightly until the leak stops. You can also try one winding of Teflon tape to aid sealing.
 
I fixed the leak.

Now just working on getting my bubble counter to keep bubbling. Stops after a few moments.

Check the seal and snug it- Do Not overtighten as you will squeeze it to create a leak. Try taking coupling off and inspect the gasket. If good, snug it and turn on unit. If you get the leaking, tighten slightly until the leak stops. You can also try one winding of Teflon tape to aid sealing.
 
The side of your Eheim pump with the word Eheim on it is the outflow of your pump. Everything coming from that side has pressure on it. The clear tube attached to that side is your outflow. That valve on it should be wide open, or just removed so it doesn't confuse things. It is only useful it if you want to shut the whole thing off to move your reactor for cleaning or reloading.

The flow control valve goes on the side that the Eheim pump is sucking in from. You have a black tube attached to it in the photo. The side with the silvery colored strainer basket on. This is also the side where the co2 is coming in. The black tube should be coming from your tank, through a flow control valve and then attached just like it is to your reactor. The valve on this black line is the only one you use to adjust water flow to and from the reactor.

In other words, the intake side has 2 hook ups, the co2 coming in, as well as the tank water coming in. It has some suctioning it. The out flow side only has one hook up. It puts out a little pressure and it goes back to your tank.

The single hose port in the top of your lid (right next to your pH probe) is just an air release to help you keep from building up too much co2 in the chamber when you are getting things adjusted. Keep the valve on it turned off. That line does not need to go anywhere. If you get a bunch of co2 build up at the top of the reactor and want to vent it off, that is what the line is for. That is when you can open that valve for a second to let the gas out.

Some times I too wordy and not clear so one more time with this. No valve on water flowing out. You have one on there now and for now and it is partly closed. Open it all the way and leave it open, or just take it off the line so that it doesn't mess with you. Water needs to free flow out of the reactor. This will keep pressure from building up inside. This will also allow your co2 to come in freely.

Control the flow by controlling the water flowing in. Put the flow control valve on the black line. It should be coming from the tank. You have it in the correct port. There is suction on this side of the pump. Tank water and co2 both get sucked into the Eheim, they get mixed together and pushed into your reactor.

Fire it up. Open your in and out valves. Make sure the water flowing out can just drain out freely back to the tank. Set your co2 at about 1 per second and see if it keeps working. You should still have water flowing from the tank to the reactor and back to the tank and the bubble should be able to stay constant. 20 lbs on the co2 should be fine. If you have to go higher than that there is probably something wrong.

Now if all is good, adjust the valve on the black line. While you are adjusting that valve, you will watch the out flow line (the free flowing clear one) until it stabilizes at a drip rate you like. If that doesn't get you going then we can dig a little deeper.
 

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