ozone setup cost.
- Thread starter willember
- Start date
boofer
New member
No idea here. Ive thought about it, but havnt gone beyond that....I have noticed a definite difference running Granular Feric Oxide though. Its been a little over a month and algae has decreased to nothing. I did have to change it earlier than anticipated and ALK drops substantially after initially dosing, but growth has increased IMO. With an SPS only I think its a must. With softies in the mix....not so good probably.
I run UV also so clarity is already good, but ozone has been a thought for the better skimming aspect. It kinda scares me what can go wrong with it though.....and whether its really worth the cost. What are you trying to accomplish with it?
I run UV also so clarity is already good, but ozone has been a thought for the better skimming aspect. It kinda scares me what can go wrong with it though.....and whether its really worth the cost. What are you trying to accomplish with it?
neuroslicer
Old School Reefer
I've got a Sander C50 ozonizer which should be enough for up to 125 gallons (50 mg/hr). You can run it for just a couple hours a day, but I like to keep track of my ORP levels and regulate the ozonizer, so I have a Milwaukee pH/ORP controller, model SMS125 (my ORP is set to 315 mV). An ozonizer of that rate will set you back at least $150 if purchased online... I was lucky to find a used one from a fellow club member.
I'd say your best bet for a good deal is ebay. There's a seller from China who is selling ozonizers really cheap... but he's got great feedback on these items (ebayer id enalyozone) so I wouldn't be too concerned about getting ripped off. There's also a few used ozonizers on ebay for cheap. The Milwaukee pH/ORP controller is available new on ebay for $170. www.bestlabdeals.com has a Milwaukee ORP only controller (no pH) for $138.
Using an air pump, I push air through a homemade air dryer into the ozonizer, and then with a gang valve coming out of the ozonizer I adjust the ozone flow into my skimmer. I consider adding ozone as one of the best steps I've done to increasing water quality. Adding a mud/chaeto refugium and getting a better skimmer were the other key steps, which reduced my nitrates to zero. And adding GFO reactor chamber to keep my phosphates low was also important.
I'd say your best bet for a good deal is ebay. There's a seller from China who is selling ozonizers really cheap... but he's got great feedback on these items (ebayer id enalyozone) so I wouldn't be too concerned about getting ripped off. There's also a few used ozonizers on ebay for cheap. The Milwaukee pH/ORP controller is available new on ebay for $170. www.bestlabdeals.com has a Milwaukee ORP only controller (no pH) for $138.
Using an air pump, I push air through a homemade air dryer into the ozonizer, and then with a gang valve coming out of the ozonizer I adjust the ozone flow into my skimmer. I consider adding ozone as one of the best steps I've done to increasing water quality. Adding a mud/chaeto refugium and getting a better skimmer were the other key steps, which reduced my nitrates to zero. And adding GFO reactor chamber to keep my phosphates low was also important.
You WILL want some type of redux controller for the ozone to make sure everything is done correctly. You can purchase parts seperately to build the "system" or you can pickup a unit such as a Red Sea Aquazone Deluxe which has everything you need except an airpump which will cost an additional $20-$50 depending on model you buy.
You could go with the Enaly mentioned above but I'm not a fan of units that always push 300 mg at all times (but it does work). I'd prefer to have a model that is adjustable so you can tune it to almost always be running injecting a proper level of ozone for your tank parameters (volume and bio load).
A general rule of thumb is 5 to 15 mg of ozone per 25 gallons of water depending on bio load. Redox levels of 300 to 350 mV are the recommended ranges from most manufactures.
Besides the actual equipment needed to produce ozone you will need to decide if you are going to inject ozone into your skimmer or into a ozone reactor (easy to make). Either way you will want the water injected by ozone to pass through carbon and the same with the air. If using a skimmer you can place a "filter bag" of carbon on top of the air exit holes or vents at the top of the skimmer or install vent tubes in the skimmer "hat" and run them into a small air carbon filter (canaster filled with carbon).
Besides changing the carbon on a routine basis it's pretty much a hands off system. The only other thing you will need to do on a routine basis is to "recharge" the beeds used in the air dryer and this is a simple as putting them in the oven for 10 minutes at 300 degrees on a cooking pan. You'll see the color of the beeds change and know they are done and ready to use again.
Hope this helps,
Carlo
You could go with the Enaly mentioned above but I'm not a fan of units that always push 300 mg at all times (but it does work). I'd prefer to have a model that is adjustable so you can tune it to almost always be running injecting a proper level of ozone for your tank parameters (volume and bio load).
A general rule of thumb is 5 to 15 mg of ozone per 25 gallons of water depending on bio load. Redox levels of 300 to 350 mV are the recommended ranges from most manufactures.
Besides the actual equipment needed to produce ozone you will need to decide if you are going to inject ozone into your skimmer or into a ozone reactor (easy to make). Either way you will want the water injected by ozone to pass through carbon and the same with the air. If using a skimmer you can place a "filter bag" of carbon on top of the air exit holes or vents at the top of the skimmer or install vent tubes in the skimmer "hat" and run them into a small air carbon filter (canaster filled with carbon).
Besides changing the carbon on a routine basis it's pretty much a hands off system. The only other thing you will need to do on a routine basis is to "recharge" the beeds used in the air dryer and this is a simple as putting them in the oven for 10 minutes at 300 degrees on a cooking pan. You'll see the color of the beeds change and know they are done and ready to use again.
Hope this helps,
Carlo
