Skimmer air line run outside equals higher PH

[Reab]

I know it is an old thread, but how long does it typically take to notice a difference? I just connected my skimmer to outside air today.
Thanks

Depending on the difference of the co2 from outside your home to inside and how large your tank is will provide the best insight on how long you should go before expecting a difference. I purchased one of these and it was tremendously helpful. Inside my home it is reg 1500ppm and outside is around 350, I have a large family witch turns into a lot of co2 production, the gas stove adds to this problem as when a fire is created, it consumes o2 and releases c02. I have a 50g and will notice a difference immediately. If your co2 levels were not far from the ambient air outside, you may likely not notice a difference and your pH issues lie elsewhere. I am currently running co2 scrubber but found new information on the dangers of recirculating as the skimmate waste can break down and release sulfur and methane which can do real harm to a system. Without the recirculation, I will not be able to support co2 scrubbing as I will burn through the media at 1500ppm CO2 in my home so I am researching more on installing a line outside. I think that the higher you get the line to end outside, the better as the amount of pollutants will decrease dramatically as height is increased. Not sure about the how-to section yet.

 

[Lovefish77]

Depending on the difference of the co2 from outside your home to inside and how large your tank is will provide the best insight on how long you should go before expecting a difference. I purchased one of these and it was tremendously helpful. Inside my home it is reg 1500ppm and outside is around 350, I have a large family witch turns into a lot of co2 production, the gas stove adds to this problem as when a fire is created, it consumes o2 and releases c02. I have a 50g and will notice a difference immediately. If your co2 levels were not far from the ambient air outside, you may likely not notice a difference and your pH issues lie elsewhere. I am currently running co2 scrubber but found new information on the dangers of recirculating as the skimmate waste can break down and release sulfur and methane which can do real harm to a system. Without the recirculation, I will not be able to support co2 scrubbing as I will burn through the media at 1500ppm CO2 in my home so I am researching more on installing a line outside. I think that the higher you get the line to end outside, the better as the amount of pollutants will decrease dramatically as height is increased. Not sure about the how-to section yet.

4nfortunately i don't have a CO2 meter but i know it is stuffy and not well ventilated inside the apartment. I am on the 15th floor in a building so the air drawn should be pretty clear. However, so far i am not seeing any bumps in PH in my tank though.

 

[Ulmo]

Decided to post to this existing thread instead of starting a new one.

My tank is in the exact middle of my house, and previously wasn't motivated enough to figure out a way to run an air line to the outside. Have been relying on cracked windows and a small number of houseplants, but all are quite far away from the tank and I'm ready to try a dedicated line.

Scouted the attic today for options and there are a couple domed openings in the roof that I can run hose to from the hole I'll drill in the ceiling of the living area. I ordered some 1/2" OD air tubing with a 5/16" ID that I hope will be a tight fit into the existing 5/16" OD venturi line on my skimmer.

If fit isn't perfect, does anyone have an easy suggestion for creating an air tight seal between the two hoses? I can put a bead of silicone sealant or grease around the connection, and/or teflon/plumber's tape. Depending how ugly the joint ends up being, I may then use some heat shrink over the connection.

It is approx. 25' of hose distance from the skimmer to the closest fresh air draw. However, that closest roof opening already has the exhaust from one of the bathroom fans running to it. Worried about that (potentially polluted) indoor air getting sucked back into the skimmer line. Is the air resistance of an extra 10' (35'+ total) of hose negligible enough to be worth running to the next opening? That farther opening could then be dedicated to just the skimmer line.

 

[melonheadorion]

mine is in my office, so running my airline outside significantly changed ph for me. at the end of the day, around midnight ish, i would be at like 7.8, buy since running the airline out again, it stays 8.0 to 8.2

 

[fishmonkey]

The proof is in the pudding. I recently run the air line to my skimmer outside to get fresher air. This raised my PH a lot compared to the air line being inside. Yesterday my skimmer was full so I turned it off for the day. The PH went back down. Here is the Apex graph for a few days. It's easy to see when the skimmer was off. So if you are having PH problems you may want to try this simple fix.

Fresh air in the entire room works even better

 

[fishmonkey]

Decided to post to this existing thread instead of starting a new one.

My tank is in the exact middle of my house, and previously wasn't motivated enough to figure out a way to run an air line to the outside. Have been relying on cracked windows and a small number of houseplants, but all are quite far away from the tank and I'm ready to try a dedicated line.

Scouted the attic today for options and there are a couple domed openings in the roof that I can run hose to from the hole I'll drill in the ceiling of the living area. I ordered some 1/2" OD air tubing with a 5/16" ID that I hope will be a tight fit into the existing 5/16" OD venturi line on my skimmer.

If fit isn't perfect, does anyone have an easy suggestion for creating an air tight seal between the two hoses? I can put a bead of silicone sealant or grease around the connection, and/or teflon/plumber's tape. Depending how ugly the joint ends up being, I may then use some heat shrink over the connection.

It is approx. 25' of hose distance from the skimmer to the closest fresh air draw. However, that closest roof opening already has the exhaust from one of the bathroom fans running to it. Worried about that (potentially polluted) indoor air getting sucked back into the skimmer line. Is the air resistance of an extra 10' (35'+ total) of hose negligible enough to be worth running to the next opening? That farther opening could then be dedicated to just the skimmer line.

I open the windows and doors and run a box fan as much as possible to get fresh air into the room.