I purchased the JBL PH Controller as part of my CO2 setup (a decision that I am now beggining to regret) The 500g bottle the kit came with ran out within a week due to a faulty pressure reducer. Got that sorted and upgraded to a 2kg bottle which has lasted just 2 weeks. My bubblerate is around 1 per second. I imagine that the tank is been dosed with CO2 even when the lights are off, which is battering my CO2 supply. Would anyone advise putting the PH computer on a timer so it turns on/off with the lights. Would this work?
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PH Controller. Can they be run on a timer?
- Thread starter andyaxis
- Start date
not really sure on the ph controller sorry (mine is sitting in a box unused) but I think youve still got a problem with losing co2 somewhere as a 2kg at 1bps should last a LOT longer than two weeks, even if its running 24/7. It might be worth testing all your other connections with fairy liquid or something if you havent already.
Ed Seeley
Member
I agree with Stu; that is far too quick for a bottle to empty even running 24/7. You have a leak and need to check all the joints with a mix of washing up liquid and water. It will bubble where you have a leak.
As to the pH controller you really don't need them IMO. If you want to use it then set it up as a fail-safe mechanism to cut the CO2 off only if the pH drops too much.
What you want to do is have the CO2 bubble rate set to give you 30ppm CO2 during the daylight hours (measured using a drop checker). Then have a solenoid to turn the CO2 off during lights off on a timer. Then you can set your pH controller to cut the CO2 off if the pH drops more than 1 degree below the pH of the tank when the CO2 is off (30ppm should drop the pH by 1 degree - any more means too much CO2).
As to the pH controller you really don't need them IMO. If you want to use it then set it up as a fail-safe mechanism to cut the CO2 off only if the pH drops too much.
What you want to do is have the CO2 bubble rate set to give you 30ppm CO2 during the daylight hours (measured using a drop checker). Then have a solenoid to turn the CO2 off during lights off on a timer. Then you can set your pH controller to cut the CO2 off if the pH drops more than 1 degree below the pH of the tank when the CO2 is off (30ppm should drop the pH by 1 degree - any more means too much CO2).
