gurnie Posted December 14, 2007 Share Posted December 14, 2007 Any luck using the Azoo's? I was wondering, how do you stop it from pumping freshwater in when you're doing a waterchange? Take the batteries out Quote Link to comment
bad ed Posted December 14, 2007 Share Posted December 14, 2007 Any ideas on a container to use that holds 2-5 gallons? I bought all the parts, but now I'm wondering if the air pumps are good enough to push through a larger volume of water, and finding a larger container that I can make air tight? Go to one of those stores that sell water only. They have 2.5 gal water jugs that you could use. Quote Link to comment
edacsac Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 (edited) Just thought I would add a status or my $.02 to this thread since I have my ATO up and running. I used the Azoo battery powered pump from drsfosterandsmith and a 2.5 gallon absopure spring water container (the kind you can set sideways and has the rubber spout thing). All is well really. the only trouble I had is the pump didn't start 2 times out of many. Once during testing and once in production. There is one spot where the little cam thing attached to the diaphragm stops and the motor can't push it past to restart. Requires the switch to be turned on and off a few times to jar the cam past the stuck spot. Could be just related to that particular pump. It's great for daily use, but I wouldn't trust it for several days at a time. I'm sure getting a little more expensive air pump would solve that problem. The sprint water container expands a bit and expels extra water for almost a minute after the pump turns off until the container depressurizes, but the amount of water is negligible (it seemed like alot when I was testing, but going live it changed the water level in my return chamber maybe a 1/16"). The rubber cap on the container holds tight though, and it still pumps water even when the container is almost empty. All in all, this is a very sweet DIY ATO solution and I would encourage many other folks to give it try. Thanks Undertheradar for originally hooking this thread up! Edited January 4, 2008 by edacsac Quote Link to comment
Jigga Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Any luck using the Azoo's? I was wondering, how do you stop it from pumping freshwater in when you're doing a waterchange? The Azoo has worked great for me so far. I've been using it for almost 4 months and I'm still on the original battery's. When you want to do a water change, turn the switch on the pump off. Quote Link to comment
Rick12341 Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 1st Q: The batteries are two D cells in parallel...about 3 volts. Pump water through 1/4" hose 3-4 feet up? I cant imagine why not. You know, I havent tried it yet, but I think I will test the system to get a figure as to what the MAX HEAD on this setup would be.If the batteries are in parallel and they are 1.5V its a 1.5V system, if they are in series it would be a 3 V system.Any luck using the Azoo's?I was wondering, how do you stop it from pumping freshwater in when you're doing a waterchange?turn off the pump before you take the water out, once its full again turn the pump back on. Quote Link to comment
daronpurcell Posted January 17, 2008 Share Posted January 17, 2008 any idea how high this little pump can push the water column?? Quote Link to comment
benjad Posted January 19, 2008 Share Posted January 19, 2008 Thanks to the OP on this idea... Used a $6 walmart livewell air pump, a floatswitch.net switch, a 2L Coca-Cola bottle, and a 35mm film canister as a snail guard. Didn't trust it at first, now is working like a champ. A little loud, but works. A little residual run through after pump shuts off... but that's just fine... keeps it from running every hour. Switch is attached to hood, so need to disconnect when the hood comes off. I laughed at the need for a snail guard at first... then saw how mobile and fast narisus and turbo snails were... need that guard. Total cost for this ATO, under $20. As mentioned, cheap air pump doesn't produce much pressure. I'm lifting it a whole 20" from bottom of bottle over lip of tank. by 30" of height, the air pump is noticably upset. Quote Link to comment
Dstoneburg Posted November 2, 2008 Share Posted November 2, 2008 Hey, thanks for this great idea, although I lack the DIY craftiness to fallow the thread. Is there anyway to get some stupified step by step instructions to fallow. I was able to make one of these, http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...e+light+biocube so I am not too stupid, just need really good instructions! Thanks! Quote Link to comment
BoaConchicken Posted November 6, 2008 Share Posted November 6, 2008 this is an awesome diy. i just finished putting one together, and now i just have to wait for my float switch to get here and i'll be ready to go. heres a couple pictures of the way i set mine up. i don't think i'm going to keep the bottle where it is now, although it does fit quite nicely there Quote Link to comment
NanoCube-boy Posted November 6, 2008 Share Posted November 6, 2008 very nice job done Quote Link to comment
jewbilee Posted November 6, 2008 Share Posted November 6, 2008 I was not able to get my pump to pump water very high up using a .75 gallon container. I made it only about a foot or so up... unless anyone has any suggestions, I'm gonna have to have everything on the same level as the tank. Quote Link to comment
evilc66 Posted November 6, 2008 Share Posted November 6, 2008 Air leaks are usually the culprit here. The best seal without using silicone is going to be a hole that is smaller than the tube. It should be really hard to pull the tube though. Creates a great seal. This is the same way I have made three ATOs, and a CO2 system for my freshwater planted tank. Quote Link to comment
IMaNoob Posted November 7, 2008 Share Posted November 7, 2008 man i just dont get it.....if you are using an air pump, where is the suction coming from to pump water into tank??? that is the part i dont understand... the one tube is coming down from air pump pumping air into bottle. then you have a longer tube running to tank that pumps water into tank. but what is causing the water to pump from longer tube??? Quote Link to comment
jewbilee Posted November 7, 2008 Share Posted November 7, 2008 The entire system, theoretically, should be air tight other than the tubes. When the air pump, pumps air into the container holding the water and the longer tube, pressure builds up. When pressure builds up in the bottle, the air and water are going to look for a place to esacpe. The airline tube at the bottom of the bottle provides a place for water to be pushed out be the building air pressure. Quote Link to comment
IMaNoob Posted November 7, 2008 Share Posted November 7, 2008 The entire system, theoretically, should be air tight other than the tubes. When the air pump, pumps air into the container holding the water and the longer tube, pressure builds up. When pressure builds up in the bottle, the air and water are going to look for a place to esacpe. The airline tube at the bottom of the bottle provides a place for water to be pushed out be the building air pressure. ahhh....you are sooo smart Quote Link to comment
evilc66 Posted November 7, 2008 Share Posted November 7, 2008 Jewbilee, you end up figuring out why you can't pump past a foot? Quote Link to comment
jewbilee Posted November 7, 2008 Share Posted November 7, 2008 I havent messed around with it yet since I don't have the float switch and I ruined the only good cap i have. Once I get another cap, Ill try making smaller holes. Quote Link to comment
Jasoncgnu Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 Very cool and cheap idea. I have a setup very similar to this but with a wired pump. I originally just used the float switch to break the connection in the air pumps cord but I didn't feel totally comfortable and thought that the AC current might wear down the switch leads. So I modified it to the following. I bought a relay and a DC power source from radio shack. The float switch now breaks the DC loops which in turn deactivates the relay and breaks the air pump loop. When I first built the ATO I was leaving town for about 2 weeks and so I was really paranoid about it malfunctioning. To help ease my mind I plugged the DC power source and pump into a digital timer. I programmed the timer to only turn on for about 3-5 min at a time about 5 times/day. This way my entire 5 gal reservoir can't be drained all at once if something fails like a snail crawling onto the switch. The timer also prevent the loud air pump from turning on while I'm sleeping. (Pump is about 1 ft from my bed) My setup is a little more than $10 but I choose to do it this way because now I can use a more powerful pump and get required 4ft of head I need to pump from my floor to the top of my tank and I never need to worry about changing batteries which I guess I could argue would offset the extra cost eventually. Quote Link to comment
Psychographic Posted November 10, 2008 Share Posted November 10, 2008 Get a set of RC plane fuel line bulkheads and O-rings to fit them, guaranteed seal. Here is one on my airdriven skimmer. Quote Link to comment
jewbilee Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 evil, you were right. I just needed to make the holes slightly smaller. Wired the float switch in and did a test run and everything works! Just need to fab up my mounting system and I'll be good to go. Quote Link to comment
evilc66 Posted November 11, 2008 Share Posted November 11, 2008 Excellent! Glad to hear you nailed the problem. Quote Link to comment
phaze5 Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 not to beat the dead dog into a pile mush anymore but will these floats work because floatswitch.net(now a different name) wants $10 plus shipping http://cgi.ebay.com/Liquid-Water-Level-Sen...A1%7C240%3A1318 Quote Link to comment
coralcor Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 i just might need to make that. Quote Link to comment
NanoCube-boy Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Have that work so far? Quote Link to comment
The Propagator Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Air leaks are usually the culprit here. The best seal without using silicone is going to be a hole that is smaller than the tube. It should be really hard to pull the tube though. Creates a great seal. This is the same way I have made three ATOs, and a CO2 system for my freshwater planted tank. Hard plastic jug with air tight screw on cap, plastic tube, and jaco fittings should = no leaks not to beat the dead dog into a pile mush anymore but will these floats work because floatswitch.net(now a different name) wants $10 plus shippinghttp://cgi.ebay.com/Liquid-Water-Level-Sen...A1%7C240%3A1318 Yup Quote Link to comment
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