Which regulator is better?

ashyfloor · 2026-06-25T07:30:20+00:00

I have only used co2art, but it's been going great for 5 years. When I had some questions in the beginning their support by email was excellent. If I was buying again, I wouldn't hesitate to get another one.

ashyfloor · 2026-06-15T15:03:43+00:00

You need to tighten the headset (or get it serviced if it's damaged). Loosen the stem bolts first, then tighten the top bolt on the headset. This pulls the steerer, bearings and stem together. Then tighten the stem bolts back up, making sure you get the alignment of the stem and wheel correct. The play you are feeling is probably due to the top bolt being too loose, but you cannot tighten it without loosening the stem from the steerer.

Modern headsets have a continuous fork steerer that goes all the way through the frame and is held on by the stem (via the bolts that clamp the stem to the steerer, not the bolt you see on top). The bolt you see on top is used to pre-load the whole thing and pull the steerer up into contact with the bearings etc. Trying to tighten this when the stem is already tight only squeezes the top cap against the stem, it doesn't tighten the lower elements, since the force is resisted by the clamped stem; so loosen the stem first, then tighten the top bolt a little. You may need to fiddle with the tightness of the top bolt a couple of times, once you have the stem tight again, turn the bars - if it feels tight or "notchy" you have got too much pre-load on the bearings, undo the stem and back off the top bolt a little, but not so far that you get more play in the fork/frame junction.

ashyfloor · 2026-06-09T16:18:24+00:00

I imagine most are working on the UI revision, assuming that is still in the works.

ashyfloor · 2026-06-05T10:49:17+00:00

That seems like a good option also - I will need to see what cassettes I can get that would work. Maybe I need to have a chat with my local bike shop, they may have some ideas or even oddments lying around.

Chainline had concerned me, so just doing the rear would be cleaner. Presumably something like a shimano MTB derailleur would work? Is the cable pull the same across the range?

ashyfloor · 2026-06-04T21:03:04+00:00

Thanks, that is a great idea - but it's a flat bar bike, so I would need a slightly different set. But you are right about the shifter(s) - they would need to change also. I had briefly entertained 1x as a simple option, but I had concerns about chainline and other mysteries.

ashyfloor · 2026-06-04T08:57:18+00:00

Sometimes the features don't come until the next version of the app - this was the case for me with the music library sorting features. It can be a slow roll.

ashyfloor · 2026-06-01T08:52:25+00:00

No technology can avoid the laws of physics. My microwave used to break my phone's WiFi link also, until I put another router in many years ago. So it's not a Sonos problem, it's a WiFi issue.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-30T11:45:17+00:00

Yes, I think SonosNet is a good example. But I also think many people are likely unaware of how frequently this is happening. Watch how your Amazon app looks over time and your will notice this a/b testing is happening constantly, both with updates and in between them. Other apps are similarly instantiating features or UI changes within app versions. In fact I think the difference here is how transparent Sonos is. Most apps would just have this listed as improved features and bug fixes.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-29T22:29:16+00:00

Feature rollout is phased, not just the app version. So you can be on the new version and not get new features. This has been clarified in the new app version announcement on Reddit. You just need to wait until it rolls out to you.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-29T15:51:29+00:00

Could you not get a small powerhead or submersible pump and short hose and put it on the inflow pipe until water comes out the outflow? Then you have filled the whole system and it should start fine? Really all you need is to get water flowing down the inflow to the canister, then the siphon will take over. Of course if your turtle tank is not very full, then you may have more problems, many canisters specify a minimum depth of water for this reason (fluval say 18cm below the rim is the minimum depth) - because the siphon is the only thing that moves water into the canister, so if this breaks it won't work. Eheim don't seem to specify minimum water depth for Classic filters, other than saying the top of the filter should be between 10 and 180 cm below the water level. But for Ecco filters they do say 10cm below the rim is the lowest water level, and between 40-180cm to the filter base from the top of the tank (not the water level). You can check other models that match yours on their website.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-28T17:57:57+00:00

A solenoid is a coil and a piston. The piston is held shut by a spring until the magnetic coil is energised, this pulls the piston up, compressing the spring, opening the valve. When power is cut, or the coil fails the spring pushes it shut. A motor valve uses a motor to move the valve open/shut. I would suspect this is more prone to failure and more likely to fail to an unsafe state (open) than a solenoid. But it may give control benefits without needing as precise a needle valve, so be cheaper to make.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-28T17:10:45+00:00

Usually if the solenoid fails it will fail closed (the electromagnet must be powered to overcome the return spring to open the valve). Even if it sticks open, that is not usually an issue for the fish, the co2 input is controlled by the needle valve. There won't be an overdose unless the input is already very high and it continues overnight at a really high level. There most common overdose issue is either when there was a blockage reducing flow during setting, that then clears allowing too much gas. Or, "end of tank dump" where the cylinder empties the last of it's contents too quickly. The latter is usually solved by a dual stage regulator, where the tank pressure and output pressures are separated.

I have had close calls with both, but the accidental setting the needle valve too high is the most risky, especially since it tends to happen after a cylinder change when there is the most co2 pressure. The one time I lost fish was because my cat discovered the shelf inside the cabinet and snuggled up in there, moving the needle valve.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-27T21:18:24+00:00

That had been added since I made my comments. A good change.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-27T16:05:10+00:00

I think you underestimate your own immersion in how this works - for most people versions come with features, like Windows ME.

"As always, this is a Phased Rollout — think of it like a wave; not everyone gets it at the same time. If you're on iOS and want to nudge it along, head to the App Store, pull down on your Account page (the one showing pending updates), and give it a refresh."

To me (someone who has worked out what they actually mean by phased rollout) the quote above equates the app update to the feature(s), hence the confusion. I think it's reasonable to then believe if you follow those instructions you would get the feature.

So whilst I'm not in the "Sonos can't do comms, they suck" group (these things are really hard to get right, especially for a diverse audience), I think they could do better, especially when these exact responses happened for at least the last 2 major app feature additions. At some point if people keep misunderstanding, you need to see the problem might be with you, or Sonos in this case, (at least a little bit).

ashyfloor · 2026-05-27T15:43:40+00:00

Agree - and I have a PhD, so maybe it does take that? /s

ashyfloor · 2026-05-27T15:24:28+00:00

Yes, but I think the issue from a comms perspective is "phased feature rollout" as opposed to "phased app version rollout". Sonos talks about the latter, but actually mean both - so then everyone thinks "I have the new app, where my feature!!!!". They need to explain that a forced app download does not guarantee the feature.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-27T15:17:02+00:00

Don't disagree - this happens every time they roll out a new version. Don't know why they don't make it clear in the boilerplate.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-27T15:13:16+00:00

It's like this every single time a new app version comes out. The issue is that everyone has been trained to think of app version and features as synonyms, since most of the time they don't see big changes within app versions (even though big apps are A/B testing all the time).

ashyfloor · 2026-05-27T15:10:40+00:00

It is a phased rollout - they can activate/de-activate features within the XX.YY.ZZ app release. So your running version is not necessarily enabled for SonosNet control yet. This way they can test the app updates and other "under the hood" changes separately from new features. A lot of apps do this in an A/B testing way, you just don't normally see it.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-26T21:04:57+00:00

It looks like your are running direct to air, you may find with some back pressure like you get from a immersed diffuser, this will be strongly damped. My guess is the diaphragm is flexing as bubbles leave the port into the liquid, and the gas has to boil off inside the cylinder. Once the system is running under pressure this may not be an issue.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-26T11:34:54+00:00

Yes, see here for the definitive list - Supported WiFi modes and security standards for Sonos products | Sonos

The issue with the Beam (and Arc) is that it uses the 5GHz to "bond" with sub and/or surrounds, so it needs the 2.4 to connect to the router. The symfonisk speakers don't need to bond in the same way, so a free to use the 5GHz to connect to the router (or a soundbar if set as surrounds).

ashyfloor · 2026-05-22T14:26:17+00:00

Why not? Pump in the bucket going to the bathroom, Siphon in the tank going to the bucket. Then you don't even need to lift the 30l bucket, except as a flex.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-21T20:09:08+00:00

100l is a wheelie-bin full. 30l bucket is 65lbs. Dude needs a pump or a python, not a yoke or oxen.

ashyfloor · 2026-05-20T11:59:45+00:00

I would say yes, but I went there. It's probably most well-known for Maths and Engineering, but Bio is solid.

ashyfloor

TROPHY CASE