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bubble wheel cross current DIY skimmer....


matt

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The cracking (crazing) and hazing is from the material not the solvent. I can't give too much advice on bending other than heat slowly and heat the outside of the bend. What type of acrylic are you using. If it is a true extruded and not even a continuous material it cannot be heated before bonding withouy crazing like mad.

 

R-

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Not necissarily NO heat. Lucite ES will heat rather well as will other extrudeds BUT using solvent after hitting it what casues the crazing. Just like the crazing you are already seeing is probably from sanding the edges aggesively (causing heat) or stress before fully curing.

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thought i would share my almost done skimmer.

 

 

it isn't perfect, and i have two places where 3 thigns came in at odd angles i am going to have to seal. i would want to do 2 or so more projects befor ei woudl commit to a display tank. and get the right tools.. IE planer. :)

 

but note. the collection cup bending went well :) if i had it to do again.. i would do more bending.. but i needed to have practice at 90 degree angles first :)

 

the collection cup will be lowered, and have a big squard on top of it.. and then a hole drilled to drain out. the top will eb able to come out [but will be a pain] this lets me clean the body if i need to- that was why the quasi removable collection cup was important...

IMG_3042.jpg

 

IMG_3041.jpg

 

 

all that is left is drilling the pump holes, drillign the collection cup drain, setting the level of the cup, setting the level of the water with the pvc, and plumbing it in!

 

 

looking forward to seeing brown guck

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btw. like that pvc u with the drain in it, i am using to stop the siphon? a golden find :)

 

I assumed that's why you selcted it. And by planer, I think you mean jointer. And by jointer I am hoping you mean ROUTER. Hehehe. The router is much more versitile.

 

keep us posted!

 

R-[/i]

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all power tools belong wither to my dad, or my landlord, or a good freind who happens to be out of town...[he has the good stuff] so i am somewhat limited in my choices... :)

 

i am auctually coming to indy this weekend.. so this project is on hold till tuesday, when i will rip a hole in the wall, and install..

 

 

last call for me to bring any zoos :)

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pics are....coming.. spent all day building plumbing and transfering livestock.. didn't even unpack from my weekend yet.. :) will post them tommorow

 

the built in over flwo has the water level.. higher than i normally have it in my tanks ,, will have to get used to that.. :) it is licking the top plastic bar...

 

and like i said no foam yet, as the skimmer is still getting it's gel coat.. 2 days or so, when ever it decides to go wild... it will [btw so many micro bubbles i can not see though or any way into the chamber :)]

just in case it goes nuts when i am not there.. the overflow of the cup goes to a 1 gallon jug, which currently is in my sump so it will just be counter productive if it does go nuts.. not flooding my house..

 

 

 

and crap. i already have a ton of sand i have to siphon out form my uncooked rocks in the main display.. i can't wait till the rocks stop shedding in 2-3 months . lol

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well here we go... i am going to trach the flow under the tank, so it makes sense....

by the way. a fire fish that i though died a month ago turned up int eh old sump after drainign it. i can't believe i didn't see it for a month, as i worked in the sump a lot in the last month. as it was i didn't see it till almost the last piece of rock was out. hope his malnutrition dosen't kill him on this transfer....

the overflow drain.

 

RIHS%20012.jpg

 

tank side of the wall... looking at the air return vent cover that i removed - you can see the power from the return and skimmer pumps coming out here...

RIHS%20013.jpg

 

 

here is the sump side of the wall.. main 1" overflow spa tube goes into the skimmer.. the clear pipe is 3/4" is the return from the mag 7 [will eventually upgrade this pump]

RIHS%20014.jpg

 

a birds eye of the skimmer in the closet- the oceanrunner is in here now.. though the imput and output i see are covered by the skimmer cup drain. oops.

RIHS%20015.jpg

 

sump with stuff in it. most of the rock will be either sold, or moved to a all softie 25 gallon i have lying around.. why not set it up :) i am waiting till i aquascape before i do anythign though... note the KNOP calcium reactor behind [i had to put the sump in at an angle to use the existing hole in the main room's wall, and the existign hole in the sump] you can also see the utube drain going to the raceway..

 

RIHS%20016.jpg

 

 

close up of the skimmer in action... no foam. this is with it running for 2 mins.. i won't adjust the water level and the u tube till it breaks in , and i see where the water level needs to be....

 

RIHS%20017.jpg

 

 

close up of the top of the skimmer.. you can see the cup drain, as well as the input to the needlewheel. oh yea. that is an airline for a air stone/ bar.. that provindes small airbubbles for the oceanrunner to make into micro bubbles...

RIHS%20018.jpg

 

the main tank after all stock has been acclimated to the 50% new water volume. liek the temp aquascape job? all my zoos are on the left in the rocks. and all the stonies down below... on the right

 

RIHS%20019.jpg

and finally a close up of the sps side of the tank.. yes, there are 7 maxijets 1200. soon to be a tunze.. i might try to start aquascapig today.. though i have to treat my acros with some inteceptor and let them stay isolated for 5-6 days before any aquascaping would be final

RIHS%20021.jpg

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tunze 6000 on a controller is on order [will equal the flow from all those maxis :) ..... should be here 2 weeks? you know tunze..

 

some of the maxis will be moved under rock work to kill dead spots, but i will probably leave 2 or 3 of them well placed on the random wave timer setting on the aquacontroller.

 

i am also going to be putting a bluline 30 i picked up at premium on an eductor for a closed loop sometime...

 

 

right now turnover is around 20-24 i hope to have it above 50 in a well enginered flow situation with in the next few months... speaking of which.. i got a large colt coral i gotta sell here in the next month if i dont' make a softie tank ha ha

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well i jsut did the math. the closed loop eductor on my pump is going to get me anywhere between 2,500-3,000 gallons of flow. the tunze will be near 1,700 .. the return from the sump is.. 500 and i plan on having about 1000 gph of maxijets at the bottom and underneath removing deadspots..

 

my total flow will be around a 60-70 time turnover rate :)

 

i need to start a new thread that is this tank's log. as this says skimmer :)

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  • 5 weeks later...

well, when the tank has nasty water, i am pulling out about a gallon a week of medium collered sludge.. it is definatly working .. and quickly when it needs too.. I jsut have to fine tune a few thngs on where the bubbles release, and might redo the collection cup if i get real bored... [one fo the sides is a little more dead than the other, so i mgiht go a more traditional commection cup setup, and riase the level of the water int eh skimmer a bit..

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  • 1 month later...

i am bored and tired.. soooooo update!

 

reverse Beckett Auto shutoff Needle wheel Skimmer..

 

 

 

 

here is the final modification to this skimmer design. i won't go intot he body of the skimmer due to that being allready discussed read up... i have the auto shutoff problem figured out a whole lot simpler than anyone else has that I have seen [and cheaper too] though maybe 80% of the way where the expensive shut off models fall... and since i am paring that with the air injection to the needle wheel it is perfect :)

 

basically. ventri sucks the air in to the input to the needle wheel pump.

 

i control the gang valve to optimal levels. when it is going righ tthere is a *lot* of air here in micro bubbles.. i can over power the pump with too much air easily... so big ventri bubbles get sliced and diced.

 

now. the big worry is overflow on the skimmate.. once the collection container fills, it simply will rise high enough that air is cut off from entering, and the skimmer shuts down.. I know that will be dumping skimmate back into the tank. However. 1- i have a 2 gallon buckett for colleciton. 2- i check it daily.. so i am only worried about "skimmer floods" when if a skimmer floods or goes mad... the skimmate will be so dilute it wont' hurt much goign back into the tank...

 

i may configure a float shutoff on the air supply.. but am happy at this.

 

and oh the amout of foam you get when this this is just right is a--- mazing.. very clsoe to a small beckett in terms of amount of foam

 

skimmer%20final.gif

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