My DIY CO2

[Bill M.]

Well here is the CO2 i have been using. I got the main idea from http://lehtis.arkku.net/enghiilidioksiidinlannoitin.php.. and the 2 bottle method form someone on this forum, but cant remember who... if itwas you, let me know and I will credit you!!

Here are the needed supplies:
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j89/bill719/109_0017.jpg
A drill with drill bit the diameter of the inside of an air tube
1 liter empty bottle
1 smaller empty bottle
air line
Hot glue gun
Pliars

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j89/bill719/109_0018.jpg
Drill a hole into the cap of the large bottle.

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j89/bill719/109_0019.jpg
Cut the airline in a 6 inch length at an angle and pull through.
http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j89/bill719/109_0020.jpg
Use hot glue gun to seal inside and out of tube.

[Bill M.]

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j89/bill719/109_0021.jpg
Drill (2) holes into the lid of the small bottle, and place the 6 inch airline that is connected to the large bottle in and seal it with hot glue. Place a second airline that is long enough to reach your HOB filter with about 6 inches of slack.

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j89/bill719/109_0022.jpg

Fill large bottle with recipie *at bottom* and the little bottle with regular water. Place in desired location, and have the emittor tube set inside the HOB, so the bubbles get diffused through the filter. Monitor pH and kH levels.

[tropfish]

good job bill!

[Darkness]

nice, though i dont know why you chose a 1 liter over a normal 2 liter bottle. I would think the yeast would survive longer in a 2 liter, if you use enough that they are dying from the alcohol, twice the volume should help. idk really though, either way it can't hurt.

also, i am using a 1 liter gatorade bottle as my second bottle, it has a much wider lid, making fitting two tubes through it easier. Ive also heard of using juice bottles for they sturdy design and large lid.

ive been just using an air stone for diffusion, but the bubbles are still visible when they reach the surface. How is the HOB way going for you? I might switch to that method

[Bill M.]

nice, though i dont know why you chose a 1 liter over a normal 2 liter bottle. I would think the yeast would survive longer in a 2 liter, if you use enough that they are dying from the alcohol, twice the volume should help. idk really though, either way it can't hurt.

also, i am using a 1 liter gatorade bottle as my second bottle, it has a much wider lid, making fitting two tubes through it easier. Ive also heard of using juice bottles for they sturdy design and large lid.

ive been just using an air stone for diffusion, but the bubbles are still visible when they reach the surface. How is the HOB way going for you? I might switch to that method


I used the 1 liter bottle becasue it was small enough to fit under my tank in my stand....If the bubbles are visible to the surface, it is not getting abosorbed into the water. All it is doing is escaping out the surface. The HOB is working marvolously....CO2 was in my water within 2 hours of adding it!

Good luck!

[Chrona]

Nice!

The only thing I would suggest rather than putting the tubing through the cap directly (as I've found the silicone likes to peel back from the vinyl after a while), is to use a brass fitting. One end would be barb that you would insert the air tubing into and the other end would be threaded. Simply drill a hole just a tiny bit smaller than the threaded opening and carefully screw in the fitting to tap a thread into the cap. Then back it out and put silicone all over the thread to make it airtight and rescrew.

Also, if this is for your 29g, a 1 liter bottle will not be enough to achieve decent CO2 levels. I find a 2 liter bottle lasts for a 10g tank (with a HOB) for about 2 weeks, so for a 29g, I would really look into using a gallon juice jug or something so that you aren't constantly changing yeast solutions. A stand for a 29g should be plenty of room for such containers, perhaps clean it out a little bit?