Just got my CO2 canister system (Milwaukee regulator) up and running and planted my new tank with all new plants yesterday. Made some 4dKH water for my drop checker as recommend in an article on this site. I have been able to get my drop checker to turn green for the last couple of days very easily.
My problem is that I am having trouble fine tuning with the regulator's bubble counter, and I think my regulator may be faulty. I am having difficulty getting 2 bubbles per second (bps) -- which seems about right for my 50G tank and my current plant load -- as the bps seems to change on its own over time (perhaps 1 to 5 mins), i.e. either increase (which is very scary) or decrease. If I stop the main valve while increasing output, the bps will increase over time. If I stop the main valve while decreasing output, the bps will decrease to about 1 bps over time. Just the 1 bps keeps my drop checker fairly green, but once the plant mass increases, I suspect I will need more than 1 bps. I have tried just about every combination of main valve/needle valve and the inconsistency really hasn't changed.
And, to top all of this off, when the CO2 system kicks on in the morning automatically, I usually end up with no bps until I play around with it -- perhaps because my room is rather cold, not sure.
It should be noted that my regulator arrived somewhat damaged (needle valve) and I was sent a new needle valve to put on it, which I did.
Anyway, do you think I am fighting a losing battle with a faulty CO2 regulator? Or, am I doing something wrong? Since my tank is now started, I cannot afford to send my regulator back to the manufacturer without buying a backup regulator. I have seen only Milwaukee, Azoo and Red Sea regulators after quite a bit of research. I am open to recommendations and willing to spend a little extra money for something of higher quality.
Thanks for any advice you can give.
My problem is that I am having trouble fine tuning with the regulator's bubble counter, and I think my regulator may be faulty. I am having difficulty getting 2 bubbles per second (bps) -- which seems about right for my 50G tank and my current plant load -- as the bps seems to change on its own over time (perhaps 1 to 5 mins), i.e. either increase (which is very scary) or decrease. If I stop the main valve while increasing output, the bps will increase over time. If I stop the main valve while decreasing output, the bps will decrease to about 1 bps over time. Just the 1 bps keeps my drop checker fairly green, but once the plant mass increases, I suspect I will need more than 1 bps. I have tried just about every combination of main valve/needle valve and the inconsistency really hasn't changed.
And, to top all of this off, when the CO2 system kicks on in the morning automatically, I usually end up with no bps until I play around with it -- perhaps because my room is rather cold, not sure.
It should be noted that my regulator arrived somewhat damaged (needle valve) and I was sent a new needle valve to put on it, which I did.
Anyway, do you think I am fighting a losing battle with a faulty CO2 regulator? Or, am I doing something wrong? Since my tank is now started, I cannot afford to send my regulator back to the manufacturer without buying a backup regulator. I have seen only Milwaukee, Azoo and Red Sea regulators after quite a bit of research. I am open to recommendations and willing to spend a little extra money for something of higher quality.
Thanks for any advice you can give.