GraffitiSpotCorals March 15, 2012 March 15, 2012 Okay so my Geo 618 has been running good with arm media for two years until now. Its got the standard ehiem 1048 (158gph) on it. A month or two ago its been collecting more bubbles in the media. It seems to collect them until finally the recirculation pump pushes a few up and they all go flying up to the top. This ends up with fines floating around and getting trapped in the needle valve. I am pretty sure I need a bigger recirculation pump to keep the flow through it better, but I think adding a larger media in there would solve the problem too. I really don't want to switch media and find out that I still need a bigger pump. Anyone had a problem like this with a geo 618 or something similar? Thoes of you who run the small media, do you rinse it out and reuse whats left when you are refilling? I also am worried about upgrading the pump to the 1250 because the intake is a 3/4" fitting and the fittings on the geo's recirculation loop are 1/2" and I am not sure if that would cause problems. Is there a similar pump that would work? Maybe one less expensive but still reliable.
jstlsn March 15, 2012 March 15, 2012 I had the same problem with mine after a few years. I determined that the inside of the black tube that runs from the reactor back to the tank had build on the inside. My feed tube was also full of build up. The build up would cause the drip to stop. Once the drip stopped and the CO2 cut on it would build up in the reator and cause bubbles. I would suggest cleaning or replacing all of your tubing. Also, I never reuse media when I clean it out. I dump the left over and start with fresh. Brad
GraffitiSpotCorals March 15, 2012 Author March 15, 2012 I clean everything every time I refill the reactor so thats not the problem. But I have been rinsing the media left to get all the fines out of it and reusing it. MAYBE that has something to do with it, but its been working until now. Tomorow I will try and fill it with the same size media but start all fresh and see what happens. I know the pump is undersized though.
GraffitiSpotCorals March 15, 2012 Author March 15, 2012 Actually I replaced all the tubing last month so I could get black instead of clear. I am fairly good at cleaning everything on the tank. No one else has any advice? 50 views and one helper...
F&Fmgr March 15, 2012 March 15, 2012 IME the small media, unless fluidized, traps bubbles. try the coarse ARM or replace the pump with a more powerful one; one that will fluidize the media. Sean
F&Fmgr March 15, 2012 March 15, 2012 another thing would be to modify the output to recirc the co2 back into the pump intake, then tap the side of the reactor where less bubbles are likely to collect. Sean
Big Country March 15, 2012 March 15, 2012 Switch to the ARM coarse or extra coarse media, I don't have a problem with it and it's what geo recommends for their reactors
ErikS March 16, 2012 March 16, 2012 (edited) Having spent more than a little bit of time with GEO's design (reverse engineering it mostly) 1. Is the pump clean? That's a bit small for that height (minimum) 2. Change to large grain media, I can think of nothing positive to say about small stuff) 3. Hoses clean? (check, you got it) Re-circ line does nothing for his design, that one of the slick features (which also makes changing a pain) the center pump feed works as a re-circ line - as you noticed it collects there & gets sucked back in. I've also noticed this after a cleaning, the lid isn't all slicked up & the bubbles stick. Given you've cleaned the tubes my money is on the media. The small stuff compact as it dissolves - this causes channeling & bubble hangups (nutshell the pump can't push enough to keep the CO2 "chopped" up). Check the pump also, as it gets dirty the output drops & that 1048 is minimum for an 18" reactor...............it is however stone cold reliable. Small media & a pump that's not putting out 100% = exactly what you describe. On the upside it's likely not really hurting anything, it's getting sucked up & chopped up Edited March 16, 2012 by ErikS
GraffitiSpotCorals March 16, 2012 Author March 16, 2012 Right on thanks guys, so I guess I am going to take a shot at the bigger media. Pump is clean too by the way. I still want to change the pump for a better one though, do you think that having the 3/4" intake on a 1/2" line will be a bad idea?
ErikS March 16, 2012 March 16, 2012 Right on thanks guys, so I guess I am going to take a shot at the bigger media. Pump is clean too by the way. I still want to change the pump for a better one though, do you think that having the 3/4" intake on a 1/2" line will be a bad idea? Figured you had cleaned the pump, I mean if you went through the trouble to clean the tube??? Depends on the pump, some might not take kindly to the restriction. I can recommend a 300gph pump that has a 1/2" intake & exhaust. Hydor Seltz L30. 320gph @ 23w - $44.99 @ PA. No, these are NOT the Koralia type - been making them forever (1st heard of them well before Koralia on euro forums). I have one, used on a CA reactor for a couple years, been used for every water moving task since. Run dry, never (hardly) cleaned = works like a champ, always starts. Tough little pump. There's also an L40 which is 740gph - that will get the water moving in the reactor (it's 5/8" intake & exhaust = shouldn't hurt). I stopped using them on CA reactors 'cause folks wanted Eheims.........nobody knew the Hydor name.
STEVE March 16, 2012 March 16, 2012 Paul, Dont go buy the Arm Coarse media, I have some left over, remember we only used 1 container of it. PM me if you want it.
jstlsn March 16, 2012 March 16, 2012 Actually I replaced all the tubing last month so I could get black instead of clear. I am fairly good at cleaning everything on the tank. No one else has any advice? 50 views and one helper... Where did you find the replacement black tubing? I have not been able to find black tubing to replace the clear 3/8 OD feed line. Thanks Brad
ErikS March 16, 2012 March 16, 2012 Where did you find the replacement black tubing? I have not been able to find black tubing to replace the clear 3/8 OD feed line. McMaster Carr has it (they have darn near everything).............something like .37/ft (25' is $9.35 & shipping).........but if you gotta have black? Avast has 1/4" ID x 3/8" OD black @ .75/ft........and they might sell in shorter lengths?
RubberFrog March 16, 2012 March 16, 2012 Did the bubbles start before or after you replaced all the hoses?
GraffitiSpotCorals March 16, 2012 Author March 16, 2012 Where did you find the replacement black tubing? I have not been able to find black tubing to replace the clear 3/8 OD feed line. Thanks Brad I got most of my black stuff at BRK, I don't ever remember buying tubing from anywhere else. Give them a call.
GraffitiSpotCorals March 16, 2012 Author March 16, 2012 They started before I replaced all the hoses. Erik, thanks for the suggestion. I might have to try one.
GraffitiSpotCorals April 8, 2012 Author April 8, 2012 Well the larger media fixed the clogging for now but I think the pump is still too small bubbles still get stuck in the chamber and collect in the top of the reactor.
F&Fmgr April 8, 2012 April 8, 2012 Well the larger media fixed the clogging for now but I think the pump is still too small bubbles still get stuck in the chamber and collect in the top of the reactor. Is the pump intake at the top or bottom of the reactor?
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