DIY Calcium reactor and ?s

[G Santana]

I am in the process of restarting my tank and I am a huge proponent of DIY so rather than just plop hundreds of dollars for a plastic canister I did some research on DIY units and saw some folks who had used water filter canisters for said purpose. I just so happen to have a couple on hand and this is my attempt at my version.
I need to get the John Guest valves and a pump but I have the following questions:
1 on the CO2 line does it have to be a CO2 safe line?
2 what should the GPM rate be on the circulation pump?
3 what size line does a regulator use to deliver the CO2

I ask these questions because I have never used a unit and looking at ads and many threads I have not been able to glean that info.

Any help is greatly appreciated!!!

 

[Vette67]

If you look at my build thread. You can see my homemade calcium reactor. I used the 1/4 OD plastic water line tubing for my CO2 line, and it has been in use for over a decade, with no negative results. It hasn’t become brittle or cracked. I also have some Norprene air line I use, but that just because I had it laying around.

GPM rating is pretty low. I’m using an Iwaki wmd20, and I think it’s rated at 500gph. I then have that flow choked down even further. I’d be surprised if I was flowing 200gph through the media. You don’t want the media to tumble. Water should gently flow through the media, without moving it.

You are correct that calcium reactors are not magic. They are pretty simple. After the regulator, you’ll need a needle valve to control the CO2 flow, and after that, a bubble counter to know what is coming out of the needle valve. Then you are just recirculating acidic water through calcium carbonate media.

Let me know if you have any other specific questions.

 

[G Santana]

If you look at my build thread. You can see my homemade calcium reactor. I used the 1/4 OD plastic water line tubing for my CO2 line, and it has been in use for over a decade, with no negative results. It hasn’t become brittle or cracked. I also have some Norprene air line I use, but that just because I had it laying around.

GPM rating is pretty low. I’m using an Iwaki wmd20, and I think it’s rated at 500gph. I then have that flow choked down even further. I’d be surprised if I was flowing 200gph through the media. You don’t want the media to tumble. Water should gently flow through the media, without moving it.

You are correct that calcium reactors are not magic. They are pretty simple. After the regulator, you’ll need a needle valve to control the CO2 flow, and after that, a bubble counter to know what is coming out of the needle valve. Then you are just recirculating acidic water through calcium carbonate media.

Let me know if you have any other specific questions.

Thank you for the information you've answered all my questions!!!

 

[G Santana]

Finally finished, had to search all over town for pvc fittings. Now to order a regulator, tank and controller.

 

[G Santana]

Now, onto building my own regulator.
I was going to buy one or have someone build it for me but with a little research I am pretty confident I can do it.
Purchased this puppy dirt cheap along with two solenoids and will be ordering the few pieces I need from Swagelok tomorrow.

 

[DancingWind]

You could also look into max co2 saturation style calcium reactor (like dastaco2 https://uniquecorals.com/products/d...-calcium-reactor-in-stock?variant=53015847443) as a DIY project