siskiou Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 So, this is not good! I just returned from refilling the CO2 before my trip and now the regulator and solenoid are not working! They were perfectly fine before! Maybe I'm just forgetting something stupid, but if not, is there anyone who can loan me a regulator plus solenoid until the end of August? Why do these things always happen at the worst times? If anyone has an idea what could be wrong and what I could do to fix it, please let me know! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelhead77 Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Hi, This exact same thing happened to me a month ago - the night before I left for a 2 week trip to Singapore. I talked to Jason @ Coral Reef and he told me to just shut it off and deal with it when I returned. So I did. There were no issues with my tank at all. A few days after I got back, I emailed Milwaukee and told them the solenoid on my regulator went out. They replied within 2 hours asking for my address and they sent me new one FREE OF CHARGE!!! and it was at my door within 3 days of my first email. I think you will be fine for a few weeks without the CO2. Like I said, my 180 had no issues at all for the 3 weeks it was shut off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siskiou Posted June 15, 2010 Author Share Posted June 15, 2010 Thanks for the advice! I'll be gone for over 2 months, though. And after some further checking, the solenoid seems to be fine, but the regulator isn't acting right. The increase/decrease control is doing nothing. I can control the flow with the needlevalve, but am not sure if that's safe. When I unplug the solenoid, it takes about 30 seconds for the flow of CO2 to stop completely, and that's why I first thought the solenoid was bad, too. Does anyone have a clue why a regulator would stop working out of the blue? Edited to add: did some googling, and it sounds like this is a fairly common thing. I guess the regulator can be used without the low pressure gauge (which I probably blew by opening the valve on the cylinder, but having the regulator dial closed). I'll look into replacing the gauge when I get back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelhead77 Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 If you're worried about it, I think you would be safe just shutting it off and having your tank sitter supplement with Purple Up a few times while you're gone with no harm to your tank. To me, that would be safer than trusting a dodgey regulator. Good Luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClayTheSavageFraser Posted June 15, 2010 Share Posted June 15, 2010 Max has one that I am sure he would let you borrow!! Clay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7Max-GTE Posted June 17, 2010 Share Posted June 17, 2010 Give me a call - 702 672 3036. I have one you can borrow, but its just a regulator and bubble counter, no solenoid...Maybe it is like other solenoids and if you whack it gently with a hammer it'll work? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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