[APD] Hagen CO2 natural plant system

[Joanne000 at webtv_net (Joanne Damon)]

  I recently purchased this system, it was on sale for $16.00...yes I
know the DIY is cheaper, but one thing that interested me about the
system was that the canister is somewhat insulated .. I keep my house
very cool in the winter and have a hard time getting my bread to rise
(yeast). I also have two very curious cats, they cannot knock over the
canister as it is clipped onto the back of the tank. 
   I did find an old post in the archives posted by Kevin Sheller, for a
recipe to replace the refill packs (see his post  below).  I couldn't
find a reply to his question about the baking soda for a stabilizer.  I
haven't seen baking soda or any type of stabilizer listed as an
ingredient for a DIY system.  Also if anyone has any updates on how they
like or dislike this system or if they have any other advise on using
their own ingredients... I would like to hear any comments.
Thanks,
Joanne Damon

Kevin wrote
For those of you who bought the CO2 Natural Plant System by Nutrafin,
(which is just a store-bought version of the DIY CO2 system that uses a
2-Liter soda bottle) I have examined the contents of the Stabilizer and
Activator so I could buy the contents at a grocery store instead of
ordering the packets from Nutrafin. Here is what I discovered: 
Stabilizer: 1 teaspoon Baking Soda 
Activator: 1/8 teaspoon Active Dry Yeast 
Sugar: 1/2 cup sugar 
I realize buying a DIY system is kind of an oxymoron, but when doing
research and trying to learn it all, one tries everything. 
Being fairly new to the hobby, I'm unsure of what the "stabilizer" does,
but I noticed that I didn't get the common DIY problem of the CO2
spewing into the tank at the end of the month-long yeast cycle... It
also probably helps a little yeast, sugar, and water go a long way. 
Perhaps someone more experienced could explain what the baking soda does
in this concoction... 
Kevmo

joanne damon
joanne000 at webtv_net

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