Gerontius Posted May 13, 2006 Share Posted May 13, 2006 Hi, I've been trying to think of ways of integrating a DIY skimmer into my aquapod 12g by using one of the chambers as the skimmer body. Here's an idea I'm kicking around. The only part that would need to be fabbed would be the triangular collection cup. Some details are missing from the drawing, such as how to mount the cup, but I just wanted to put it out there as a concept. Basically, the bubbles rise up chamber 2 and any foam above the water line is "scraped" off the top by the collection cup. My main concern is about the amount of space between the top of the water and the lid. I'd appreciate any comments or suggestions. Maybe someone has done this or suggested it. Anything, positive or negative, would be appreciated, especially from those with skimmer DIY experience. Oh, and the drawing is the back chambers of the aquapod as if viewed from the front. Link to comment
Undertheradar Posted May 15, 2006 Share Posted May 15, 2006 Interesting design. There is a problem though...the middle wall needs to be lowered so that the turbulence is minimal at the point where the bubbles will rise and collect. Lowering this wall to 1/2 height is good. I use that type of design on some of my newer skimmers in fact. As soon as I get time I will make a new thread for them. And upon further thought, simply placing the bubble mixing pump in the next chamber to the right would be even better because instead of the water lifting the bubbles upward for less dwell time, the downdraft of the water would allow for a longer dwell time...but perhaps with enough bubble production, just the way you have the pump might end up being fine as well. Link to comment
ENraged Posted June 17, 2006 Share Posted June 17, 2006 Interesting design. There is a problem though...the middle wall needs to be lowered so that the turbulence is minimal at the point where the bubbles will rise and collect. Lowering this wall to 1/2 height is good. I use that type of design on some of my newer skimmers in fact. As soon as I get time I will make a new thread for them. And upon further thought, simply placing the bubble mixing pump in the next chamber to the right would be even better because instead of the water lifting the bubbles upward for less dwell time, the downdraft of the water would allow for a longer dwell time...but perhaps with enough bubble production, just the way you have the pump might end up being fine as well. woudlnt you have to monitor water level like crazy? Link to comment
Undertheradar Posted June 18, 2006 Share Posted June 18, 2006 not really, the skimmer is self correcting. Link to comment
Gerontius Posted June 19, 2006 Author Share Posted June 19, 2006 Just a little update. I took UTR's suggestion for putting the skimmer pump and cup in chamber three to make it a downdraft. It doesn't "scrape" the foam off the surface like in the design I have drawn above. In the current design, the foam rising and collection is more traditional. I have the design planned, I just have to get into the shop to actually make it. Hopefully I'll have a chance in the next few weeks. G Link to comment
Gerontius Posted June 30, 2006 Author Share Posted June 30, 2006 Well, I finally got a chance to make the parts for this skimmer. The design has changed since I first posted it mainly due to suggestions from UTR and others. It's now in chamber three to take advantage of the downdraft effect from the natural flow of the tank. I put a little baffle on the left side of the skimmer so that water flowing over the baffle in the tank doesn't disrupt the surface of chamber 3. Here's a cartoon of Mk 2. Here is the collection cup. I made it out of black acrylic because I had some scraps. I also made my own venturi for the MJ400 because the one I bought only fits the 900. It's just a block of solid PVC that I drilled a 5/16 hole through, then I drilled a larger hole about 1/2" deep on either end to allow it to press onto the MJ's inlet. Finally, a hole on the side was drilled to accomodate the airline. It sucks! I also chopped up the impeller of the MJ a bit to give it more of a "needle wheel" effect. Not sure if it made any difference, but it makes a lot of small bubbles. Venturi mounted: bubbles in Back: bubbles at the surface: Here it is with the cup in place: I have a lid for the top too, but I just removed it for the picture. I really don't know if this is going to work at all. It's only been running for a few hours, so it's too early to say for sure. It's been fun to think about either way. One obvious problem is that there are a lot of microbubbles getting into the display. I'm going to play with the inlet location of the return pump (MJ900), and also maybe I'll have to put some floss or a sponge on the inlet itself, although I'd rather not. I'll post something here if it pulls anything good out of the water. As always, comments and questions are welcome. G Link to comment
Gerontius Posted July 1, 2006 Author Share Posted July 1, 2006 It really seems to skim well. Here's a shot after 24 hours. The whole left side was filled with foam up to the lid. It's difficult to see the skimmate because of the black acrylic, but it's in there. I didn't get a photo, but there's lots of pale to middle yellow gunk in the cup. The skimmate is a little wet, and in the current version I can't control that. I don't think I really care how wet or dry it is anway. minibubbles in the tank are still a problem. I know that they're not bad for anything, but there are just enough to be annoying. Anyway, I'm pretty happy with how this all turned out. Let me know if anyone wants dimensions for the parts. G Link to comment
travisurfer Posted July 1, 2006 Share Posted July 1, 2006 looks great! glad to see you got it working. Link to comment
andre Posted July 1, 2006 Share Posted July 1, 2006 Actually microbubbles can irritate corals. Nice DIY though. Link to comment
icenine Posted July 1, 2006 Share Posted July 1, 2006 This looks very cool. I really like the idea and the work, but like they say the proof is in the puddin. Got a pic of some skimmate? Link to comment
Gerontius Posted July 1, 2006 Author Share Posted July 1, 2006 Actually microbubbles can irritate corals. Nice DIY though. Thanks for the complement. Actually the minibubbles are harmless, but I consider them to be unattractive. http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-01/eb/index.php Got a pic of some skimmate? I'll get a pic of the puddin'-I mean skimmate- next time the cup fills. Link to comment
napydred Posted November 4, 2006 Share Posted November 4, 2006 so u still using this skimmer? modified any more? i may try this mod Link to comment
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