Help Please -- Ca Rx Stopped Dripping Effluent

[Jan]

I took the air valve off the end of the effluent drip as soon as I saw there was nothing coming out. Didn't help, still nothing coming out. Turned feed pump and recirc pump off and on again, no difference. There seems to be some CO2 starting to build up in the chamber now.

How can I troubleshoot the problem? This is a dual chamber Octopus Ca Rx.

 

[james734]

Not sure but I would say you're going to have to start taking things apart to figure it out. Start at the effluent side and work back towards the reactor. There's a clog there someplace since you know the feed pump is feeding, the recirc pump is working. Got to be in the effluent tube or right where the effluent tube connects to the reactor.

 

[Jan]

Thanks for responding

Now I notice that if I pull on the effluent tube so that the end is farther down, it will drip again. If I lift it back where it usually is, the drip stops, and vice versa. Maybe it only works as a gravity feed now. If that were the case, does that suggest a weakness in the recirc pump or the feed pump? (I don't understand these things very well...)

 

[91YOTA]

i would suggest restricting the feed going into the reactor rather than the effluent line... the effleunt is loaded with ca and dkh and will stop up a restricted tube faster than a wide open one... it definately sounds like your effluent tube is stopped up, probably at the valve restricting the flow

 

[james734]

Basically the feed pump feeds the reactor with water. The recirc pump does just that recirc's the water around in the reactor. The feed pump supplies the added pressure to the system to push the effluent water out. The water getting out of the reactor via gravity is probably just residual in the line.

Open up the effluent up all the way. You should have a nice steady stream of water coming out. Again working backwards towards reactor looking for anything that might be pinching the line etc. Not sure what kind of media you are using but I'm willing to bet you have a clog in the effluent line at the fitting where it exists the reactor. I could be wrong and it could just be the feed pump also.

Just like sucking a small snail shell up in a skimmer intake/venturi.

 

[Jan]

problem seems to be resolved although I'm not quite sure how.

the valve didn't seem to be the point of clogging because the line didn't drip even after I removed the valve. When I was messing around with the effluent line, raising and lowering it, it would start to drip when the end of the line was at its lowest point. Then it would stop dripping if I raised the line. So I pulled the line as much as I could and let it drip into a bucket to clear out the low-ph effluent. After a gallon or so went through that way, I was able to raise the line back into its regular position and it kept dripping normally.

Then again, maybe the valve did clog, air got into the line, broke the flow and that was the reason it would drip again when the line was lowered.

Anyway whatever was clogging the line, the intake point from the reactor, or the the intake to the pump itself, dislodged itself.

What kind of regular maintenance could prevent this kind of clogging...anything? When my valve clogged one time, Dang said I should open it up for full flow once a month and I do that now.

Thanks for chiming in on a Saturday night.