CO2 Regulators Vs Bobbin Flowmeter?

["Adam Shaw" <adams1 at comcen_com.au>]

G'day all :)

Today I called into one of the (apparently) best gas and welding
suppliers in my area (they supply home brewers their gear as well), and
let him know what I wanted to do as far as adding a CO2 injection system
for my tanks.

He said that an adjustable regulator is probably not the best option for
an aquarium, and what he has been doing for hydroponics people is to
sell a pre-set regulator which brings the pressure down to around 250kPa
(whatever that is in psi), and then use a 'bobbin flow meter' after that
to control the flow of gas. The flow meter has an adjustment range
between 1-15L/min. Apparently for aquarium and aquaculture use what is
more important is flow of gas, not pressure (I would have thought these
two would be directly related, but anyway...). He said that if it was
necessary to have a smaller flow than that the flow meter could provide,
then after the flow meter I could add a needle valve as well if I
wished. He said that this system would be much more stable than using a
plain adjustable regulator and needle valve combination.

Does anyone out there have any ideas?

Adam Shaw
Australia