Calcium reactor trouble shooting, air lock etc

[RDU-90]

Background - Geo 8 x 18 reactor, pan world NH-40PX circulation pump, maxi-jet 1200 feed pump (that GEO recommends). I have a hayward needle valve to control the effluent rate.

I have no problem maintaining appropriate pH in the reactor using my apex and regulator.

I have been fiddling with this reactor for months and I can't get it to run smoothly. The main issue, I think, is air lock. No matter what I set the effluent rate to, it slows down over a few days and bubbles accumulate in the reactor. I think this is excess CO2 - but I'm not sure. The bubble rate is very slow - when CO2 is on I have it set at 1 bubble every 5 seconds.

The fittings are tight as far as I can tell and the feed pump is not exposed to bubbles. There are no leaks anywhere, at the lid or where the pH probe is etc.

The bubble build up causes the circulation pump to run rough/loud. At one point the pump seized due to excess air/CO2 and I had to replace it. I'd rather not have to do that again at $125...

What am I doing wrong?

Does the effluent tubing need to output above the level of the reactor to purge air more effectively? Do I need a different/better feed pump other than a maxi-jet? Is the reactor pulling in air in some other way?

 

[ndrwater]

I have the exact same reactor, and had the exact same issue..
I solved it by "burping the reactor" then running a relatively high flow rate through the effluent line. Haven't had an issue since.
There really isn't an issue with a higher flow rate through the reactor. I.E. a steady stream out of the effluent line. The Apex takes care of the on/off of the CO2 and subsequently the pH range in the main chamber.

 

[ndrwater]

By "burping" I shut the reactor feed pump and recirculating pump off, opened the main recirculating line in the top and let the excess air/CO2 out. Even going so far as to add a little tank water to top things up a bit. Close the recirc line and voila

 

[RDU-90]

By "burping" I shut the reactor feed pump and recirculating pump off, opened the main recirculating line in the top and let the excess air/CO2 out. Even going so far as to add a little tank water to top things up a bit. Close the recirc line and voila

I will try to increase the effluent rate even more, so far whatever rate I have run it at I am still getting buildup of air/CO2.

 

[ajjw0828]

Did you ever figure out a good way to keep CO2 from building up bubbles in the reactor without having to burp it every so often? I have the same thing happening right now.

 

[ca1ore]

I wonder if it's CO2 buildup or just air? CO2 is highly soluble, air is not. I don't own a GEO but it appears from pictures that the effluent comes from the bottom. Seem like it would be easy enough to drill a hole in the lid and pull from there.

 

[RDU-90]

Did you ever figure out a good way to keep CO2 from building up bubbles in the reactor without having to burp it every so often? I have the same thing happening right now.

I am running a much higher effluent rate than previous - a near constant stream, and with the reactor at a higher pH. About 7.05 for now, which has me at stable alkalinity. Instead of adjusting the effluent rate, if my alkalinity drops I reduce reactor pH to keep up. This is working well and I haven’t had to “burp” in about a month. There is a YouTube video that explains this method but the above is essentially it. Trying to adjust the effluent drip rate like I did before (with a stable low pH around 6.5) just led to airlock. This is infinitely better.

 

[RDU-90]

I wonder if it's CO2 buildup or just air? CO2 is highly soluble, air is not. I don't own a GEO but it appears from pictures that the effluent comes from the bottom. Seem like it would be easy enough to drill a hole in the lid and pull from there.

The GEO effluent is from the top.

 

[RDU-90]

I am running a much higher effluent rate than previous - a near constant stream, and with the reactor at a higher pH. About 7.05 for now, which has me at stable alkalinity. Instead of adjusting the effluent rate, if my alkalinity drops I reduce reactor pH to keep up. This is working well and I haven’t had to “burp” in about a month. There is a YouTube video that explains this method but the above is essentially it. Trying to adjust the effluent drip rate like I did before (with a stable low pH around 6.5) just led to airlock. This is infinitely better.

This is the video link, it is long winded but it works.

 

[ajjw0828]

This is the video link, it is long winded but it works.

Thanks! Yeah, it seems like everyone with this issue just ups the flow and raises the ph in the reactor to meet their needs. Seems like a good plan, that I'll have to look into doing soon! Thanks for taking the time to reply!

 

[AlexG]

I was having issues with the effluent flow rate using the needle valve and switched over to add a kamoer peristaltic pump to pull water through the reactor which eliminated the issue of co2 buildup in the reactor. The recirculation pump on the reactor does stall from time to time due to the co2 build up in the reactor but after a few minutes it primes itself.

 

[hyeclass]

Background - Geo 8 x 18 reactor, pan world NH-40PX circulation pump, maxi-jet 1200 feed pump (that GEO recommends). I have a hayward needle valve to control the effluent rate.

I have no problem maintaining appropriate pH in the reactor using my apex and regulator.

I have been fiddling with this reactor for months and I can't get it to run smoothly. The main issue, I think, is air lock. No matter what I set the effluent rate to, it slows down over a few days and bubbles accumulate in the reactor. I think this is excess CO2 - but I'm not sure. The bubble rate is very slow - when CO2 is on I have it set at 1 bubble every 5 seconds.

The fittings are tight as far as I can tell and the feed pump is not exposed to bubbles. There are no leaks anywhere, at the lid or where the pH probe is etc.

The bubble build up causes the circulation pump to run rough/loud. At one point the pump seized due to excess air/CO2 and I had to replace it. I'd rather not have to do that again at $125...

What am I doing wrong?

Does the effluent tubing need to output above the level of the reactor to purge air more effectively? Do I need a different/better feed pump other than a maxi-jet? Is the reactor pulling in air in some other way?

Good day, I am wondering if you fix the issue you were having. I am having same issue every since, here is a video please if you can help me, thank you

 

[Dennis Cartier]

I have an old Geo 618 reactor that I purchased used, so I am not sure if the newer ones work the same, but I was having the same issue, gas build up stalling the pump. In my system I have it installed after my main CalRx with no CO2 hooked up, to act as a 'power' scrubber and mop up any excess CO2.

When I noticed the gas build up, I concluded it was due to the design where the effluent exits from the feed side of the pump and in slow effluent usage allows air to get sucked in by the re-circulation pump. I am driving my main CalRx with a peristaltic pump, so no needle valve is being used.

I installed a check valve on the output of the 618, which solved the air being sucked in through the effluent line. The valve I used though is not saltwater safe, but it did confirm for me the source of the issue. I removed the check valve and worked on a way of mitigating the issue.

The easiest way of dealing with it is to help stop the air locking. I placed a tee connector in the loop of hose that comes from the output of the pump and connects to the bottom of the reactor. I then ran a hose vertically to the top of the reactor and placed a ball valve on the end. The vertical tubing coming off the tee acts as a bubble trap catching the bubbles that go through the re-circulation pump. Over the course of a week, the water level in the vertical hose will drop, until it reaches the bottom of the tee. At that point it is time to remove the air. To do this I would turn off the re-circulation pump, close a valve on the effluent line, open the ball valve on the vertical tube and pour tank water into the vertical tube filling it to the top. Then reverse the process (close ball valve, open effluent, restart pump) and the reactor is good for another period of time.

I have since placed a downstream device after the 618 that keeps the effluent line 'under' water at all times, so the air sucking issue is no longer a possibility. However with the Geo as the last device or only device, the tee mod make sit easy to run low effluent rates and deal with the air locking issue.

Dennis