Should the pump on my CaRx sound like this??

[Shirak]

I have the smaller Geo. The air/micro bubbles will eventually purge along with the effluent as it exits the reactor. CO2 will make a little noise when the bubble hits the impeller but it gets dissolved into the water pretty quickly so you shouldn't see all those bubbles at the bottom when it's running properly.

Which model Geo is it and how do you have the lines hooked to it? Mine has the CO2 input right before the pump on the downward part of the tube going to the pump. Water in from the aquarium is next one up on the top horizontal pipe before the CO2. Water exits the reactor from the fitting in the lid. Air will accumulate under the lid and exit out this port if the bubble gets big enough.

 

[Biff0rz]

I have the smaller Geo. The air/micro bubbles will eventually purge along with the effluent as it exits the reactor. CO2 will make a little noise when the bubble hits the impeller but it gets dissolved into the water pretty quickly so you shouldn't see all those bubbles at the bottom when it's running properly.

Which model Geo is it and how do you have the lines hooked to it? Mine has the CO2 input right before the pump on the downward part of the tube going to the pump. Water in from the aquarium is next one up on the top horizontal pipe before the CO2. Water exits the reactor from the fitting in the lid. Air will accumulate under the lid and exit out this port if the bubble gets big enough.

It's the CR818. I have mine hooked up the same way. CO2 is set to 1 bubble per second and effluent is set to the same. I ran the reactor for about 8 hours and the bubbles are about the same.

 

[Biff0rz]

I have the older version, this is what mine looks like. CO2 comes in on the vertical and effluent out on the top where the gate valve is.

 

[Shirak]

A little different setup than mine but if you are pulling water out at the top then eventually all the air should evacuate if your not putting air in somewhere else. Not sure I understand your statement on the effluent. Do you mean you have one drop per second? If you are using a peristaltic Kamoer then you don't use a gate valve or needle valve to control effluent.

How are you feeding the reactor with tank water?

 

[Biff0rz]

A little different setup than mine but if you are pulling water out at the top then eventually all the air should evacuate if your not putting air in somewhere else. Not sure I understand your statement on the effluent. Do you mean you have one drop per second? If you are using a peristaltic Kamoer then you don't use a gate valve or needle valve to control effluent.

How are you feeding the reactor with tank water?

This is how I have it set up, see pic.
1=out to sump, note, gate valve is fully open
2=CO2 in
3=in from sump via kamoer peristaltic pump

 

[Biff0rz]

Your last statement has me wondering, should I be pulling the effluent from the top with the kamoer? Then the feed line just sits in the sump?

 

[Biff0rz]

Note, I'm pushing through the reactor, not pulling... If that makes any sense.

 

[Shirak]

I think that's correct. Water in from the tank at 3 and out back to the tank at 1.

You can run the Kamoer either push water into 3 or pull water out of 1. Many use the pull method with a peristaltic pump. Yes gate valve should be fully open so there are no restrictions on the peristaltic pump lines. There are different ways of tweaking the Kamoer and CO2 via effluent flow and CO2 injection. You are using a bubble counter so a standard pressure regulator on the CO2 tank?

How were you dosing Alk previously? There are calculators for getting a rough idea how to tweak the CaRX

 

[Shirak]

I would wait another day or two to see if the micro air bubbles go away. If you are not pushing a lot of water through the reactor they may hang out for a while before they exit with the effluent. I have a pretty low demand on my tank right now and only move 26ml/min through my reactor.

 

[Biff0rz]

I think that's correct. Water in from the tank at 3 and out back to the tank at 1.

You can run the Kamoer either push water into 3 or pull water out of 1. Many use the pull method with a peristaltic pump. Yes gate valve should be fully open so there are no restrictions on the peristaltic pump lines. There are different ways of tweaking the Kamoer and CO2 via effluent flow and CO2 injection. You are using a bubble counter so a standard pressure regulator on the CO2 tank?

How were you dosing Alk previously? There are calculators for getting a rough idea how to tweak the CaRX

It's a new tank setup, so I wasn't dosing before. Just starting with 1 bps on the CO2 then test alk again the next day. I'm using a carbon doser regulator.

I'll try setting up the pull method and see if the air goes away.

 

[Shirak]

Also just a thought at 1 bubble CO2/second some of the small bubbles below the plate are possibly CO2.

 

[Shirak]

Ah ok carbon doser makes it easier. 1 bubble/second seems like a lot for a new tank. What's the pressure reading on the low side gage? I have 5psi and run 1 bubble every 9 seconds

 

[Shirak]

What do you have the Kamoer set for on flow?

 

[Biff0rz]

What do you have the Kamoer set for on flow?

So upper gauge shows 10psi
Lower gauge shows 850psi
Kamoer was set to 5ml/m.

Since it could be air buildup I now set the kamoer to 140ml/m and the CO2 off, try and get everything out.

 

[Shirak]

5ml/min probably why you were seeing the air recirculating. It won't really hurt anything and will clear eventually.

 

[Water Dog]

Yeah, that’s waaaay too much CO2 for the low 5 ml/min effluent rate that you’re running. The air buildup that you’re seeing is due to excess CO2.

 

[Shirak]

I think based on your pressure gauge, bubble count and flow rate you were probably getting a really low pH in the chamber too and were seeing CO2 as the water couldn't hold any more after a point.

 

[Biff0rz]

I think air is definitely coming in from somewhere...


I ran the circulation pump all night while I slept (8hrs) and ran the kamoer at 140ml/min. I had the CO2 turned off the entire time.

The video is from this morning. No noticeable difference in air/bubbles/sound

What should I check next?

 

[Bpb]

The good news is you don’t have the air obstructing flow like you did before. You may just have air in the reactor that needs to purge, but even if it doesn’t, it’s not enough to stop the pump like before. Yours right now is basically how mine has been running for years. I agree though. You need closer to 25+ ml/min effluent or gas will eventually build back up

 

[Shirak]

If you don't have much demand, I would start out slow.. maybe 5-10ml/min with 1 bubble every

I think air is definitely coming in from somewhere...


I ran the circulation pump all night while I slept (8hrs) and ran the kamoer at 140ml/min. I had the CO2 turned off the entire time.

The video is from this morning. No noticeable difference in air/bubbles/sound

What should I check next?

Yep quite a few bubbles there. I would start with the 1/4" tubing connections since all 3 are on the suction side of the pump. Check the ends of all the tubes for scratches, grooves, damage that could allow air past the o ring in the fitting. Then check the o rings to make sure they are not damaged. Finally make sure they are inserted all the way in when you put them back together. I would also double check all the union fittings that connect the pipe to the reactor and to the pump and make sure the o rings are in place properly and not damaged. Some of those connections are also on the suction side.