Emeritus Revenio v.5.0.150INT

[ReeferJay86]

Cleaned it on Monday and it looks like I need to clean it again today!

How you liking the CO2 scrubber? I’m thinking of purchasing one as I’m struggling to get my pH over 7.8

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

How you liking the CO2 scrubber? I’m thinking of purchasing one as I’m struggling to get my pH over 7.8

The scrubber itself is pretty well-built and I have no complaints about it, however the BRS media is a different story altogether. I’m also testing something else that has shown way better promise.

I’ve only just implemented the new media so I don’t wanna get carried away with showing results yet until I’m satisfied but, from the graph below my overnight never fell below 8.0...

 

[ReeferJay86]

The scrubber itself is pretty well-built and I have no complaints about it, however the BRS media is a different story altogether. I’m also testing something else that has shown way better promise.

I’ve only just implemented the new media so I don’t wanna get carried away with showing results yet until I’m satisfied but, from the graph below my overnight never fell below 8.0...

Do you have it to where your scrubber is only ran at night or is it running 24/7? That is still not that bad just under 8. My pH will goes as far as 7.5 and peak just at 7.8. I do have a refugium that comes on at lights out and off 1 hr before back on. My tank is a IM Nuvo 30L, not much volume compared to your tank. Now with the BRS media is it just running out to fast or just not performing well?

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

@ReeferJay86, The scrubber is connected 24/7, I might change that in the future but as of right now that’s how it’s set up.

The @Bulk Reef Supply media has a couple of issues. IMO, I highly doubt the concentration of soda-lime is as much as some others, for one, it gets exhausted faster. In my experience with BRS, CDX, and IceCap media, the 2 Little Fishes CDX and IceCap last twice as long. The other thing while less impactful is the fact that the BRS media doesn’t change color as advertising would have you believe. That all leads me to stipulate, as I have no proof, that the BRS media has more "filler" than soda-lime. This is more a manufacturer issue than it is a BRS problem as they're just selling the product and not manufacturing it. Now you also have to ask yourself, who is setting the parameters around BRS media, and are they independently tested to ensure that it meets them, simple quality control!

Those points also directly correlate to the performance of their product however, during media change (1 - 3 days max) out I’ve never seen the product increase pH above 8.2 for the amount that I use. In the photo that I posted of the media on top of my skimmer, you can clearly see a blue pigment change in the media that was leftover from IceCap. The IceCap media literally turned blue in three (3) days and that’s at the bottom closer to the suction tube with the BRS on top, hmmm?

I’m not attempting to bash the BRS media I’m just posting my observations.


EDIT: I also vacuum seal the leftover media once I open the bag to ensure it has less of a chance of absorbing atmospheric CO2.

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

Small video update...

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

My battle with low PH...

Lights - Radion XR15 Pro x4, 9-hour for radion
Algae scrubber - the reverse of light schedule with a 60-minute overlap on each side
Dose 25.6 ML of BRS soda-ash via Neptune DOS every 3hrs +/-35%
Implemented 4days ago - Hybrid Sodium Hydroxide bubbler/CO2 (BRS Soda-lime media) (knicked name Hydro-Lime Scrubber) plumbed into skimmer - skimmer on 24/7

At night PH drops to 8.17, during the day PH has reached ~8.29
Tank located in basement approx. 3 feet from back door/bulkhead that is open often throughout the day in the spring and cracked about 1/2 in winter.
The basement is VERY airtight, 4 mil plastic moisture barrier fixed to concrete walls, 2x4 walls ALL with R-21 insulation, another 4 mil plastic moisture barrier, drywall, and that includes an R-30 insulation+drywall ceiling. No windows open as they are sealed and I have plans on replacing them this yr.

Alk- 8.86 to 9.2
Ca- 456
Mg- 1450

Inhabitants - fish load- 8 x Chromis, 3x Bimaculatus Anthias, 1 Naso. 1 Blue hippo
A mixed bag of sticks all growing very well.

Tank overall is doing well.

...Let me start by saying that I'm no scientist, I'm simply posting my observations and my engineering skills with implementing a hybrid approach to a Soda-lime scrubber using @Randy Holmes-Farley information about Sodium Hydroxide and its ability to be more effective at scrubbing CO2.

The Hydro-lime scrubber that I created is a simple bucket filled with RO/DI water and about 40ml cup of Sodium Hydroxide, two air Stones along with an air pump introduce air into the solution - the unit has an airtight lid however it still allows for some air to be pulled in due to the holes drilled for the airlines. From there, an air hose to the CO2 reactor Inlet and then another airline from the CO2 reactors Outlet to my skimmer air Inlet. This is a good time to note that the Sodium Hydroxide bubbler/scrubber by itself was not able to remove/scrub enough CO2 to get my pH above ~8, but that is still a very excitable range.

The main reason I decided to try this was that I was exhausting the Soda-Lime media in a little over 2-1/2 days, I figured if I can get the incoming air to be less saturated with atmospheric CO2 prior to hitting the soda-lime it would last that much longer, or so I hoped. As of right now, I'm getting into the ~3-day mark and the soda-lime media shows no signs of being exhausted (yet). The added bonus of courses is the fact that my pH now reaches well above 8.20 (when the lights are on) and closer to that magic 8.3 some folks seem to obsess about.

The layout of the Hydro-Lime Scrubber.

...of course, only time will tell the longevity of this new (new to me) hybrid approach to scrubbing CO2 but I'm hopeful this will work out for me.

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

Current progress on the Hydro-Lime Hybrid Scrubber...

One thing to also note is the clear uptake in calcium and alkalinity.

As noted by the graphs, when PH went up, Alk consumption increased. I have slowly increased the amount that I'm dosing for both to compensate for the uptake.

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

Not bad growth for ~30 days.

‎Monday, ‎February ‎22, ‎2021, ‏‎6:47:18 PM

Tuesday, ‎March ‎23, ‎2021, ‏‎1:20:18 PM

 

[ReeferJay86]

My battle with low PH...

Lights - Radion XR15 Pro x4, 9-hour for radion
Algae scrubber - the reverse of light schedule with a 60-minute overlap on each side
Dose 25.6 ML of BRS soda-ash via Neptune DOS every 3hrs +/-35%
Implemented 4days ago - Hybrid Sodium Hydroxide bubbler/CO2 (BRS Soda-lime media) (knicked name Hydro-Lime Scrubber) plumbed into skimmer - skimmer on 24/7

At night PH drops to 8.17, during the day PH has reached ~8.29
Tank located in basement approx. 3 feet from back door/bulkhead that is open often throughout the day in the spring and cracked about 1/2 in winter.
The basement is VERY airtight, 4 mil plastic moisture barrier fixed to concrete walls, 2x4 walls ALL with R-21 insulation, another 4 mil plastic moisture barrier, drywall, and that includes an R-30 insulation+drywall ceiling. No windows open as they are sealed and I have plans on replacing them this yr.

Alk- 8.86 to 9.2
Ca- 456
Mg- 1450

Inhabitants - fish load- 8 x Chromis, 3x Bimaculatus Anthias, 1 Naso. 1 Blue hippo
A mixed bag of sticks all growing very well.

Tank overall is doing well.

...Let me start by saying that I'm no scientist, I'm simply posting my observations and my engineering skills with implementing a hybrid approach to a Soda-lime scrubber using @Randy Holmes-Farley information about Sodium Hydroxide and its ability to be more effective at scrubbing CO2.

The Hydro-lime scrubber that I created is a simple bucket filled with RO/DI water and about 40ml cup of Sodium Hydroxide, two air Stones along with an air pump introduce air into the solution - the unit has an airtight lid however it still allows for some air to be pulled in due to the holes drilled for the airlines. From there, an air hose to the CO2 reactor Inlet and then another airline from the CO2 reactors Outlet to my skimmer air Inlet. This is a good time to note that the Sodium Hydroxide bubbler/scrubber by itself was not able to remove/scrub enough CO2 to get my pH above ~8, but that is still a very excitable range.

The main reason I decided to try this was that I was exhausting the Soda-Lime media in a little over 2-1/2 days, I figured if I can get the incoming air to be less saturated with atmospheric CO2 prior to hitting the soda-lime it would last that much longer, or so I hoped. As of right now, I'm getting into the ~3-day mark and the soda-lime media shows no signs of being exhausted (yet). The added bonus of courses is the fact that my pH now reaches well above 8.20 (when the lights are on) and closer to that magic 8.3 some folks seem to obsess about.

The layout of the Hydro-Lime Scrubber.

...of course, only time will tell the longevity of this new (new to me) hybrid approach to scrubbing CO2 but I'm hopeful this will work out for me.

Any updates on your hybrid method?

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

Update:

So I’m 19 days in to this little experiment of mine and I’ve had my first signs of the media being exhausted within the CO2 scrubber. I recall in a previous post that I noted that the BRS media tends not to change color, however I was clearly mistaken as you can see from the pictures below. I can only guess at this but I feel that the moisture must’ve had something to do with it. Also, at the same time you can clearly see that some CO2 is still making its way into the reactor body. That would lead me to believe that the sodium hydroxide solution isn’t stripping (it’s not an airtight container so I know it’s pulling atmospheric CO2) all of it.

However, for me in my system I will continue to use this as it has extended the active use of the soda lime well pass what I was observing when I first started scrubbing with it.

You can also see some sodium carbonate precipitate just under the refill lid, So that's clear evidence that it’s pulling in the air from the sodium hydroxide container.

I’m thinking I will probably upgrade the soda lime container to the 4.2 pound version in order to get this to last more roughly a month without me having to touch it.

 

[ReeferJay86]

If I may ask, where did you get the sodium hydroxide? I’m looking into doing this same method as you. I’m struggling with my pH and I can’t get it over 7.8.

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

If I may ask, where did you get the sodium hydroxide? I’m looking into doing this same method as you. I’m struggling with my pH and I can’t get it over 7.8.

Amazon product

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

Slowly adding some choice frags and colonies, this is todays addition.

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

Couple of FTS, still working on coral placement.

 

[ReeferJay86]

Amazon product

Thank you!!!

 

[revhtree]

Couple of FTS, still working on coral placement.

Looking awesome man!

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

Looking awesome man!

Thx Rev!!

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

Thank you!!!

Anytime!

 

[rustyreefer]

Anytime!

Super nice build; well done! How are you liking the sump? I have been considering the exact one but have heard a lot of mixed reviews so far.

 

[Tacticool-Reefer]

Super nice build; well done! How are you liking the sump? I have been considering the exact one but have heard a lot of mixed reviews so far.

Thx!

Overall the sump is pretty nice. It’s well constructed but it does have a couple of design flaw, if you wanna call them that. It’s strips way too much of the nutrients from the water column, that’s more due to the fact that it’s fleece roller mat system. Second, it makes it very difficult to take the roller mat off-line when you want to add things like (phytoplankton, bacteria additives, etc.) without them being stripped from the water column.