has anyone had experience with a rena micro bubbler,foster&smith catalog p.43?looks like it could work as an allternative to the pricey one recomended on this website.also what works good for a diy bubble counter? regards,cornhusker

The azoo one is decently priced....

http://www.aquaticeco.com/index.cfm/.../3608/cid/2919

I think they ship prioriy mail too...

A poster on APD uses one (probably the 4" or 6") in a 1.5" (edit, that's diameter) clear riser tube from an old UGF and places a powerhead at one end to distribute the bubbles. Seems like a very cheap way to go since F&S is selling the 6" for $5.49! If they become clogged just clean in vinegar or get some muriatic acid from a pool supply place.

Bill

I've used them and didn't think the bubbles were fine enough. Also, i found that it worked better in a horizontal position. I had to seal the end with silicone, otherwise gas would escape around the plug at the end.

So far, the AZOO has been the best deal for me.

-Russ

5.49 + shipping vs 20$ plus shipping?

14-15$ for somethign that is critical, I'd think it's worth getting the Azoo or similar diffuser.

Red SEa reactor 200 is fairly decent.

About 18$

Regards,
Tom Barr

tom,do you think the azoo has enough capacity for tanks below 90 gals? i've had several eheim around for a few years,they are about the same as azoo.i tried when i was using yeast. worked good for short period of time, then plugged. i think they need to be used with press.co2 with more pressure then yeast. i would mount below small powerhead inlet and blow to otherside of tank. regards,cornhusker

I use the Azoo on my 75g. Until recently I'd only used it with DIY but brought it out of retirement to try the mist method. When used with pressurized, the diffuser really does a great job. I had previously been using an external reactor hooked into my canister filter getting close to a 100% dissolve rate. For some reason using the Azoo diffuser has allowed me to reduce my bubble count while still keeping the same CO2 levels. Can't figure out why though.

How do you determine your CO2 levels?

I am not too familiar with CO2 tests but is there one that determines "true dissolved CO2" without relying on KH/pH ratio?

Because one of the explanation for the described phenomenon in case when the "true dissolved CO2" is measured would be a persistence of CO2 microbubbles in solution and slower rate of degassing of them into atmosphere than in case of CO2 that is fully dissolved in water in an external reactor.

Regards.

Vladimir.

I think a finer mist will help the CO2 ppm levels in solution certainly.

Many of the plants we keep are amphibous/terrestrial wetland plants.
Now the true hydrophytes might not grow faster with more CO2 than say 30ppm, the others very well may. But, even the Myriophyllums do much more than normal with mist.

For all the speculation as to why, one thing remains constant, the method itself works very well, it's not some subtle thing and it's no obvious current or better ppm issue.

Not this huge gain in pearling.

Regards,
Tom Barr

Does anyone have experience with this product?
Sold in packs of 3 and are really inexpensive, but I am still too stingy to buy without prior checking of opinions.

Regards.

Vladimir.