solonoids needed?

[moldyform]

Hi

Am about to upgrade my fire extinuishers to a single hired co2 bottle and am wondering if i need to run a solonoid at all or just let it run all night and all day?

Cheers

[ILLUSN]

if you've been running 24/7 then you wont need one (if it aint broke dont fix it) if you want to run a ph controller then you will need one.

[moldyform]

Well it hasnt been actually running for a little while as ive been re doing the tank.

previously i had the gas turn off and on with the lights, ie set on the same timer.

Dont particularly want a ph meter at this stage.

[TW]

previously i had the gas turn off and on with the lights, ie set on the same timer.I didn't know you could do it that way. I always thought you needed the solenoid to work with the timer, otherwise the timer wouldn't actually turn the C02 off?

[Noddy65]

previously i had the gas turn off and on with the lights, ie set on the same timer.I didn't know you could do it that way. I always thought you needed the solenoid to work with the timer, otherwise the timer wouldn't actually turn the C02 off?

Yep...thats what the solenoid does..it will turn off with a timer
I cant think how else to turn off the gas with teh lights :?:

Regards
Mike :)

[TW]

Yep...thats what the solenoid does..it will turn off with a timer
I cant think how else to turn off the gas with teh lights :?:

Regards
Mike :) That's how I have always understood it, too.

moldyform, are you sure your gas was actually turning off? Unless you had something super tricky we don't know about, your timer alone shouldn't be able to turn the gas off. As I understand it, the timer switches the solenoid on & off and it's the solenoid that shuts off the C02 gas.

How did you have it set up?

[moldyform]

Sorry you must have missunderstod me, yes the solidoid was pluged into same powerpoard timer as the lights. Actually i had the co2 stop slightly before the lights turned off to give plants to utilise the co2 in the water as plants wont use it when phytosysnthesis isnt happening. Thats my theory any how.

So my original question, getting a standard co2 bottle, which the hire guys say there is no solinoid available for them, I am wondering if others are using standard co2 bottles and also what method they are using to regulate the gas and weather they use a solinoid somehow.

Cheers

[TW]

Ah, that makes sense now. Are you renting through BOC? You should be able to get a regulator / solenoid that fits as I investigated that route too.

My C02 bottle is from my keg on legs and my dupla regulator / solenoid fits straight on.

[moldyform]

No i found a cheaper one through another gas out let. But I think they are similar bottles.

So you brought the bottle? What did it cost you? Some of the smaller ones of the aquarium sites are like 300 for a 1kg cylinder. BOC gas had a 9kg for 144 per year.

If you could point me in the direction of a reg and solinoid that will fit the BOC bottles that would be awesome!

[TW]

Now, I never went ahead with BOC and my investigations were a few years back, so my memory could be wrong or things may have changed. But I'm sure I found that my regulator/solenoid from dupla (not cheap if you buy brand new) were going to fit just fine.

I bought my bottle from mykegonlegs, in March 2008. At that time my 4.5kg bottle cost $265.00. Although you buy the bottle, it is a swap & go system from there on.

www.mykegonlegs.com.au

I was lucky & bought my dupla regulator / solenoid 2nd hand on ebay.

Are you sure the regulator & solenoid you already have won't fit the BOC or other bottles? If you haven't already done so, I'd visit their show rooms & see if it fits.

[TW]

I think I remember a helpful guy at BOC telling me you can get thread adjustors, so if your regulator doesn't screw straight on due to it being say USA thread instead of our standard thread, there was a solution.

I didn't go ahead with BOC because their smallest bottle (at that time) was physically too big for my fish cabinet.

[moldyform]

Ok kegs on legs sounds good, where abouts do you exchange the bottles?

Yeah i got my reg/solinoid on ebay from singapore. Not real impressed. had to get a joint machined for it and then still seal it with tape.

Also need a new reg , although it still works, during the early stages of set up it must have drped a thread and was holding the cord and squeased teh fire extinguisher handles and it blew the reg/solinoid out of my hand and disapeared out the back of teh gararge. Good leason not to mess with them!

other then that the fire extinuishers ahve been great, just need a larger single bottle with a half decnet reg/solinoid and ill be right.

[TW]

Ok kegs on legs sounds good, where abouts do you exchange the bottles?

Yeah i got my reg/solinoid on ebay from singapore. Not real impressed. had to get a joint machined for it and then still seal it with tape.

Also need a new reg , although it still works, during the early stages of set up it must have drped a thread and was holding the cord and squeased teh fire extinguisher handles and it blew the reg/solinoid out of my hand and disapeared out the back of teh gararge. Good leason not to mess with them!

other then that the fire extinuishers ahve been great, just need a larger single bottle with a half decnet reg/solinoid and ill be right.

This link shows refilling locations http://www.mykegonlegs.com.au/co2_cylinder_sales.php

If you're not in a hurry, you might get a reg/solenoid on ebay. I put in a saved search so that I received an email whenever a C02 kit came up for sale. I decided to wait for a known brand to come up (eg dupla, sera).
Sera ones are a bit cheaper than than dupla, I think.

Also, have a look here http://www.aquariumproducts.com.au/c02_unitshardware.php

[ILLUSN]

Solenoid attaches to the regulater not the bottle so any reg with a solenoid can fit any bottle you just might need a reducing bush($3) to give you the 1/2inch thread that you need for a standard co2 regulator

[moldyform]

Solenoid attaches to the regulater not the bottle so any reg with a solenoid can fit any bottle you just might need a reducing bush($3) to give you the 1/2inch thread that you need for a standard co2 regulator

Illusn, would the gas companies like BOC supply these brushes?

Sounds like teh dupla will go straight onto the kegsonlegs so might be the go.

Thanks Guys

[moldyform]

Sorry bushes not brushes!

[TW]

Yep, there can be issues with the regulator not screwing directly onto Aussie threads on the bottle itself though. Perhaps the reducing bush you mention is the same thing I am calling the thread adjustor. Not all countries use the same thread count. USA is an example is that, or so BOC told me when I looked into all this a few years back.

[moldyform]

This seems alright.
http://www.guppysaquariumproducts.com.au/c02-units-hardware-fertiliser/plant-care/ista-c02-equipment/co2-controller/prod_344.html

Says it fits BOC bottles. I wonder about kegs on legs though?
I wonder if i email kegs on legs with this link to the reg will they be able to tell me if it will fit or not?

[TW]

As far as I know, if it fits BOC it will fit mykegonlegs, but I do suggest you double check this yourself.

[TW]

Oh, and if you're going to place an order with guppys anyway, check this out.


http://www.guppysaquariumproducts.com.au/c02-units-hardware-fertiliser/plant-care/ista-c02-equipment/max-mix-co-reactor-2000l/h/prod_332.html


Jothy (ILLUSN) recently recommended it to me. I've not had mine long, but can say it works a treat.

[moldyform]

Just went and checked out the mykegswithlegs. look good.

yeah ive got a similar diffuser set up which works super.

[TW]

Yeah, I'm happy with them. Renting - well you never own it. With buying, at least you have something to sell if you ever leave the hobby. Not that you'll ever get what you paid, but at least it's something.

The ones through the LFS are just too expensive, are too small & so run out too soon for my liking.

Sounds like you're pretty sorted now.

[moldyform]

Yes thanks for the pointers guys

Will be up and running in no time :)

[TW]

Well, you owe us pictures when you are up & running :)

[moldyform]

Give me a week or so.

Going to give it a work over in the mean time, plants and fish. Perhaps a fore and after might be in order.