Official: Masterflex Calcium Reactor Setup Thread

[Sparky0028]

Thanks, I bought the tubing before i received the pump head so I figured I would give it a shot. I tired to look up info but wasn't able to find much and did notice the l/s sizes on the pump head. Is the pump head ok to use? if i get correct size tubing.

[slief]

Originally Posted by Sparky0028

Thanks, I bought the tubing before i received the pump head so I figured I would give it a shot. I tired to look up info but wasn't able to find much and did notice the l/s sizes on the pump head. Is the pump head ok to use? if i get correct size tubing.

No reason it shouldn't work with the correct tubing size. You will just need to adapt it over to whatever your using for your reactor which I assume is 1/4" tubing.

[Sparky0028]

Great, thanks Slief.

[kuyatwo]

anybody have this problem I can get suction with masterflex silicone tubing but when I switch to same size pharmed tubing it will not prime. I want to use ph armed tubing as it seems to hold up longer

[slief]

Originally Posted by kuyatwo

anybody have this problem I can get suction with masterflex silicone tubing but when I switch to same size pharmed tubing it will not prime. I want to use ph armed tubing as it seems to hold up longer

Is your head designed for the Pharmed tubing? Not all of them are... What model head and what size tubing?

[oshanickreef]

I just got done setting mine up! I'm surprised at how well it works! It's going to run till tomorrow night for my leak testing and then I will be setting it up for real on the tank!

[oshanickreef]

here are pictures that all kinda look the same but different angles







It ran overnight with no leaks. i wouldnt have expected it to leak since i used teflon tape and the paste. hopefully i see the same result tonight so i can plumb it to the tank!!!

[BrettH]

nice set up.

Everytime I see the digital unit it makes me want one. I just might have to sell mine...and get one...

By the way, looks like you can add some more media to your reactor.

[Sparky0028]

oshanickreef are you pushing or pulling withe the pump? Also do you have lots of air in the Geo, reason I ask is I have the Geo 618 and just put a master flex on it. I had so much air/gas inside my recirc pump stopped working. I had to pull pump off line and go back to manifold feed and ball micro ball vavle.
Thanks
Rich

[oshanickreef]

Originally Posted by Sparky0028

oshanickreef are you pushing or pulling withe the pump? Also do you have lots of air in the Geo, reason I ask is I have the Geo 618 and just put a master flex on it. I had so much air/gas inside my recirc pump stopped working. I had to pull pump off line and go back to manifold feed and ball micro ball vavle.
Thanks
Rich

no it continues to run. I am pulling through the GEO. mine may be different though becaus ei didnt turn on the air yet. so i would assume that may create the gas you are talking about.

[oshanickreef]

Originally Posted by BrettH

nice set up.

Everytime I see the digital unit it makes me want one. I just might have to sell mine...and get one...

By the way, looks like you can add some more media to your reactor.

ya i know i need to add some zeolite or something but i still think i could add more coarse media. rinsing it was super annoying! lol

[Sparky0028]

Thanks, please let me know what happens when you install gas.

rich

[oshanickreef]

Originally Posted by Sparky0028

Thanks, please let me know what happens when you install gas.

rich

I will. so did you come up with any solution to this?

[Sparky0028]

Not yet, i have the wrong size hose on the pump so that may be the issue. Waiting for l/s16 to try again.

Rich

[tkeracer619]

If gas is getting trapped in the chamber you need to pull the effluent from the lid of the chamber. If you do not have an output on the lid you will need to drill and tap one or adapt the probe holder.

You must use correct series tube for your head. Do not run one of these pumps with the wrong tubing or it will make a mess.

I keep a small tray under the head with a leakfrog leak alarm to warn me if there is a tube rupture. I have not had one yet though. Don't keep the masterflex in a tray that will allow it to get flooded if the tubing breaks.

If air is getting into the system other than gas input that needs to be addressed seperately.

[machodik]

Hi there,

Huh! After checking price with our local distributor, the price of brand new cole Palmer 07522-20 way too expensive almost USD3200. Well , over my budget.

So I check local second hand dealer and they only have these one left ;



Model 7518-10

I wonder anyone have use this model may be your comment will guide me on my decision to buy or not.

They also has another one with other brand made in England :Watson - Marlow limited 302S;







Has anyone know this brand ? Any comment or suggestions?

Hope to hear from you guys !

Cheers,


MD

[machodik]

Originally Posted by AcroporAddict

Tkereacer619 is the man to talk to. He sold me my first cole parmer pump, and I have since bought two more off ebay. I run my calcium reactor off the one from him, and I run my auto water changer off a dual head ebay unit, and my sulfur denitrator off another single head ebay unit.



When you buy one off ebay, you should have in mind what level of noise is acceptable to you. The digital drive type is more expensive, but whisper quiet. That is the type I got from tkeracer. The variable speed console drives are very accurate as well, but a bit noisier. All my equipment is in an unfinished area of my basement, so noise is not an issue for me. But if your equipment and the pump will be located in an area you need quiet, you may want to pony up for a digital drive type, which is more expensive. I got my two variable speed console drives for about $200-$220 each with an Easy Load head on it.



I have my CP pumps pushing water through my reactors, but may switch to them pulling from what tkeracer posted above about them overpowering o-rings on reactors. Should not be too big a job to do that.



Another thing I would look at regarding these pumps is your pump head choice. Easy Load heads, wether Easy Load I, II, or III, are the way to go for ease of use. And, I would also look for the Easy Load pump head models that accept the greatest variety of L/S tubing.



The wider the variety of L/S tubing the pump head installs, the more flexible the pump is in its uses, in case you ever repurpose it. A pump head that only accepts 3/8" ID tubing suitable to run an auto water changing system may not be very adjustable if you are only trying to dose 2 ml increments of amino acids should you use it for something else, whereas a pump head that accepts 1/16" ID to 3/8" tubing is.



If you buy a digital Console like the first picture I posted below, the tubing ID may not be as important, as you actually program the tubing you are using and the desired ml/minute rate, but I think the majority of users will buy the less expensive AC motor drives like I have pictures in my last two pictures.



Also, if at all possible, buy variable speed and reversible drive units like I have in the bottom two pictures below if you do not go with a digital drive. They make it a lot easier to adjust amount and flow rates.

hi AA,

I just saw your posting of the CP unit (2nd picture) that seems exactly as the one offer to me by my local dealer here.

The model number is 7518-10 , I think yours is 7518-00. I wonder how is that machine running this time ? How is the noise factor ? As I don't have basement fish room like you guys so I wonder if the noise is acceptable ?

How is the tubing connections ? We don't have John quest here so any advise on possible alternatives ? By the way what tube size you use then? I am looking at flow rate of 15 ml / min at the moment and may be increase further when corals demand getting higher .

Hope to have some of your sharing .

Cheers,


MD

[slief]

Originally Posted by machodik

Hi there,

Huh! After checking price with our local distributor, the price of brand new cole Palmer 07522-20 way too expensive almost USD3200. Well , over my budget.

So I check local second hand dealer and they only have these one left ;



Model 7518-10

I wonder anyone have use this model may be your comment will guide me on my decision to buy or not.

They also has another one with other brand made in England :Watson - Marlow limited 302S;







Has anyone know this brand ? Any comment or suggestions?

Hope to hear from you guys !

Cheers,


MD

Originally Posted by machodik

hi AA,

I just saw your posting of the CP unit (2nd picture) that seems exactly as the one offer to me by my local dealer here.

The model number is 7518-10 , I think yours is 7518-00. I wonder how is that machine running this time ? How is the noise factor ? As I don't have basement fish room like you guys so I wonder if the noise is acceptable ?

How is the tubing connections ? We don't have John quest here so any advise on possible alternatives ? By the way what tube size you use then? I am looking at flow rate of 15 ml / min at the moment and may be increase further when corals demand getting higher .

Hope to have some of your sharing .

Cheers,


MD

If you were to get either of those, I would suggest the Cole Parmer one. It will work for your needs although there is no mention of the pump model so there is no telling what RPM that pump supports. Those pumps have a constant hum to them which is typical of any of the brushed pumps. They aren't terribly noisy and you can place a towel or two over them to muffle the sound. As for your comment in your second post regarding the 7518-10 in the one you posted vs the 7518-00 head that the other member is using, the difference is that the 7518-10 has stainless steel rollers vs the 7518-00 having cold rolled steel rollers. The 7518-10 is arguably a better head for our use but either will work the same. They both use the same tubing..

If you get that unit, you will want to use LS17 pharmed type tubing. Since you don't have John Guest type fittings, you will want a barbed fitting that has 1/4" on one side and 1/8" on the other. That will allow you to run 1/4" OD tubing to and from your tank which is what most of us use. Having said that, using 1/4" tubing to and from the tank is not a necessity although most calcium reactors do have 1/4" fittings. You could in theory use any 1/4" or larger tubing to and from the tank as long as you can adapt it over to the pump.

Have you considered buying off of eBay? There are some sellers in Japan that have pretty good prices on the newer models and that could save you some money while getting you a better pump. Just food for thought.

[machodik]

Thanks Slief for your very helpful comment and suggestions.

I just sign in with ebay and never have any experience on how to buy from that site.

I have been surfing eBay to find some better model and better prices because I have removed my initial wish on brand new cole Palmer unit as prices is way too expensive for my target.

I am interested with your suggestion about some Japanese sellers on their much better model and if I can find one then that will be my option. Perhaps you can lead me the site to search these Japanese sellers.

Also I wonder in case I bought from eBay and if the unit turns out to be not functional considering this is across the sea buying , how can I return or make claim by then?

This is also my concern in buying with eBay.

Cheers,

[oshanickreef]

here is my setup. the masterflex pump is pulling from the effluent line.


here is another angle


here you can see the effluent line in my plumbing. it is located on the side of the pvc which i think may be the problem since there could be air surpassing the line and getting pulled back through the recirculating pump.


here is my feed line which i just have in the tank... i am currently just running this out of a 5 gallon bucket (as seen above) i created a full siphon to purge the system and even without c02 hooked up there are still bubbles in the top of the reactor.


lastly here is the air you can see going into the recirculating pump tube. once enough air collects the pump stops working... this only happens after i have turned the co2 on and have the Aquarium Plants Regulator on and pumping air into the reactor. this makes me assume that my reactor is air tight and there are no leaks... but please correct me if i am wrong!


thanks!

nick

[slief]

Originally Posted by machodik

Thanks Slief for your very helpful comment and suggestions.

I just sign in with ebay and never have any experience on how to buy from that site.

I have been surfing eBay to find some better model and better prices because I have removed my initial wish on brand new cole Palmer unit as prices is way too expensive for my target.

I am interested with your suggestion about some Japanese sellers on their much better model and if I can find one then that will be my option. Perhaps you can lead me the site to search these Japanese sellers.

Also I wonder in case I bought from eBay and if the unit turns out to be not functional considering this is across the sea buying , how can I return or make claim by then?

This is also my concern in buying with eBay.

Cheers,

Check your private messages.

[janey]

Hey Everyone.....
I did it ..... Yes After finally getting the right puller. I was able to take off the broken piece bearing from the shaft..

Now that all is clean and ready for assembly ... QUESTION what part do i grease ?? I have the Super Lube Synthetic grease.



OFF


New Bearing


New Bearing on


Do i only Grease the Ridges of the gears ???

[slief]

Originally Posted by janey

Hey Everyone.....
I did it ..... Yes After finally getting the right puller. I was able to take off the broken piece bearing from the shaft..

Now that all is clean and ready for assembly ... QUESTION what part do i grease ?? I have the Super Lube Synthetic grease.



OFF


New Bearing


New Bearing on


Do i only Grease the Ridges of the gears ???

Very impressive Janet! Glad you got it back together. The only thing that I would grease is the needle bearings and the gears. That new bearing you got is sealed so it won't need any grease.

[janey]

Hi Scott. Thanks too you of course...

Ok . will grease it up and put it back together....

[oshanickreef]

So one last question. Is there supposed to be any air at all in a running calcium reactor? Mine seems to be working but there is air/gas being recirculated through it.