Do It Yourself DIY co2 jello method

Ok this was requested by Anthony...

So when I first got into planted tanks I had thought about the DIY yeast co2 generator. Then I got a good deal on a pressurized system and never used DIY. Now I have a splitter on my system so it can go to 3 tanks. Unfortunately the tanks I'm setting up are too far away so I'm back to DIY.

I have done hours of research into yeast co2 and here is what I have come up with. It is a combination of sever designs and ideas. I have not yet tested it but will do so very soon.

I want to make a system with enough pressure to be able to use a pollen glass diffuser. I have used several diffusion methods over the years and found pollen glass to be the best.

Materials list: 5 gallon bucket with a lid, two 2 litter soda bottles, a 1 litter wide mouth soda bottle, 4 bulkhead fittings (link below is bulkhead fittings)

(<a class="postlink" href="http://www.advantagehobby.com/product.php?productid=64517&cat=704&page=1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.advantagehobby.com/product.p ... 704&page=1</a>)

rubber washers, silicone, T air line valve, small submersible heater, silicone tubing, and a diffuser (in this case pollen glass)

For mixture: yeast, sugar, jello

For the most part its like any other DIY yeast system you've seen. However I am using two chambers to try and get more pressure built up.

So drill the lids of your 2 liter bottles then use the bulkhead fittings, rubber washers and silicone to get an air tight fit. Drill 2 hole in your 1 liter wide mouth bottle and secure 2 bulkhead fittings. The 1 liter bottle is going to be your gas separator. Run tubing from you two 2 liter bottles to your T valve and then from your T valve to your 1 liter gas separator/bubble counter. fill your 1 liter bottle with a little water. your going to need to use a short length of tubing inside your gas separator so that the end of the bulkhead fitting reaches below the water line (if your going to use it as a bubble counter). Then run tubing to your diffuser.

I plan on using Velcro, or a big rubber band to hold my 3 bottles together. (i would use duck tape but then it would be hard to get the caps off with out tuning the tubing around and around)

I plan on putting the entire set up in a 5 gallon bucket. I will probably put a little sand in the bottom of the bottles to weight then down because I plan on filling the bucket with water. I am going to use a small submersible heater to heat the water around the bottles because yeast produces more at higher temperatures and it a little chilly in my house.

So now I will need to drill 2 holes in the lid of my bucket, 1 for the co2 line and the other for the power cord for the heater. Many people put a pressure valve in there line somewhere so if pressure get too high the bottles wont explode sending your yeast mixture all over the house. I am not using this because mine is all contained in a bucket.

the heater will be on a timer with my lights so the yeast will produce the most co2 when it is needed and hopefully go dormant over night when it is not needed. I hope this will prolong the life of my yeast mixture.

Ok lastly the yeast mixture recipe. A lot of people are using jello these days I haven't read why but this is my guess and also the reason I thought of it before I ever researched a recipe. 1. gelatin is a great food source (have you ever left out jello? It grows mold really well.) 2. If there is a buildup of pressure and the caps of your bottle blows off the jello is solid so it wont go flying every where (just a theory, of coarse it my still be pretty liquidy if you use a heater)

So here is a recipe that looked pretty good to me. I am just going to cut and paste it in here from it source that will go un-named.

4 cups water
1 cup sugar
2 packages of Gelatin
¼ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp yeast
1 cup warm water
pinch of sugar

Dissolve the gelatin in 1 cup cool water and stir in 3 cups boiling water. Add sugar and Baking Soda and stir until dissolved. Pour mixture into 2 liter bottle and allow to cool and set up. Rehydrate yeast in warm water (95 degrees F) with a pinch of sugar for 10 minutes. Pour on top of set sugar gelatine.

I actually had another recipe that I liked better but can't seem to find it. you might need to play around with this a little. IF I find it again I'll post it latter.

Well I know this was a long post. Hope I didn't bore anyone. CHEERS!

 

I'll post pictures and let you know how works after I get it set up. I'm still waiting on a few parts.

 

Well here is the thing. I poured concrete into one of the bottles so it would not float in the bucket of water. I figured that the alkalinity of the concrete would help my mixture to last longer, most recipes call for baking soda for that very purpose. The concrete made the mixture too alkaline to support life. I have since read that it will take about a moth for the concrete to fully cure and stop leaching the alkaline.

With the other bottle I tried it out just to see how the jello method works. I have to say I really like using the jello. I used a different recipe than the one listed. I made less because it was just a test. The recipe I used did not last a full 2 weeks. I will post the best recipe after I figure it out.

With only one bottle I was not able to get enough pressure for the pollen glass diffuser to work. I will try again once I get both bottles with concrete in them cured. I still don't know if it will be enough and may have to use another method of diffusion. I don't have the tank ready that I was going to use this on so there is no rush. I will post a final outcome when I get it done.

 

Hey thanks for all the great input. I will defiantly try your recipe out. I just had one question about your mix. Will it go 3 weeks without any adjustment or do you have to add water like you stated, in order to max its life? If so how long does it last before you have to add water?

Also I used bulkhead fittings on my 2L bottles and really like them. I drilled the hole so small I had to thread the fittings on before I put on the nut. I used lots of silicone on the threads and around the lip of the fitting before I tightened the nut. I got a really good seal. I did have to use zip ties to secure my tubing since it was a little lose on the end of the fitting.

I will try again and see if I can get enough pressure with a full bottle of mixture. I need to get a new diffuser though because I broke the other one. Those things are just so delicate. [cussing]

 

Wow that is very impressive results :!:

Another great way to get a good seal on your bottle is to take a suction cup for airline tubing and cut the hook off, then drill a hole smaller then your tubing. It doesn't matter how big the hole in the cap is because once you screw it down the suction cup spreads out over the bottle lip.

I haven't tried it in a 2L bottle but I am using it in a small water bottle for co2 in my nano tank. I tested the seal by using a plastic syringe and forcing air into the bottle and I forced in 50cc with no leak.

 

Well here are the reference photos you asked for. All you do is place the suction cup in the mouth of the bottle and when you tighten the cap down it seats right in there creating a seal

 

Do you mean like squeezable ketchup type bottle?