I know this has been discussed in other forums but I want to hear some opinion from those on this forum who has experience with them.

I am currently using a CO2 regulator I got from a brewery and Clippard needle valve.

I am also using DIY inline co2 reactor now

I'm trying to get my CO2 to its max...and by doing so, I need to shut off the CO2 at nights...

getting a solenoid valve will cost me a lot...almost half or 3/4 of a CO2 setup price...so I might as well go with a CO2 setup since it comes with an additional bubble counter.

Milwaukee or JBJ?

the only disadvantage with Milwaukee is there is no check valve...with my inline reactor, once pressure goes off...the water will for sure travel along the CO2 line.

even with a plastic check valve i have at the moment, the water is still able to get pass the check valve...about 1 drop of water/5sec

so the check valve on the JBJ will be safer(that is if it actually works better than my plastic check valve)

but I have been hearing a lot of bad things about the JBJ setup as well...about regulator not fitting well..or needle valve isn't consistent...

your opinion?

Thanks.

Yeah, big discussion on APC about JBJ: if something goes wrong (and it appears lots of things have been going wrong with their products), you can't
take it back to the vendor, you have to send it back to JBJ. Several businesses are discontinuing carrying JBJ because of this and customer
complaints.

Perhaps Milwaukee and get a better check valve?

Bill

I use a Milwaukee Regulator and a $5 John Guest plastic check valve, along with an inline reactor.. work's perfect! No complaint's.

Where were you planning on getting your setup from? I'm looking for a second setup, and an all-in-one is about all I can handle these days.

Okay, lots of personal choices out there, but my CO2 system has worked great. None of it is cheap, unfortunately. I use a Milwaukee SMS 122 controller, JBJ solenoid, the Reactor 200 with Rio Pump, Dennerle check valve, and metering valve. No bubble counter- the controller reads (and sets) the PH. Adjust the KH (sodium bicarbonate) to 5 or 6, in my case, and the CO2 flows according to the chart. No test kits for PH, just KH, which is fairly accurate. Use Tom's reactor, and you might save a few bucks. I also use a timer and a couple of multi plug receptacles from Wal Mart- one, at the end of the chain, has all the electrical connections for the CO2 stuff. This plugs into my lights receptacle, which in turn plugs into my timer, which in turn is plugged into a 24 hour juice supply. Any maintenance to the reactor (cleaning filter and the like) is easily accomplished by killing the power switch on the multiple CO2 receptacle. That turns off the power to the solenoid and Rio pump, allowing me to withdraw the reactor from the tank. I purchased one CO2 tank from a welding supply place, and an aluminum tank from a hobbyist for $20.00. Loved that! A spare. Filling the bottle runs $10.00. Would suggest, if you don't have a bottle, to buy it from the supply place- they sometimes can get touchy about filling another's bottles.
Been pleased with the JBJ setup. You may also want to purchase some pieces separately and save a few dollars there from various suppliers.
Hope I didn't bore everyone with the hook up description.

I have a jbj regulator/solenoid/bubble counter/check valve setup on one of my tanks (75 gallon) and I have had no trouble and like it a lot. I feed the co2 into an aqua-medic 1000 reactor (hooked up in line with my canister filter) and control it with a pinpoint ph controller.

I also have an older Marine Depot regulator on another tank in another room (30 gal). The finish is a little nicer on the Marine depot setup, but the JBJ works just fine.

I would consider buying another jbj if I were loking for one.

Just my two cents worth !!

Molly

Molly, you might want to hurry with that, finding an American dealer in a few
years might be tough. With what I've read about customer and dealer complaints concerning service (for the unfortunate that had something wrong)--I'll be looking elsewhere.....

Bill

From what I have read and seen here and there, I think most of the complaint's are coming from the newbie's who can not walk and chew gum at same time, buying this piece of equipment and hooking them up wrong, blowing the seals on them right away, and trying to claim faulty device...
I know of a few people who have JBJ and Milwaukee, and both work equally well.
So one should consider the source!

I will be buying another again one day within near future, probably another Milwaukee..
My $0.02

I can too, walk and chew g-woops, just tripped My point is I wouldn't want
to have to send the defective product back to the manufacturer (using my
dime, too)--I'd want to take it back to the vendor and have them make good
on it. No can do with JBJ...

Bill

"big discussion on APC about JBJ"

What is APC ???

I bought the JBJ unit from a vendor who sold both JBJ and Milwaukee ..... they recommended the JBJ over the Milwaukee. The JBJ was a few dollars more but I went with their recco.

As stated I have had no trouble. Also, I have found the needle valve to be excellent ... much better than the Clippard valve I have on my other setup. More precise control and easier adjustment. I have no complaints.

--- Molly