Weird newbie carx early morning reactor ph increase

[A_Blind_Reefer]

So I’m a carx newbie, but an old timer in the hobby. I have my carx dialed in pretty solid at a ph of 6.18 plus or minus, with a flow of 75ml per minute. I’m using a kamoer pump and have the co2 solenoid controlled by ph. That said, I have the flow of co2 set to where it maintains 6.18 ph, plus or minus, without triggering the solenoid but maybe two or three times a day if that. What’s happening is at around three to five in the morning, the ph in the reactor starts to climb and by seven am it gets to 6.6 or so. At first I would adjust the regulator, but then later in the day the flow would be too much and the solenoid would be triggering on and off frequently. Then I thought maybe the regulator was getting clogged so I removed it, blew it out and cleaned the needle valve. I have triple checked that co2 is flowing, so it’s not the solenoid closing. For the last month the reactor runs perfectly stable all day and night up until three to five am, where the ph increases. I stopped messing with the regulator for the past week and at nine am, where it peaks at just under seven ph, when the lights turn on, the ph in the reactor starts to go back down and settles back to the 6.18 or so for the rest of the day and does the same thing the next day. I tried to search the web to see if this is normal but can’t find anything at all. Any thoughts as to what could be going on? My only thought is that it’s inverse of the tanks ph drop overnight and maybe it’s related to that.

 

[KrisReef]

I’m at a loss to understand how this is operational? I have a pH meter that opens the CO2 valve and closes it again (solenoid) and pH is fairly stable inside the reactor. My flow of water is also kept steady by a Kamoer feed pump. My pH is measured inside the CO2 reactor, set slightly higher than your target but the reactor chamber only changes +\-0.1 when the meter is operating.

Are you measuring pH outside of the chamber? My solenoid goes off and on many times an hour(maybe every 5-7 minutes?)
Perhaps a picture of the CO2 reactor and location of the pH probe in your setup can help us figure out what is happening?

I also have a “Carbon Doser” regulator that really helped me to get the CO2 reactor under control. I tried many different regulators and a few Calcium reactors before I got the thing under reliable,steady, dependable, no constant adjustments and fiddling around so I feel your pain with these issues. I hope we can help get yours humming.

 

[A_Blind_Reefer]

I’m at a loss to understand how this is operational? I have a pH meter that opens the CO2 valve and closes it again (solenoid) and pH is fairly stable inside the reactor. My flow of water is also kept steady by a Kamoer feed pump. My pH is measured inside the CO2 reactor, set slightly higher than your target but the reactor chamber only changes +\-0.1 when the meter is operating.

Are you measuring pH outside of the chamber? My solenoid goes off and on many times an hour(maybe every 5-7 minutes?)
Perhaps a picture of the CO2 reactor and location of the pH probe in your setup can help us figure out what is happening?

I also have a “Carbon Doser” regulator that really helped me to get the CO2 reactor under control. I tried many different regulators and a few Calcium reactors before I got the thing under reliable,steady, dependable, no constant adjustments and fiddling around so I feel your pain with these issues. I hope we can help get yours humming.

@KrisReef, thank you chiming in and trying to help a fellow reefer out!

My setup is similar, pretty standard. My ph probe is inside the reactor and the levels I mentioned are the internal ph readings. I purposely set the flow rate of the regulator to a point at which it does not trigger the solenoid valve to close under normal circumstances. It stays open pretty much twenty four seven with a couple hiccups a day. Typically late at night when demand drops. I did this in case the ph probe drifts causing incorrect readings or if the solenoid fails open. Either way, the co2 flow could continue unchecked without tanking the ph in the reactor, causing a large spike in alkalinity. I’m a fail safe nut, especially now, and am paranoid of anything that could happen that I would not notice until it’s too late.

Since my initial post, I gave up trying to figure this out as it’s just impossible with my vision limitations. I called the extremely friendly and helpful people @carbondoser.com and have the new carbon doser on the way. They put together a package that will eliminate the needle valve on my tunze regulator, which is the same regulator they include in their new kits, and come with enough tubing to replace the rodi tubing I currently have as the co2 cylinder is in a closet in a separate room from the tank. They were also nice enough to offer help, if needed, after it arrives via FaceTime so they could be my eyes and walk me through making adjustments while they watch on the other end! Freakin amazing service! That was their idea, I didn’t have to ask. I have not encountered that level of offered assistance from anywhere else in this hobby yet, so kudos to them!

 

[KrisReef]

@KrisReef, thank you chiming in and trying to help a fellow reefer out!

My setup is similar, pretty standard. My ph probe is inside the reactor and the levels I mentioned are the internal ph readings. I purposely set the flow rate of the regulator to a point at which it does not trigger the solenoid valve to close under normal circumstances. It stays open pretty much twenty four seven with a couple hiccups a day. Typically late at night when demand drops. I did this in case the ph probe drifts causing incorrect readings or if the solenoid fails open. Either way, the co2 flow could continue unchecked without tanking the ph in the reactor, causing a large spike in alkalinity. I’m a fail safe nut, especially now, and am paranoid of anything that could happen that I would not notice until it’s too late.

Since my initial post, I gave up trying to figure this out as it’s just impossible with my vision limitations. I called the extremely friendly and helpful people @carbondoser.com and have the new carbon doser on the way. They put together a package that will eliminate the needle valve on my tunze regulator, which is the same regulator they include in their new kits, and come with enough tubing to replace the rodi tubing I currently have as the co2 cylinder is in a closet in a separate room from the tank. They were also nice enough to offer help, if needed, after it arrives via FaceTime so they could be my eyes and walk me through making adjustments while they watch on the other end! Freakin amazing service! That was their idea, I didn’t have to ask. I have not encountered that level of offered assistance from anywhere else in this hobby yet, so kudos to them!

Incredible story with a beautiful ending, so glad I tried to help. I’m going to bed now thinking about the wonderful people that we have on the site to share this hobby and celebrate life together on the Blue planet. Thanks for that!

 

[A_Blind_Reefer]

Incredible story with a beautiful ending, so glad I tried to help. I’m going to bed now thinking about the wonderful people that we have on the site to share this hobby and celebrate life together on the Blue planet. Thanks for that!

I am amazed with peoples kindness and understanding every day. As much as I may complain about people these days, it’s awesome to be slapped in the face and spun back in the right direction. Thank you