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They never seem to line up once they have been taken apart. I would unscrew the solenoid, it can be tight as I think they use threadlock, and apply a couple of drops of liquid thread seal ( I use Loctite 567) then screw back up until its tight but inline. The thread seal will stop any leaks.

Run your fingers or a brush up and down the flower spike to ensure pollination .

I used one of these for a while before making a cerges because of the noise but I found that the key is getting the right position for the elbow on the inlet. It needs to be directed so the flow runs around the edge to create a vortex to drag the co2 down. I would remove the inline diffuser, a...

Sorry, just noticed you are in Denmark, might need to be the eu site you need to contact.

Email the helpline at CO2Art.co.uk, they will advise how to clear the blockage, You may need to take the regulator apart to clear the jets which is quite simple but you need good muscles.

What happens when you connect it to a diffuser? As it is you are pushing against atmospheric pressure, if you create resistance does the pressure increase? There are some videos on the CO2Art website if you think its a blockage . Cheers John

I have had this happen a couple of times when the lever is only partly depressed. I found that when it was fully depressed there was no leak. Have you tried clamping the handle? Just my experience, it could be different for you. Cheers John

I would go for 6mm push fit pneumatic fittings.

I have had a few of the APS tanks, 80,60 and 30cm and have been very satisfied with all of them. Silicone looks good to me and excellent packaging and delivery.

Have you switched on the solenoid? Its in the closed position when the power is off. Cheers

Hi, I had the same issue when I first used this timer. Its down to the programming. Start your timing with 0% at 00-01 and finish with 0% from your ramp down to 24-00. Cheers

Hi, its been quite a long time since I kept Nigripinnis but I have been keeping Simsonichythys Santanae for a few years . Males can be aggressive to other males and to females and its best to have multiple females for each male to give respite from spawning aggression, or separate the female...

Watch the floss doesnt get sucked into the tubing and blocks the flow.

I have a couple of tanks where I have made a simple shrimp guard using a piece of stiff Nylon or polyester filter mesh, 20's mesh I think, which is rolled up then placed inside the inlet strainer. Sorry about the pics, this one has been in use a few years.

I dont worry about anaerobic areas, originally I had a layer of coarse gravel, then cat litter topped with coarse river sand but now its all mixed. Planting is ok except for things like glossostigma and small carpeting plants with very small roots . Its similar to Tropica aquasoil in my opinion.

Hi, welcome to ukaps, I have used "moler clay" catlitter for around 15years and like it. It doesn't break down even after many years in water. It has a high CEC but no added fertilisers. It looks pink in the bag to ages to a mid brown. May need a good washing before use to remove dust and...

I haven't seen inside the reactor you have, the website doesn't show it, but if you can direct the flow to the side it will give a swirling vortex which helps with distributing the bubbles. If the plastic is being pushed to the bottom of the reactor by the flow from the pump I would remove them...

Its like a cerges, water goes down the outer container then up the centre tube. You shouldn't need anything to break down the bubbles, I don't have anything to restrict the flow or block the pipe and dont have problems with bubbles in the tank. This might just be good fortune with flow rate...

Hi, thats what I would call a leak! You need 2-4bar pressure to push the gas through the diffuser so leaking through the joint would prevent the pressure build up. Try pushing the tube further on while its fresh out of boiling water then twist a loop of copper wire like a tourniquet to give...

No, you need 2 inlets and 2 outlets. Two separate circuits. What type of reactor are you using? I use a cerges type with 16/22 tubing and don't find any restriction to flow rate.

It could be worth just calling in and asking if they have any 5kg cylinders? All the out of date FE i've bought have had pins and seals intact. I have had them from both the suppliers mentioned with no problem.

I used to use Gas cylinders uk, Haydock industrial estate until I found a closer source. They may have been taken over by Gas UK, Google the name. I always just turned up and they filled while you wait. You pay for a full cylinder and then its cost of a refill. There are also two CO2 fire...

No problem. If you set up the tank you could float a container with the eggs until they hatch then feed them microworm for a couple of weeks and release them. If theres java moss and floaters they wont be stressed. Send a pm when you are ready. Cheers John

Have you considered lampeyes? Poropanchax Normani are small, active and the neon blue eyes are easy to see. Males show sparring behaviour . Good in group of 10+. Seem tolerant of water conditions, I keep them in my soft tapwater lowtech EC 100 but also in hightech with EI ferts and EC 250. If...

Have you checked for leaks using soapy water on all the connections including the body of the inline diffuser?

If your drop checker is dark green when you switch on the CO2 then you have residual CO2 in the tank so you dont really know what your pH target shoul be. Agreed you are in the right region but I would suggest reading the sticky by @zeus on how to dial it in...

I would go for filling it straight away and getting the filter back on asap, but I am old school and have always done it that way🥱 Cheers.

Hi, was the replacement just the coil part of the solenoid valve? Did you try dismantling the plunger assembly as in the link above (post#2). When I had the same problem a couple of years ago stretching the spring as suggested sorted the problem. Cheers

Hi, I would start from scratch. (If you havent already🤔) Switch the solenoid on, Did you hear a click as you did? Open the needle valve a couple of turns. Clamp the extinguisher handles together . Does the working pressure gauge move? Are there any bubbles in the counter? I dont have an Elite...

I had a similar problem with a gauge on a regulator I got with a used tank. I dont know if water can get back through the solenoid into the gauge but I replaced the gauge and its now ok.

I would expect the Velay green clay to soften into a paste. As above Moler clay is the one to use, I looked on ebay.fr but couldn't see it. The following link shows the product is available from UK and the seller will deliver to France. Hope this helps. Cheers John...

Hi, if its Bentonite I would expect it to soften and disintegrate after soaking for a while. I have used moler clay cat litter which is pink but turns brown when wet. This doesn't break down , still ok after 10 years. Cheers

Hi Hoggie, this is the thread sealant I use, "liquid ptfe" . Its available from Screwfix (or was a few years ago when I last bought it) Not cheap but you only need a small amount and the tube lasts for years. Cheers John

I had two 3foot tanks fail at the end of 2021 on a vertical joint. Both were purchased second hand in 1980. I dont expect to see the replacements fail🤣

Yes, if you look up the pipes you can see the ball valves. You can expose them by removing the screws. Clean and grease. Check the ports that they slide into for grit or debris that might stop them seating properly then give them a bit of grease as well. Hope it works

You need to check the tank water pH after standing 24 hrs then take your 1pH drop from that figure. If it keeps drifting down then reduce the bps and start earlier. Cheers

I believe most suckers and tubing are made from plasticised PVC. The plasticiser is what gives it its flexibility. There are many plasticisers available, some can be extracted by water immersion, others are much less affected but do cost more and are more difficult to process so they probably...

I have an E1501 and have occasionally had a similar leak. The problem has always been with the on/off valves, either something stopping them seating properly or build up on the ball surface and seating. I stripped and cleaned the valve surfaces and applied silicone grease to the valves and seals...

I dont have any experience with the cheap pH pens, I know others on the forum use them so perhaps they can share their experiences. I use a Voltcraft 100ATC which I have had for about 10 years and while more costly is reliable. Its not "lab grade" but is as good as ones I have used in the lab...

In my opinion its quite difficult to tune in CO2 with just a drop checker because the important thing is to get the CO2 constant throughout the photoperiod and the time delay for the colour change in the dropchecker doesnt allow you to tell this. If you use a pH pen and track the pH drop it...

Hi both bags look ok to me, if they are 25kg unopened they are unlikely to be contaminated or substituted. I dont know what the test kits are measuring but I suspect your stock solution at 10% is way above the range of either kit. Have you tried just adding the calculated dose to your tank...

Hi @Karacticus and welcome to ukaps. I have a Biomaster 850T and just use 3 layers of the foam provided with nothing in the other trays. With a high plant load you don't need a lot of media, best to get maximum throughput. Your plants will do the rest if they are growing well. I wouldn't worry...

Have you tried increasing the water changes to reduce the organic pollution levels? Either 50% + once a week or 35% twice a week. Cheers

I would suggest some floating plants, Annulatus like lots of cover, and it provides places to feed and spawn. Good luck. John

I built my own cerges reactor based on the instructions from the barr report article linked below. https://barrreport.com/articles/how-to-build-a-cerges-co2-reactor.43/ My modifications included using plastic pipe fittings, and cutting a small piece of 16/22 hose at a 45degree angle to fit...

If the bottle is shut off then you can unscrew the regulator. The amount of CO2 is low, its like opening a bottle of pop. Cheers

Hi Matt, I am not an expert but you dont mention any water parameters. I assume you are in hard water area so I would initially guess you need a more stable iron chelate, I believe the TNC is based on EDTA? There are threads on this. The root tabs may also be a cause. I had a similar problem...

Thanks for the comments @Hufsa and @MichaelJ , I read through the link but now I am more confused😂 , not sure if I should try increasing phosphate , magnesium, or nitrate. I will take the advice and leave it for a couple more weeks before making any further changes, I quite like the tiger stripe...

Another 3 weeks on and I only had to remove a bit of melted plant. The stems started to recover and grow but not as quickly as in the old tank where I would have to cut back weekly. I dont understand why as the lighting and substrate are the same. There are a lot less fish so far? This was at 4...

Well, after a couple of weeks I think I have finally fixed my CO2 problems. When I reassembled my CO2 and reactor I couldn't get a consistent bubble count, some days it wouldn't start at all. Finally traced it to the joint between the regulator and the solenoid, I couldn't trace it with soap...

Epiplatys Annulatus,( Clown killifish) would fit in such a setup if you can get hold of them. Also Poropanchax Normanii (lampeye) . Cheers John

Thanks Darrel, I'll do that for a couple of weeks and see what starts to recover. Fortunately I have back ups in the fish house.

Update after 6days. Do you ever get the feeling you wish you had left things as they were? Thats were I am up to🤣 Made a start ,took out the big java fern Then the rest of the crypts, stems and carpet. And put them in a holding tank with a small circulation pump and airstone and about 100l of...

Hi all, I am downsizing from my 120cm 330litre to a 90cm 200l quite soon and thought I should keep a journal to monitor progress and perhaps ask for some opinions. So before I start here is the current tank which has been running for 15years. It's a bit overgrown but its not an aquascape and...

Also known as Ureum in Europe?

Hi all, Formaldehyde doesn't have any epoxide linkage and would no longer be available to the general public because of its carcinogenic properties. A possible candidate would be 2,3 epoxy propan 1 al ( also known as Glycinaldehyde; 2,3-Epoxy-1-propanal; 2,3-Epoxypropanal...

Hi, it looks like a bloodworm, chironomid larva, good food if you can get it😀 Cheers John

This happened to me , after running ok for six months I had to start upping the bubble count then eventually found a leak from a crack next to the CO2 inlet. It might just be CO2 finding its way past the gasket have you tried the soapy water test?

Fittings I have bought have all been 1/8" bsp to fit different models . I haven't seen that design but would expect it to be the same.

Hi, did you get as far as this? Mine was the version with nut holding the plunger but both have the same internal assembly? The rubber pad B might have some impression marks or grit on the surface. Is it a CO2 Art product ? If not can you post a picture? Cheers

I had the same problem last year but with a lot faster bubble count abd CO2Art advised me to dismantle the solenoid and clean it with alcohol. Instructions are on the website under FAQ/instruction manuals I think this is the link? https://co2art-uk.reamaze.com/kb/product-manuals-441c1dc2834132cd...

pH of freshly filtered RO water is not really measurable and not a parameter that needs testing. Measuring conductivity will tell you if your RO unit is working, the closer to zero the better. pH WILL be close to 7 when its absorbed some atmospheric CO2 even if you can't measure it. When you...

Aphyosemion Australe are fairly easy to breed, and some fry will survive by hiding in the roots of the ferns. A clump of java moss and some floaters would give them a better chance. Microworm and bbs will give them a good start. Cheers John

Hi all, my reactor developed a couple of small cracks around the CO2 inlet and the check valve supplied started leaking from the edge.🤢 I tried epoxy but that didn't work, might have another go with pvc pipe adhesive but I've decided to diy a cerges , at least the experience has convinced me a...

Try looking for beer gas suppliers also, most will sell you a cylinder and do refills, prices vary quite a bit so shop around. My local fire extinguisher supplier charged £35 for a full new 5kg and £18 for a refill until it needs retesting. The beer gas supplier charges £15 to refill the same...

Its not planaria, looks like a leech.

Hi , could you be losing CO2 in your filter? If you pressurise the canister(assuming it is a canister filter) the CO2 could find a way round seals. When you had the diffuser opposite the inflow did you still have the high bubble rate?

Could it be slug egg? Similar size and appearance.

That's how I set mine up.👍

By extending the CO2 inlet you can't let the air out . Airlock. I set mine up without any modification so by removing the CO2 line the valve allows all the air out. I find it works great , there is a small headspace of CO2 and no bubbles in the tank. Quiet operation with just occasional...

I use a Greenline 1501 on tge same size tank with inline diffuser and homemade spraybar and don't find the flow excessive. The jets from the spraybar reach the front glass and the fish aren't bothered by the flow. Mind you there is a lot of plant mass for cover. Cheers

Ok Paulo ,thanks .

You can get silicone grease from amazon or builders merchants (screwfix, toolstation etc). Much cheaper than aquatic stores. The aerosol sprays contain solvents and propellents which is why they are flammable and toxic. Magnesium silicate or talcum powder is used in the rubber industry as an...

I don't know really🙄 I always prefer to assuming its safer somehow and uses less battery, but I don't know how it works.🤔 With my old Sony phone I accessed ukaps vis Chrome browser and when I logged on my avatar pic came up on the header bar so By clicking on it I could logout from the dropdown...

Thanks Hoggie, i've got a work round but I will give it a try.

I have had Rotala rotundifolia in a bucket for four or five years and its survived some hard frosts. Its sheltered and covered with glass but it flowers each year so worth a try if you have some trimmings. Cheers

Hi Paulo, thats what I could do before changing phones but now my avatar and name dont appear in the bar. Instead when I click on the menu it appears on the drop down but clicking on the option takes me to my account details. I have found that if I then click on the my account bars the log out...

Hi all, i've been following this thread with interest from the start and got my reactor a few weeks ago. I was waiting for the verdict on the venturi but set it up on my 350l as it comes out of the box. My CO2 is on a separate loop to my filter driven by a 3000 l/hr pump and I have always had...

Dolomite has very low solubility in water so using the sulphates is probably the better option . I have tried it in the past, when i was working we bought it in truckloads, but never noticed any increase in KH. Cheers

Hi, I have just updated my phone and tranferred all my files , which seems to have worked ok except when I click on UKAPS via Chrome browser I am logged in without entering anything and cant find a way to log out? My avatar doesnt show in the top bar but is on the drop down menu where the log in...

The Qanvee version is available in both sizes on Amazon. Cheers

I find them very hardy, they are quite happy with adding dry EI salts and are tolerant of high CO2 levels. Are you adding "Liquid carbon"? Where they recently purchased? Some more details about the tank conditions would help. Cheers

I have done the same on a couple of regulators and they have used threadlock, which makes it very difficult to undo. I also was worried about snapping something as I had to use maximum force. I fitted different needle valves using loctite thread seal which is like liquid ptfe and much easier to...

Is the solenoid switched on and showing a light? The valve is shut until the power is on so you won't get any flow of gas. Cheers

Hi, plasticised pvc is notorious for staining caused by bacteria and fungal attack. It looks like the green is is where the biofilm has been in the tubing and not on the end kept dry by the lily pipe. I recently had a clear syphon tube in my fishhouse which had not been cleaned for years and had...

Hi, I don't think it's seasonal, mine send out flower spikes all year round. Both under water and above the surface.

Hi, I leave mine until the bubble count starts to reduce but always have a spare cylinder. You probably have another week before it runs out. Have you tested for leaks with soapy water? 3-4 bps isn't excessive and should last much longer than 3 weeks. Cheers

Hi, if you haven't got power to the solenoid then it will be closed so no gas can get to the bubble counter. Try plugging it in so the light is on and you should be able to adjust the working pressure and regulate the bubble counter. Cheers

Hi, it doesn't look like Affinis to me , more like Albida brown. My Affinis have much longer stems but can have variations in colour. I'm not an expert but have had the Affinis 40+ years. The Albida brown vary between greenish to rusty and have mottling. Not great photos :-( the Albida needs...

My water comes from Hawes water so I have a similar report. it looks like there are 2 columns missing, the max reading and the units so it’s easy to see with the full screen. Cheers John

Hi. A few years ago I covered rock and wood with a layer of riccia and glossostigma which seemed to thrive. I don't know if having the riccia helped to retain moisture but I liked the combination. Cheers John

CAN is not the same as Urea, perhaps it's a mistake in the draft? But it could be they call all nitrogen fertilisers "urea"? The CAS numbers of the two products are completely different but the Ugandan draft doesn't quote anything. The Iso standard quoted is only a method of test not a product...

Hi, any of the smaller Aphyosemion species would be happy in the conditions and it depends if your tank is covered or not. Always better to have 2 pairs, both in case you lose one and better display behaviour. I have a couple of tanks just with excess males and the sparring displays are...

I have just replaced the MH units in my Geissmann infinity with led floodlights and still have the 2 150w bulbs if you would like them as spares? They were both working when I took them out. Lamp says "coral" but they look white, I liked the colour but not the heat. Cheers John

I use both. Utah eggs are easier to hatch and the bbs are a bit smaller than Russian. Worth the extra money IMHO.

I have had c Affinis for 40 years and in many different tanks and always seem to get these emerging roots when established and growing well. I have dosed 2 or 3x EI phosphate because of gsa but the roots don't change. The root structure of affinis looks different to wendtii or petchii because...

It won't be anything from the pipework affecting pH and TDS. When did you test the TDS, before the addition of the tropica soil or after? This could increase your TDS. The pH direct from the tap will be reduced due to dissolved CO2 and if you are in a hard water area 8.6 sounds about right...

Hi, microworms will survive for a couple of days on the bottom of the container if the flow isn't too great. Otherwise the fry will survive on what they have in the water, put some moss in there and they should do ok. Depends on what species you have how soon you can empty them into the main...

Your temperature is good and Striatum won't be bothered by variations. They might not breed at higher temperature but will survive. All killifish are not the same, some like it warmer some like it cold. Cheers

You should be ok if your shrimp have plenty of hiding places. A Striatum might take small shrimp but aren't as aggressive as Gardneri. I have shrimp with some Aphyosemion species in my 120cm tank and no problem. If you want more information about killifish drop me a pm. Cheers John