Advice please on solonoid valve for Calc Rx

[Jan]

Do you currently add any supplements to the tank at all?
When was the last time you tested your calcium and alkalinity? What was your calcium level before your reactor started acting up?
When was the last time you did a water change, and what salt do you use?

Nick

The only supplement I'm adding at this time is a tiny bit of Reef Builder (to add Alk) but I only started doing that 3 days ago when my Alk hit a low of 6.0 dhk via LaMotte's Alk test. I test Alkalinity daily. I test Ca every 7-10 days. The last time I tested Ca was 9/9 and it came out to 435 via Salifert. It's been in the 420-435 range for the last 6-8 weeks or so. Before that it was ~350 and I supplemented with SeaChem Reef Complete until the Ca came up to 420 and then I stopped. I use SeaChem Reef Salt. I last did a water change on 9/9, 10%.

Test the alk on your reactor effluent. If its high then you just have a system that depletes alk faster than ca. If its low then the reactor isnt doing anything.

Don, I will do this.

 

[Jan]

Well, my tank alkalinity has measured 7.06 dhk two nights in a row with no tweaking on my part...I was starting to get excited that I might have hit on the magic combination....Oh, and I noticed a couple of days ago that my effluent rate had spontaneously increased again to a very rapid drip rate--almost a steady stream but just shy of that. Again, with no changes or adjustments by me.

Last night I got home too late to measure my tank Alk so I did it this morning and what do I have? 9.3 dhk!!! I measured it twice and it came up the same. Aaaaaagggguguhh! I am about ready to chuck this reactor out the freaking window!!!!

Nick, I did take your suggestion and ordered that better regulator you posted a link to. Don, I have not ordered a peristaltic pump. After doing more research on it I can't find anyone else in over here (in the U.S.) that's using one on a Calc reactor. On a Kalk reactor or dosing system, yes, but on a Calc Rx, no.

Any advice, anyone? I have turned off my C02 until the Alk drops back down. Can Alk raising 2 points in 36 hours kill anything? I had a clownfish--my special needs fish--disappear overnight.

 

[Jan]

I just found this post on RC from another person who owns the GenX regulator:

it's factory adjusted on the front end of the regulator at around 25 PSI which is way too high to get any meaningful settings for reactor use. i contacted genx, and there is no way to adjust this setting. that leaves about 1/32" of turn on the output between a constant flow of bubbles and 1 bubble every 3 seconds. for this reason i need to rely on adjusting the effluent flow and using alk tests to tune my reactor.

in my opinion, this regulator is not suitable for use with a calcium reactor.

makes me feel better to know I'm not alone in my misery :lol:

 

[Maxx]

Jan, What are your levels at now?
A DKH level of 9.3 is fine.

Nick

 

[DonW]

Don, I have not ordered a peristaltic pump. After doing more research on it I can't find anyone else in over here (in the U.S.) that's using one on a Calc reactor. On a Kalk reactor or dosing system, yes, but on a Calc Rx, no.

Thats a good reason not to get a good feed source.:lol: Youll also notice these threads are every where, wonder why. Think about it this way. You are trying to get a specific drip rate much like a doctor would want for a patient IV. There is a reason they dont use a elcheapo impellor pump.
The genx regulators just like any regulator has to have some back pressure on the outlet. The quote you posted from the other user is a simple fix just by using the proper check valve to give some back pressure. Thats just basic understanding not the regulator at all. Try to get a precise drip out of a garden hose on your faucet, its not going to happen.
Most reactor problems are cause by poor reactor design or improper set up. Some reactors are just plain junk and will not work right without a peri pump. But honestly its usually the owners lack of understanding.

Have you checked the reactor with a vacuum pump or with air pressure to see if it is actually air tight. If not your just wasting time. It may be a very simple fix but it does have to be diagnosed properly without just playing a guessing game.
Have you tested your feed pump. Hook a hose to the outlet with a valve for a few days. Does the drip rate stay the same or does it flux?



Don

 

[Jan]

Jan, What are your levels at now?
A DKH level of 9.3 is fine.

Nick, my levels are as follows:

Sg - 1.023
Alk - 7.4 dhk (LaMotte; non-borate alkalinity)
Ca - 390 (Salifert)
Mg - 1320 (Salifert)
K+ - 400 (KZ)
PO4 - .05 (Elos)
Nitrate - not detectable (API)
Ph - 8.23 - 7.97 high to low daily swing

The Ca is a little lower than it has been, usually it's been at 425-435, but then again my sg is a little lower than it has been too.

 

[Jan]

Thats a good reason not to get a good feed source. Youll also notice these threads are every where, wonder why. Think about it this way. You are trying to get a specific drip rate much like a doctor would want for a patient IV. There is a reason they dont use a elcheapo impellor pump.
The genx regulators just like any regulator has to have some back pressure on the outlet. The quote you posted from the other user is a simple fix just by using the proper check valve to give some back pressure. Thats just basic understanding not the regulator at all. Try to get a precise drip out of a garden hose on your faucet, its not going to happen.
Most reactor problems are cause by poor reactor design or improper set up. Some reactors are just plain junk and will not work right without a peri pump. But honestly its usually the owners lack of understanding.

Have you checked the reactor with a vacuum pump or with air pressure to see if it is actually air tight. If not your just wasting time. It may be a very simple fix but it does have to be diagnosed properly without just playing a guessing game.
Have you tested your feed pump. Hook a hose to the outlet with a valve for a few days. Does the drip rate stay the same or does it flux?

Don, as I've mentioned once or twice, I'm not very mechanically inclined. I usually hire Mark Reimer to install/fix equipment for me, and I do the best I can with the daily monitoring and tweaking. Anyway, I didn't want to get too deep into messing with that regulator or it might have resulted in it being thrown out the window... :lol:

I am happy with the replacement regulator that Nick recommended as it is much easier to make precise, incremental adjustmenst to the bubble count without overshooting my correction. I also took the recommendation of the Octopuss people (and Mark) and replaced the minijet 606 feed pump with a better pressure-rated pump, an Eheim. The combination of those two fixes has resulted in my daily alk measurements fluctuating by ~.25 dhk point instead of 1 to 2 dhk points. I'm happy with that improvement. In addition, my eyeball observation of the effluent drip rate is that it has stayed stable after replacing the feed pump. Relative stability of the alk measurement seems to confirm that.

I do appreciate your input on this problem I've been having but I'm just never going to be much of a putzer/DIY'er.

 

[DonW]

Don, as I've mentioned once or twice, I'm not very mechanically inclined. I usually hire Mark Reimer to install/fix equipment for me, and I do the best I can with the daily monitoring and tweaking. Anyway, I didn't want to get too deep into messing with that regulator or it might have resulted in it being thrown out the window... :lol:

I am happy with the replacement regulator that Nick recommended as it is much easier to make precise, incremental adjustmenst to the bubble count without overshooting my correction. I also took the recommendation of the Octopuss people (and Mark) and replaced the minijet 606 feed pump with a better pressure-rated pump, an Eheim. The combination of those two fixes has resulted in my daily alk measurements fluctuating by ~.25 dhk point instead of 1 to 2 dhk points. I'm happy with that improvement. In addition, my eyeball observation of the effluent drip rate is that it has stayed stable after replacing the feed pump. Relative stability of the alk measurement seems to confirm that.

I do appreciate your input on this problem I've been having but I'm just never going to be much of a putzer/DIY'er.

I thought you were still having drip rate issues but those were the old post, sorry should have checked the dates.

Don

 

[tigerarmy40]

Quick question, how does the water get feed into the reactor if the peri pump is pulling from the effluent output? do you just run the ca ractor feed line into the sump so water is pulled into the reactor?

 

[DonW]

Quick question, how does the water get feed into the reactor if the peri pump is pulling from the effluent output? do you just run the ca ractor feed line into the sump so water is pulled into the reactor?

Peri pump sucks on the reactors outlet. Sort of like when you syphon your tank. The feed line just hangs in the sump.

Don

 

[Jan]

Update:

I have this new regulator/solonoid w/needle wheel in place for a couple of weeks now: http://www.premiumaquatics.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=RF-CO2-REG&Category_Code=co2units

Tonight when I came home the reactor was making a new and different sound, sort of like the sound that an old-fashioned wind-up clock makes when you're cranking it...just doing this noise periodically.

I opened up the cabinet with the reactor and I see that the little plastic box on the side of the regulator is glowing orange--there's a light on inside. I've never seen this before. Plus the bubbles coming out of the bubble counter tube are getting jumbled up, like every so often 3-4 bubbles come out all at once. This is also new.

What do you think is going on? And what should I do?

 

[Jan]

OK, it seems to be the Octopus Recirc pump that has decided to stop pushing water all of a sudden....

 

[Maxx]

I have the same needlevalve/regulator combo.

The orange light indicates the solenoid is getting power. No orange light, no power to the solenoid, no CO2 being injected into the reactor....

Something or someone might have bumped into your regulator and inadvertantly moved your needlevalve....

Mine did something similar for a few days, then I got it settled in.

Nick