Recent content by Charlieh

If you don't mind changing your drop checker permanently a good way to provide a convenient integral white background is to cut a ring of clear 13mm pvc tubing thin enough to fit through the drop checker neck (about 3mm)and push it into the bulb. The tubing will turn white in a day or so and...

Hi again Joe (that's better!) If you run a filter on one branch and the extra pump includes an inline heater then I doubt you'll want to turn either off in which case back flow won't be an issue. However if you only run co2 off your extra pump and stop it when co2 is not in use then whilst you...

Morning J Butler (very formal) try googling pumps in series v parallel. Basically what you propose is putting 2 pumps in parallel which means that in theory the resultant flow will be the sum of each individual flow (although in practise it is usually somewhat less). As long as the resultant...

Hi Foxfish. What I am saying is that the resistance to flow of a number of small holes will always be greater than the resistance of a single hole with the same cross sectional area of all the small holes added together - primarily because of the increased turbulence at each hole. The smaller...

Hi Greenview ! Sorry only just seen this post. Have you considered an external circulation pump which can be hidden in your cabinet and connected directly to a spraybar (or any other outlet) ? I use an eheim compact + 2000 modified as a needle wheel for CO2 - the CO2 is introduced before the...

Exactly, or when it's removed from the aquarium water or anything that upsets the equilibrium. It's establishing the equilibrium that takes time but once coupled it will change colour as the tank CO2 concentration changes (which isn't very quickly under normal circumstances - hence the 2 hours...

You're overthinking it niru lol

Don't get so hung up about the drop checker time lapse. When you first put it in the water it takes a while for the liquid in the bulb to reach equilibrium with the aquarium water and for the indicator to change colour because this relies on the rate of gas transfer through the funnel and...

I've had an Aqua One 1000 running since Jan 2007 with no problems - gives a steady 600 lph. I even left it running for a couple of days with the taps closed once with no ill effects. The instructions leave a bit to be desired though. Its design is very similar to the Eheim 2222/2224 so I...

Morning Idris - I agree. Fluid dynamics are not nice. You're probably not bothered now but I just had a thought. I remembered seeing a table of flows under gravity (drains essentially) for different size pipes so you don't have to factor in pumps, velocities, lengths etc. I've had a search and...

Back to the original question ! You can't really predict flow directly from pipe diameter alone. In a nutshell fluid flowing through a pipe is subject to resistance from various sources one of which is friction caused by rubbing against the sides of the pipe. The amount of friction is related...

You don't need hozelock tubing - it's too hard. Normal air/co2 tubing works fine and will give you a good seal as long as there's a slight bulge in the tubing over the barb. I must admit that I do use a small cable tie under the barb to ensure it doesn't come off though.

Yep I've sheared them off too !! The connectors can get a bit tight when screwing in for the first time and you will need a spanner. That's why you really need to tap the hole first but wetting it or applying a tiny smear of vaseline or silicone to the threads can make things easier. Make sure...

You can install a bleed valve using the parts described here: viewtopic.php?f=20&t=12745 Drill a 4.5mm hole right at the top of the reactor,install a hozelock connector and then attach a short piece of airline with a valve (just like the AM1000 reactor). To prime it just open the valve until...

My favorite subject ! The following equation will give you the life of a gas cylinder in days. No days = 36141 * (weight of gas in kg) / (bubble count in b/s)*(hours per day) * (bubble radius cubed) For example: Bubbles from my JBL bubble counter are approx 6mm diameter (3mm radius) so 2kg @...