# CO2 Safety Equipment?



## Byronicle (Apr 18, 2009)

I have a friend who wants to start a planted tank with his arowanas (he has a 1000gallon tank and about 4 red aros) and he is really skeptical about CO2 pressurized systems. He is willing to spend the money.

I feel like all he needs is a good drop checker, but he wants one of those milwaukee pH monitor things and another back up incase that one goes coo coo on him.

Would anyone know of a safety alarm/switch system that would turn off the co2 incase it goes too high for no good reason?


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## KhuliLoachFan (Mar 8, 2008)

I wonder why people use regulators turned all the way down instead of a regulator plus a restrictor. I guess it's all more money. Regulator plus restrictor plus solenoid, I guess, and you've got real control. I don't know why you'd want to bother with a sensor for CO2 over-injection when you can prevent a run-out when the tank gets low. Anyways, the bigger concern that keeps me from going pressurized CO2 is that I don't want something that can displace the atmosphere inside my basement, with something that while non-toxic, can asphyxiate me, or my family.

W


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## Byronicle (Apr 18, 2009)

KhuliLoachFan said:


> Anyways, the bigger concern that keeps me from going pressurized CO2 is that I don't want something that can displace the atmosphere inside my basement, with something that while non-toxic, can asphyxiate me, or my family.
> 
> W


true but there are lots of hobbyists, people who brew their own beer and mechanics that keep these tanks at home so its pretty low risk. as long as you keep everything safe and contained than you should be fine. its like camping, people do it even though you could attract bears but if you follow some safety measures/procedures than you should be fine.

when accidents happen its either a freak accident or something not well thought of, like i am trying to convince my parents to let me buy a motorcycle but they won't because they say its dangerous, but the dangerous part of it is when you do things like drive between cars and speed that is the majority part of the danger, as long as you play it safe than things should be fine (but motorcycles are still pretty dangerous, which is probably why i am so attracted by it )

what is this restrictor you speak of?


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 28, 2008)

A pH controller will do the job fine.

If he was extremely paranoid, there is nothing stopping him from using a wireless router coupled to a reef monitor so that he could constantly check on the status of his aquarium....

Regardless, for pressurized CO2, if the solenoid were to fail, the pH controller will not be able to shut off the CO2 anyway...


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## Byronicle (Apr 18, 2009)

Darkblade48 said:


> A pH controller will do the job fine.
> 
> If he was extremely paranoid, there is nothing stopping him from using a wireless router coupled to a reef monitor so that he could constantly check on the status of his aquarium....
> 
> Regardless, for pressurized CO2, if the solenoid were to fail, the pH controller will not be able to shut off the CO2 anyway...


true, my friend is pretty paranoid but not that paranoid lol

he just wants the pH monitor thing hooked up to his solenoid so that it shuts the solenoid off when too much co2 goes in just in case something goes wrong.

but if you have the pH monitor system, wouldn't that mean your drop checker's solution be green, and therefore negate the purpose of a drop checker? because if that is the case than the pH monitor is just a fancy electronic drop checker?


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 28, 2008)

Byronicle said:


> but if you have the pH monitor system, wouldn't that mean your drop checker's solution be green, and therefore negate the purpose of a drop checker? because if that is the case than the pH monitor is just a fancy electronic drop checker?


The pH monitor is best used in conjunction with a drop checker.

If (say), your pH is normally at 7.0 without injecting CO2. You can set your pH controller to shut off CO2 injection when pH drops below a certain pH value (let's say 6.5). But this value does not necessarily correspond to 30 ppm of CO2 (i.e. a drop checker with a 4 dkH reference solution will not be green).

Perhaps to get to 30 ppm of CO2, you will need to drop the pH to 6.0, but you won't know unless you are using a drop checker.

A pH monitor is not really a drop checker, as you are assuming that the only contributing factor to kH in the aquarium water are bicarbonates/carbonates, which is not the case.


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## KhuliLoachFan (Mar 8, 2008)

I do find it funny that we're making fish-flavored soda pop in tanks, at home, to grow our plants. 

W


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## golfers1 (May 17, 2006)

If you have the valve/solenoid/bubble counter plugged into a timer you should have no issues. I have mine under my tank and have had no issue's.
The solenoid is timed with my HO lamp CO2 comes on with the light and off with the light. Approx 6-8 hrs depending on my cycles.


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