DaStaCo Reactor Thread

[Black Pearl]

yes, that's why its important to let AMS, diagnose the problem. How old is your unit and did you purchase it new?

 

[nickog]

Yes the unit was new , it’s under 2 years old

 

[nickog]

Yes the unit was new , it’s under 2 years old

 

[Black Pearl]

it has been suggested that, something near the controller could be interfering with the electronics, if you have added anything new near it remove that item and see if it runs. if thats not the case best resolution is through FB page or contact Unique Coral, but the best trouble shooting will be AMS FB page

 

[Black Pearl]

another suggestion would be to start with fresh salt water in each chamber, and start like an initial setup with the 2-3 min. timing of the co2 tank, make sure the material chambers are totally flushed of all air by plugging the peri pump into the power converter and letting it run till water comes out of the outflow tube, make sure the out flow tube is not below the chambers, to prevent siphon, make sure the chambers have the appropriate amount off material in each and see if it runs

 

[svogun]

Just set up an A4 and came down to an empty CO2 bottle. I suspect I either had the fine tune open too much or there was a leak where the bottle meets the regulator. Since I altered the fine tune knob, do I need to do the initial 2 to 3 minute startup again once I chanhe out the CO2 tank?

 

[Black Pearl]

I would think not, make sure its set at .08 with the fine closed all the way, then open the fine 3-4 turns and start Dastaco from the power plug

 

[Abhishek]

I am planning to pick up a hardly used A4 Dastaco from a friend of mine and fulfill my dream soon of owning a Dastaco . I currently run a geo 618 with carbon doser but hate having to calibrate the pH probe often .

Is there anything in particular I should look for while buying the Dastaco ? It’s a new unit may be 3-4 months old only .

Lastly , am not in face book so how do I get in touch with Dastaco support should I need it ?

 

[reef_ranch]

Congrats on the purchase. You're going to love it!

Check the acrylic connections. They are the most likely parts to get damaged. At 4 months old, you don't have to worry about the serviceable parts -- the Eheim impeller and the peri pump tubing.
The only other moving parts are the float switch in the CO2 mixing chamber which should be cleaned every 6 months or so and the solonoid which in my experience are bulletproof.
It is coming with a regulator? A good 2 stage regulator ensures a proper supply of CO2 and avoids the most common alerts.

Before Dastaco was on facebook I had excellent service by email with the two owners. But the manual is pretty good and if all else fails, start from the start and set it up all over again. That tends to work out most problems.

 

[Abhishek]

Congrats on the purchase. You're going to love it!

Check the acrylic connections. They are the most likely parts to get damaged. At 4 months old, you don't have to worry about the serviceable parts -- the Eheim impeller and the peri pump tubing.
The only other moving parts are the float switch in the CO2 mixing chamber which should be cleaned every 6 months or so and the solonoid which in my experience are bulletproof.
It is coming with a regulator? A good 2 stage regulator ensures a proper supply of CO2 and avoids the most common alerts.

Before Dastaco was on facebook I had excellent service by email with the two owners. But the manual is pretty good and if all else fails, start from the start and set it up all over again. That tends to work out most problems.

Thanks for the info . So I comes with everything including the regulator provided by Dastaco .
I do have a carbon doser regulator that may be I can use if need be . But is the DAstaco regulator not good enough ?

Am just a little nervous to drop that kind of money on a reactor but the reviews and success stories making me pull the trigger .

Regards,
Abhishek

 

[olaggie01]

I have an A4, about a year old. Worked flawlessly for the first 6 months. Moved it from under my tank to under my frag tank and started to get errors. Spoke to Joe at UC a few times and he put me in touch with the owners who called daily via FB to discuss. Eventually diagnosed as a bad CO2 sensor. Replaced under warranty from AMS. Great customer service. Very helpful and appreciative.

Rock steady since then as monitored by alkatronic.

 

[reef_ranch]

Thanks for the info . So I comes with everything including the regulator provided by Dastaco .
I do have a carbon doser regulator that may be I can use if need be . But is the DAstaco regulator not good enough ?

Am just a little nervous to drop that kind of money on a reactor but the reviews and success stories making me pull the trigger .

Regards,
Abhishek

Mine did not come with a regulator. I tried a single stage Tunze regulator for the first six months of use and after it became clear that it was not regulating the output pressure well enough sprung for a Alan Le two-stage. That eliminated the few alarms I would occasionally get.

The Dastaco regulator is likely going to work fine.

It is expensive but well worth it. I imported mine from Belgium in 2014 and had to pay as much for the freight as the unit cost (the freight cost was a surprise, I would have passed had I known the final cost)! But 5 years later it's still my favorite piece of equipment.

 

[Abhishek]

Mine did not come with a regulator. I tried a single stage Tunze regulator for the first six months of use and after it became clear that it was not regulating the output pressure well enough sprung for a Alan Le two-stage. That eliminated the few alarms I would occasionally get.

The Dastaco regulator is likely going to work fine.

It is expensive but well worth it. I imported mine from Belgium in 2014 and had to pay as much for the freight as the unit cost (the freight cost was a surprise, I would have passed had I known the final cost)! But 5 years later it's still my favorite piece of equipment.

Thank you for the reply .
Am just concerned with not having direct support in US and spending that kind of money on an equipment when I have a geo . But guess I have enough support here to help me set it up .
I shall pull the trigger and se how it goes .

Regard,
Abhishek

 

[svogun]

I’ve had my A4 up and running for about 2 months now. Switched over from 2 part. It’s my favorite piece of equipment. Promotes stability. And with the money we put into our corals, having a reactor that doesn’t have a lot of moving parts to worry about is well worth it IMO.

 

[Janci]

I just found this page while looking for more information concerning calcium reactor media.
I have been running a Dastaco Xtrema A1 for about 2 years and like the unit a lot. I had some issues at the beginning while setting it up, but with the necessary support on FB and a local reefer, things were solved pretty quickly.
My tank is about 650L (just water volume) and the A1 is rated for 800L. I have the controller on 1 vent and setting around 1.5. Just enough to maintain alk around 7dKH.
This CaRx reactor has been my best purchase for the tank. There is little to no maintenance to be done. I had some damages but these were due to wrongly handling the unit and had nothing to do with the design.
I check Alk every week just to keep parameters stable and tuned.

Lately I have been brainstorming on how to implement an alkalinity monitor in the system.
AMS is claiming to be working on its own controller, but that will take a long time before it hits the market.
My system is controlled by GHL so the KH Director is the way I like to move forward.
In the end, when the alkalinity monitor works flawless, the GHL controller should control the Dastaco unit.

Besides that, what media are you all using and do you know how much is pumped in the tank on a 24hr basis?

 

[reef_ranch]

I use the DaStaCo media which is mined CaCo3 tetsed for purity. AMS recommends it for the simple reason that coral skeleton and other media may include impurities.

I've never tried to measure the amount of effluent that is pumped into the tank in any given period at any given setting.

 

[Janci]

I will do the test tomorrow.
Take out the line to the tank for 24 hours and measure the quantity.
These pumps run 4.2L/h so the count is done easily.
Just like to find a way to count how many times it doses per day.

 

[biecacka]

Can you use ARM or 2little fishes media in them?
I have always wanted a Dastaco for sure. They seem to be super easy to dial in. How do the PacSun reactors compare or the new bill Wann ones if anyone is familiar with either of them?


Corey

 

[reef_ranch]

I will do the test tomorrow.
Take out the line to the tank for 24 hours and measure the quantity.
These pumps run 4.2L/h so the count is done easily.
Just like to find a way to count how many times it doses per day.

The dial works in conjunction with the float switch to regulates how often the pump runs. I think you'll end up with a measurement that will apply only to your current setting.

 

[joseserrano]

Can you use ARM or 2little fishes media in them?
I have always wanted a Dastaco for sure. They seem to be super easy to dial in. How do the PacSun reactors compare or the new bill Wann ones if anyone is familiar with either of them?


Corey

you cannot run arm or reborn, the reactor float operates at a low ph, it would slurry the 2 mentioned media. you have to use the media they sell. I do not recall what the media is made of, but almost appears like small pieces of stone.