Most efficient DIY needle wheel?

scottward

Guru Class Expert
Oct 26, 2007
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Hi Gerry. Cool - thanks for posting the vids. I am at work at the moment and YouTube is a blocked site. ;-) I will check out your videos tonight when I get home from work (and the kids are asleep), and will let you know my thoughts then.

I suppose I should get back to work.... ;-)

Scott.
 

scottward

Guru Class Expert
Oct 26, 2007
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Brisbane, Australia
Hi Gerry,

I watched your videos, nice work! I could clearly see what you were explaining in the text above.

The mist coming out of my powerhead is about the same as yours actually. I should try to film mine (I will if I get a chance).

It makes sense that the rate that the bubbles are being fed into the powerhead will have an impact on bubble size. I could see that when you cranked up the bubble input rate the resultant bubbles were larger, making the mist more obvious. This makes sense. Less bubbles cluttering up the impellor chamber per unit time no doubt results in a finer mist.

Also, do you notice any difference in the mist between when the CO2 first comes on (so, low dissolved CO2) and toward the end of the CO2 enrichment period? I would expect that the mist would seem much finer at the start of the CO2 period when the gas will dissolve more readily.

So perhaps Tom is running a lower bubble rate and made the observation at the start of the CO2 enrichment period and the mystery is solved? ;-)

I feel like I'm a bit obsessed by bubbles like that fish in Finding Nemo.

I have a spray bar connected to the output of my powerhead, which blasts the mist out through my plants from the bottom of the tank. Maybe inside the spray bar some of the bubbles are colliding together forming bigger bubbles? Dunno. At least I am directing the mist where it matter most I suppose.

Hmmm. I will think some more about this and write more from work tomorrow if I get a free moment.

Thanks again Gerry.

Scott.
 

nipat

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May 23, 2009
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scottward;52773 said:
...
So perhaps Tom is running a lower bubble rate and made the observation at the start of the CO2 enrichment period and the mystery is solved? ;-)
...

I think so.
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/...ag-amano-article-04-06-issue-2.html#post13895
http://aquariacentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=34589&postcount=4

I also checked videos of Amano's tanks in Niigata and saw that the flow
was not strong at all (bubble rates in BC's for some tanks looked very fast though).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xjV6_3Xgoc

This makes me think the good flow in our impression may be too strong.
I mean the key is circulation, no dead spots, with mild flow.

Even Tom's tanks, while probably have stronger flow than Amano's,
may not have as strong flow as we have imagined? So he can hit 30PPM
with that low bubble rate.:confused:
 
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Tom Barr

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Depends on where this 30ppm measure is taken.

The higher current is for the fish mostly, but does help mix the CO2 and offers more wiggle room, less stress on the fish via more O2.
As far as plants are concerned, adding plenty if fine and not an issue, it's just the upper ranges for fish that are the only risk factor.

Some fish are fine at 50+ ppm of CO2........

Some are not, so it depends.
Same differences with CO2 for plants, some do well with a little, others need more.

Regards,
Tom Barr
 

scottward

Guru Class Expert
Oct 26, 2007
958
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Brisbane, Australia
Hi Tom,

How long does a CO2 bottle (10lb?) typically last you on your 100gallon tank using exclusively DIY needle wheel powerhead?

I have just recently bought a 6.8kg bottle (15lb) and I'm hoping to get 6 months out of it feeding both the DIY needle wheel powerhead and the AM1000 I also have running.

Scott.
 

a-hua

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Aug 5, 2007
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hi tom

a question beside this diy way(i broke 2 of my powerheads because i am really not good on *cut*.....oh...)

if i just use a nice work glass diffuser in the input of a normal powerhead....is it amost the same with this diy needle wheel???

a-hua
 

scottward

Guru Class Expert
Oct 26, 2007
958
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Brisbane, Australia
Hi a-hua - just my 2 cents worth - this glass diffuser - it can clog up right? If this is the case, using it as the input to your powerhead would defeat the purpose somewhat. By using the snipped impeller you are reducing maintenance as this is far less prone to clogging than disc. But if you are happy to maintain the glass diffuser, then yeah, the powerhead will simply serve as the distribution method and should work ok as far as I can see.
 

scottward

Guru Class Expert
Oct 26, 2007
958
10
18
Brisbane, Australia
Gerry et al, how are you guys going with your DIY needle wheel?

Mine is still ticking away nicely in the background. I still have the AM1000 running at the same time.

Plant growth is fairly good.

Bit of BBA about the place but I think that's probably just because of high levels of spores floating about in the water (I've been a bit lazy with water changes).

My wife had our 3rd bubby so I haven't had time to be on here for a while and am only now starting to get a bit of time back to work on my tank - but hardly! ;-)

Scott.