Please help with CO2 Regulator trouble.

extinguishfire · 05/08/2006, 05:45 PM

Well I have trying to get my calcium reactor dialed in and having problems with the milwaukee ma957 regulator. I am on my 2nd regulator and still fustrated with it. The first one I would get the bpm set and then 30 mins later there would be no bubbles at all. I did everything to their instructions over and over again with no help. So I returned it and got another one. Well the second one did the same thing and upon talking to folks at milwaukee they said I had to much back pressure at the needle valve and that is why the bubbles would stop. They said I needed a higher flow needle valve and told me that I could drill the presently owned needle valve out or they could mail me a replacement needle vavle. I opted for the replacement needle valve instead of screwing mine up with a drill. Well with the needle valve still the same prob. Well per their instructions and troubleshooting info they said to leave the needle valve open all the way and adjust with the main regulator control valve. Well I went ahead and decided to just adjust with the needle valve and that cured that problem. Bpm was consistant now.
But now my levels have been rising.
day 1 alk 12 cal 465
day 2 alk 15.5 cal approx. 520

After day 2 I lowered the bpm and did the test again on day 3 and couldn't tell how much higher on my tests it would be.

So I decided to turn the co2 input off by unplugging the regulator today to let the values of alk and cal drop on their own to testable levels since my test only go to 16 alk and 500 cal(salifert). Unplugging the regulator however didn't stop the flow of co2. Am I understanding it right that the bubbles are supposed to stop when the regulator is unplugged right? That is what the controller I have is supposed to do when the ph gets to low is shut off the co2 I thought. So I am thinking that now the solenoid must be stuck or something.
I am thinking now about taking the reg. back to the lfs and getting another one. What kind of regulator does everyone else use and/or recommend? What other brands are there out there? Do people have problems like this with the regulators?
I am so fustrated with this cause I want to my corals back in my tank that are being held by a friend. Sorry this post is so long I just thought I would give the full story.

cward · 05/08/2006, 06:02 PM

It sounds like a bad solenoid. The controller signals the solenoid to shut off the co2 at a set point that you program into the controller. If you unplug the the solenoid it should shut off the co2.

05/08/2006, 05:45 PM	#1
extinguishfire Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Dallas-Fort Worth Posts: 286	Please help with CO2 Regulator trouble. Well I have trying to get my calcium reactor dialed in and having problems with the milwaukee ma957 regulator. I am on my 2nd regulator and still fustrated with it. The first one I would get the bpm set and then 30 mins later there would be no bubbles at all. I did everything to their instructions over and over again with no help. So I returned it and got another one. Well the second one did the same thing and upon talking to folks at milwaukee they said I had to much back pressure at the needle valve and that is why the bubbles would stop. They said I needed a higher flow needle valve and told me that I could drill the presently owned needle valve out or they could mail me a replacement needle vavle. I opted for the replacement needle valve instead of screwing mine up with a drill. Well with the needle valve still the same prob. Well per their instructions and troubleshooting info they said to leave the needle valve open all the way and adjust with the main regulator control valve. Well I went ahead and decided to just adjust with the needle valve and that cured that problem. Bpm was consistant now. But now my levels have been rising. day 1 alk 12 cal 465 day 2 alk 15.5 cal approx. 520 After day 2 I lowered the bpm and did the test again on day 3 and couldn't tell how much higher on my tests it would be. So I decided to turn the co2 input off by unplugging the regulator today to let the values of alk and cal drop on their own to testable levels since my test only go to 16 alk and 500 cal(salifert). Unplugging the regulator however didn't stop the flow of co2. Am I understanding it right that the bubbles are supposed to stop when the regulator is unplugged right? That is what the controller I have is supposed to do when the ph gets to low is shut off the co2 I thought. So I am thinking that now the solenoid must be stuck or something. I am thinking now about taking the reg. back to the lfs and getting another one. What kind of regulator does everyone else use and/or recommend? What other brands are there out there? Do people have problems like this with the regulators? I am so fustrated with this cause I want to my corals back in my tank that are being held by a friend. Sorry this post is so long I just thought I would give the full story. __________________ 90 gallon bowfront for a year then upgraded to a 140 gallon in April 2005. Then in October 2007 started a 295 gallon in-wall build.

05/08/2006, 06:02 PM	#2
cward Premium Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: Granville, Ohio Posts: 5,006	It sounds like a bad solenoid. The controller signals the solenoid to shut off the co2 at a set point that you program into the controller. If you unplug the the solenoid it should shut off the co2. __________________ ~~~Having a high post count doesn't automatically give you a high reefing IQ.~~~