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DIY 3D printed media basket


ecyoung

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Hi guys! Newcomer to the forums giving a quick overview on my first DIY undertaking. I got a 14 gallon biocube recently and when I was purchasing all the other equipment, I saw that the typical inTank media baskets are like 50 bucks, which I thought was ridiculous. So I designed a 3D model that can be 3D printed super cheaply (if you have access to 3D printer)! I designed the media basket along with the front sliding cover and top water flow director in Google SketchUp, and it took me about a 3 hours to learn the program and design everything. I'm printing it later this week and will post updates of the completed product.

 

Thanks for reading!

post-91299-0-37607600-1462245826_thumb.jpg

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ReefSafeSolutions

Very cool! Where are you having it printed? I know in my area, the only place with a 3D printer is UPS. If you don't mind me asking, how much can you get it printed for?

 

How did you generate the G-Code for the 3D printer?

 

Also, if you're into programs like Sketchup and are looking into future projects for your tank, check out Fusion 360 by Autodesk (creators of AutoCAD). I switched over to it because Sketchup was driving me nuts. Much easier (for me, at least) to use, and with more functionality. It has top notch CAM functions that allow you to generate G-Code for CNC machining/3D printing from the objects you create. Super cool.

 

Anyways, looking forward to seeing the print job!

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Very cool! Where are you having it printed? I know in my area, the only place with a 3D printer is UPS. If you don't mind me asking, how much can you get it printed for?

 

How did you generate the G-Code for the 3D printer?

 

Also, if you're into programs like Sketchup and are looking into future projects for your tank, check out Fusion 360 by Autodesk (creators of AutoCAD). I switched over to it because Sketchup was driving me nuts. Much easier (for me, at least) to use, and with more functionality. It has top notch CAM functions that allow you to generate G-Code for CNC machining/3D printing from the objects you create. Super cool.

 

Anyways, looking forward to seeing the print job!

 

Hey thanks! My university has an awesome 3D printing lab where you can 3D print your own models for $0.15 per gram. Not sure how many grams it will end up being, but it'll probably be pretty cheap. I generated the .stl file with a SketchUp extension called SketchUp STL, which is the file type I need to bring to the printing lab to actually be able to use it.

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ReefSafeSolutions

That's awesome! Do you have to be a student to have something printed?

 

I forgot that 3D printing only needs the .stl files...I prefer CNC'ing stuff (since we have a machine, haha) so generating the code used to be a huge pain because of having to run the project through a million programs.

 

Looking forward to seeing the printed basket!

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That's awesome! Do you have to be a student to have something printed?

 

I forgot that 3D printing only needs the .stl files...I prefer CNC'ing stuff (since we have a machine, haha) so generating the code used to be a huge pain because of having to run the project through a million programs.

 

Looking forward to seeing the printed basket!

 

No, it's just slightly more expensive for non-students. And actually I forgot that Wednesdays are free printing days for any job under an hour, so I'll go in tomorrow and get it done entirely for free!

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What printer are you using? I wouldn't consider this an under an hour job. We've got 3 high end printers in m office, none of which will print a 3 piece frag plug under 45 minutes. If possible, ask to run it overnight. Also, check to see what material's they're feeding with. ABS and PLA are the only acceptable ones I believe at the moment. Best of luck!

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What printer are you using? I wouldn't consider this an under an hour job. We've got 3 high end printers in m office, none of which will print a 3 piece frag plug under 45 minutes. If possible, ask to run it overnight. Also, check to see what material's they're feeding with. ABS and PLA are the only acceptable ones I believe at the moment. Best of luck!

Thanks for the info! The ones at the lab I'll be using are these: https://ultimaker.com/en/products/ultimaker-2-plus

Now that I think of it, those machines might be too small to print my model depending on which specific model printer they have :unsure:

I'll keep ABS and PLA in mind though.

 

Edit: They do have one Ultimaker 2+ extended, so that's good! Exactly fits the height I need to print :)

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Just looked up specs, you won't be able to :/ The intank basket measures at 12" which is equiv to 308 cm. The Ultimaker 2+ will not reach these dimensions no matter how you print it, backwards upwards left right upsidedown etc.

 

You could source a third party to print for you though - https://i.materialise.com/3d-printing-materials/printing-sizes

I actually checked and they do have one of the extended models, which has a maximum build size of 12" in the vertical direction, which is exactly the max. dimension of my model.

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You are going to have major problems printing that standing up. Each platform would have to have supports printed, which will greatly increase your build time, and you will have issues with those platforms sagging. Ideally, it should be printed in two parts. First part will be the bulk of the tower, and laid on it's back. There won't be any need for support structures if you do that. The second part should be the flow director that sits on top. That one will be a little tricky to print, but it will be a lot easier with supports than trying to print the whole thing at once.

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You are going to have major problems printing that standing up. Each platform would have to have supports printed, which will greatly increase your build time, and you will have issues with those platforms sagging. Ideally, it should be printed in two parts. First part will be the bulk of the tower, and laid on it's back. There won't be any need for support structures if you do that. The second part should be the flow director that sits on top. That one will be a little tricky to print, but it will be a lot easier with supports than trying to print the whole thing at once.

That's how I have it set up - I just posted this picture so it was easier to see the entire thing.

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Quick update - I'm not able to print the main basket at this lab since the job would take too long. I am, however, able to print the flow director for the top of the basket. I'll probably end up building the main thing out of egg crate instead :/

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ReefSafeSolutions

Check and see if a local UPS store has a 3D printer! I don't know what it would cost, or how big their machines are, but it would still rad to have your basket printed!

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jedimasterben

Also, PLA won't be usable in a seawater environment, it will have to be made of ABS.

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PLA will degrade due to the high alkalinity of reef aquariums. Biopellets are very similar to PLA. There is a PLA/ABS hybrid that we're testing now on frag racks to see how their durability stands with 3d printing for the reef hobbyist. Here's the read: http://www.reef2reef.com/threads/reef-safe-plastics.175329/

 

At this time, I honestly think you should invest in the intank basket. It's expensive sure, but at the same time it's very convenient to get your hands on now, and a tried and true product.

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Thanks for all the input guys - making me feel welcome :)

I think what I'm going to do is build it by gluing pieces of 1/8" Lexan together and drilling holes in the shelf pieces. I needed Lexan for a mod I'm doing to the crappy plastic splash guard anyway, so I'll just use the extra to make my media basket.

I'm picking up the printed cover piece on Friday, I'll report back then with pictures :D

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