CO2 / Calcium Reactor

j2crzy

I have a Reef Octopus CR-100.
The instructions aren't very clear and detailed, but there are 4 diagrams in the instruction sheet. The diagrams are practically the same but one has labels.
There are 4 tubes that are connected to the reactor:
air vent pipe
valve
CO2 check valve / CO2 intake hose
water supply hose

Which tubes are meant to be in the water, and which tubes are meant to pump out the water?
I think the air vent pipe sits outside the tank and the water supply hose sits inside my minireef submerged in the water.
I've tried many variations but can't seem to get it working. When I turn the system on, the water doesn't flow out of any tubes.

Any help would be appreciated.

Regards,
Jason.

jsm11482

The way you have it setup sounds reasonable. Did you prime the pump/fill the tube thing with water before plugging it in? Otherwise the pump will probably just spin.

caferacermike

Ok I'm pretty sure you don't have a feed pump.

They way you need it set up is with an external water supply, maybe a small pump. That goes to the water supply hose. Basically the supply is only meant to be a tiny drip going in. Then the water fills up the main chamber. The pump attached to the unit is the "recirculating" pump. This continuously recirculates the water in the chamber back through the aragonite mixture and keeps it exposed to the CO2. The rate of flow out of the chamber back to the is set by how much water you force into the system. The longer the contact time the better. Generally no more than one drip per second back to the tank. You should have another spot near the top of the unit for some RO tubing to lock into and then place that back to the tank. Your CO2 goes in through where you say "CO2 check valve / CO2 intake hose ".

j2crzy

Thanks for the replies.
What do you mean by priming the pump?
I filled the Calcium Reactor with water before turning on the system as it said in the instructions.
Also, there are two tubes with valves. Does one sit outside the minireef and one submerged in water? Also, are the valves meant to be open?

Thanks.

caferacermike

Without pics of the way you set up the valves I cannot even attempt to figure out what you mean since you or may not have them in the right area.

Most CO2 reactors require 2 pumps. The first is not a priming pump, it is the feed pump. As much as you push in, comes out the other side. The main body pump is only for recirculating water inside the chamber. The main body pump is not generally used to "suck" water into the system.

j2crzy

Hmm I see. I think I only have a main body pump, which came with the reactor. It sits beside the unit.
But the tubes that are connected to the calcium reactor are really small. It's not the usual size of a tube that connects to pumps that I use. Do these tubes connect to a seperate pump? Also, does the priming pump sit inside the minireef submerged in the water?
I'll post picture soon.

Thanks for the help,
Jason.