Help with Ca Reactor Please!!

[pookstreet]

I finally had the opportunity to set up my MRC CR-1 Ca reactor this past weekend and I am looking for help dialing it in to my tank demands. I bought this setup used so I don't have any manuals altho I did get the instructions off the MRC website for the reactor itself. But first, I have a question on what the knob on the front of the regulator is. Here is a pic.

I know the big knob on the back is the main valve. When I opened that up, the gauge on the left reads ~1000 psi. The brass know to the right of the bubble counter is the needle valve and controls the flow of CO2 to the reactor chamber. What's that black one on the front? It was turned all the way clockwise when I got it. When I turned it counterclockwise, nothing much happens except the right gauge drops a little but the needle is still way past 140 psi. The MRC instructions said the right gauge should read about 10 psi but I can't get it anywhere near that. Help please. Thanks in advance.

 

[JenDub]

Hey Kenny,

I think that changes the operating pressure of the regulator (how hard the gas pushes out)

On mine the right reads about 75 and the left reads about 4 if that helps..

 

[pookstreet]

Charles,

Which way do you turn your knob to lower the operating pressure? I have tried turning it counterclockwise but nothing really happens. And when you are talking about 75 and 4, you are refering to the other scale, right, not psi? Thanks.

 

[HenryTran]

kenny the left guage tells you the pressure of your co2 tank (how much co2 is left in the tank) and the right one tells the pressure of the co2 coming out. by turning the knob you asked about counterclockwise should allow more pressure on the needle valve and then you can adjust the bubble rate with the needle valve.

i think that is how it goes.

 

[pookstreet]

I wonder if I have a defective right gauge or knob. The needle on the gauge was pegged all the way past 140 psi when I set it up. I tried turning the knob counterclockwise at least 15-20 times and it only dropped a little bit.

 

[HenryTran]

could be that one of those are defective, because the knob should control the flow and that would show on the second gauge.

 

[pookstreet]

Man, I hope not. There is always something to buy

 

[HenryTran]

you should turn the knob clockwise to restrict the flow. try turning it clockwise all the way and this will block the flow, turn the needle valve so the co2 will be released and you should see the needle on the second guage slowly go down. then you can slowly turn the knob counterclockwise to release the pressure.

 

[ReefMeister2]

Kenny, the main knob to the bottle has to be COMPLETELY open for everything to operate correctly. The left guage will not change no matter what you do to the adjusting knob (black plastic one) because the guage reads only the bottle. This is your overall CO2 capacity/pressure

The right guage however measures how much CO2 is passed through the "regulator", and is hence controlled by that black plastic knob. Any adjustment must be done rather slowly; both increasing pressure and decreasing pressure. And as Reefguy pointed out, the needle valve needs to be open to allow CO2 to escape for you to decrease pressure

 

[JenDub]

I agree-open the solenoid & dail the bubble to one per second-then adjust knob. Yes-I was talking about the outer scale =)

 

[HenryTran]

also, looking at your picture i do see that the left guage shows pressure and the right gauge does not. i don't know if this is an old photo, if not it shows that the guage and knob is not defective.

 

[pookstreet]

Everything is open since late Sunday. The main knob is opened all the way and the pressure reads 1000 psi. The needle valve is also open and there is one bubble every 3 seconds for the time being. Didn't want to start too fast and fry my tank.

I'll try what reefguy has suggested tonight and close the front valve and bleed out the CO2 to see if the right gauge will fall to 0 psi.

 

[pookstreet]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7772806#post7772806 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by JenDub
I agree-open the solenoid & dail the bubble to one per second-then adjust knob. Yes-I was talking about the outer scale =)

Pardon the ignorance, but what exactly does the solenoid do? It's plugged in but I have no idea how it works

 

[pookstreet]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7772882#post7772882 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by reefguy714
also, looking at your picture i do see that the left guage shows pressure and the right gauge does not. i don't know if this is an old photo, if not it shows that the guage and knob is not defective.

Actually, the right gauge is not reading 0 in the pic. It's actually gone all the way around and only stopped by the little metal thing that sticks out to prevent it from going further :eek2:

 

[ReefMeister2]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7772957#post7772957 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pookstreet
Pardon the ignorance, but what exactly does the solenoid do? It's plugged in but I have no idea how it works

It simply Opens or Closes a valve to allow CO2 to pass.
that is what the electrical cord is for. It is usually hooked up to a controller, but for now, just plug it in to any electical outlet.

 

[pookstreet]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7772984#post7772984 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ReefMeister2
It simply Opens or Closes a valve to allow CO2 to pass.
that is what the electrical cord is for. It is usually hooked up to a controller, but for now, just plug it in to any electical outlet.

So it automatically opens when there is power? Without a controller, it just remains open? Let's say there is a power outage, will the solenoid close by itself? Thanks.

 

[JenDub]

the idea is to hook it to a ph controller-if the ph in the tank gets too low the power outlet turns off and the co2 stops. If you plug it into a wall socket it will always be open as long as the power is on...

 

[JenDub]

ps-you might want to unhook your reactor from the co2 so it's not putting backpressure on the reg. Once it is dialed-then rehook it up =)

 

[stryker]

co2 problems

co2 problems

kenny,
looks like you got the right idea.. the regulator knocks down the pressurized co2 in the bottle (indicated by the first gauge) to operating pressure (we are only using bubbles per secon so 6-10 psi is plenty). It does this using a spring loaded rubber diaphragm that can be adjusted using the black knob- clockwise to increase pressure. If the diaphragm is overpressurized, it could leak and you will loose co2 quickly. To check for leaks, unplug solynoid and dip regultor (don't wet solynoid!) in fresh water while it's pressurized. If youu have a leak, pm me.

 

[pookstreet]

Thanks for all the tips everyone. I'll play around with the regulator tonight and see what's up.

Then the next question is, once I have the regulator issue resolved, what's the best method to dial in the reactor to meet my tank's demands?


Terry - YGPM.