Wetworx Nano-skimmers!!!

[Undertheradar]

see what kind of skimmate you get after a few days. If it looks like dark tea or coffee...it is just right. If you notice it is too light, lower it. If you notice that the dark coffee ground paste is forming around tne riser area but not in the collection cup, raise it.

[phenom5]

thanks again UTR. i'll let it run for a few days more and see where i'm at.

[1105]

UTR, I started making a new skimmer last night based on your recirc. design with the removable cup but I have a question. What are you using for the PH that pumps the water into the skimmer? I used a MJ 400 my last time and rigged up an venturi design on it, so will that work? Would I want to have the 400 just pumping water into it or have it setup the same way I did on my other skimmer?

[MadTownMax]

Not to go off-topic, but I thought these comments might help you guys out -

 

I just upgraded (well, made it work to my standards ) an excalibur skimmer with limewood airstone (now it's a counter-current, not a venturi - lol

 

Just remember that limewood airstones need a lot more backpressure - running it w/ a cheap-o airpump will only get you at best 50% performance (mine was probably 30%)

 

Now I hooked mine up to a tetra deep-water airpump (18 was the model) that's made to drive one (1) 3" limewood airstone - or three normal airstones - and my skimmer is working overtime (after I added an extension to the riser tube, as the extra volume of air added about 6" to the foam)

 

The best part - I'v got a 12" column in my skimmer that looks like milk.

 

I've got two of these wooden airstones and I like them, but I would be interested in the fused silica airstones too...(mentioned a few posts ago I think) If they work as well as these limewood blocks - especially if I just have to clean them in some muriatic acid in between uses

 

-Nick

[huari]

Thanks for the tip, I got my Sweetwater finepore stones from Aquatico(sp?) AES I forget the name, but its a famous old place from aquatic stuff. I didn't go limewood due to the maintenance and didn't go for a higher cfm rated pump since my wetworx skimmer is only 18" and the foam was already overflowing at the air pumps lower setting, plus a bigger pump means more watts but next time I'll make the skimmer taller/wider like your extended Excalibur. I finally put walls on my collection spoon and went back to aspirating venturi using the minijet 404 and that's working out fine at 5 watts.

[Undertheradar]

I am feeding the skimmer off of the main sump's pump...a bypass from the main 900gph pump that does about 50gph...while the main skimming is done with the Maxi-Jet 1200.

[speedsport]

undertheradar could you send me the plans to build the recirc skimmer that you posted in this thread.

 

"They come in 1/2" and 3/4"...tight turns, yet low flow restriction. They fit perfectly on the intake and outlet of a MJ1200 with little more than some hose and teflon tape. The hose is impartant because there is a hole in it for the air intake.

 

anyone see where I am going with this yet?

 

A recirc skimmer...the water enters from the top...only about 50gph or so from a larger pump...on the way down it gets recirculated by the MJ1200 multiple times, with gobs of air, and eventually goes out the bottom bulkhead and back into the sump. Since the actual flow through the skimmer is so slow, microbubbles are nil coming out the other end...yet I can use a MJ1200 on a skimmer that is only 2"x5"! And because the skimmer is plumbed so tight and close to the skimmer body, fitting it in my cramped sump is easy."

[Samc]

Phenom 5, mine looks EXACTLY like yours. Acts the same too. I have the foam break level down at the botom of the riser area, though. I will wait a week and see, but this thing has been running forever (about four weeks in europe, and no I didn't clean it). Any suggestions UTR?

 

Sam

[wave98]

Cheers to UTR:

 

UTR:

I think the "Radar" that someone used as "RadarSkimmer" in one of the posts on your volumnious thread should "stick".

 

Your patience and helpulness border on the superhuman or "saintly". Maybe even remeniscent of the beloved M.A.S.H. charachter.

 

I have followed the skimmer threads including the 45 page behemoth and I am very impressed with your resourcefulness and diy capabilities ( tremendously informative ).

 

I have only 6 mos. on my 30 gal. hex reef. This forum and your threads have opened up more information and avenues of pursuit in reef keeping than all the research and investigation that I have done "everywhere" else.

 

Thanks, and keep up 'the fun"!:teehee:

 

ooPS, I am currently most interested in your recirculating skimmer. My main interest right now is what is the best "frothiness" ( or milkiness ) of aeration that we can produce. This seems like the factor that will most directly determine what the best and final configuration of skimmer might become. It would certianly have a direct impact on "how small is small" as well power consumption and water flow limitations. Please give us an update on your latest skimmer.

[phenom5]

samc,

mines running better. its skimming pretty dry, but i'm getting some good skimmate. the only problem i have with this skimmer is its sorta black magic to get it set. with the standpipe as it is right now i did something (don't know what) and it was skimming really wet...too wet. so i shortened the standpipe and the water level was way too low. put the original standpipe back and the water level was back to where it is pretty good. i'm not sure what i did different to changed the water level from being way too high to just about right with the same standpipe, same standpipe height. it works pretty well, but the adjustability of the skimmer isn't there.

[Samc]

The air/water mixture gives you the "fine tuning". I am not in front of my tank right now, and I don't know how the skimmers doing (away for a week). When I intially set it up, it would froth up for a little bit at a time, after about 12hrs. Haven't seen it do that yet!

 

Sam

[Ehawk]

Hey UTR, great work on all of you DIY stuff. I am getting ready to build a skimmer based on your plans, but was hoping for the recirculating one. Any word on when you might have them done before I get my acrylic cut?

 

Thanks

[Undertheradar]

Oh, sorry...forgot about that. Ill work on it tonight after work.

[phenom5]

okay...so like i said, black magic to get it adjusted. its been running fine for a couple of weeks. today i did a water change, didn't touch the skimmer, didn't remove any water from my sump (its easier to just change water out of my display). all i did was take a turkey baster to kick up any detritus that has built up in the sump, and its out of control. i can't run the skimmer b/c it'll run my sump dry in a few hours, thats how wet its skimming. any suggestions?

[phenom5]

okay, here's the only thing i can come up with...could water in the airline tubing cause this sort of problem? the only problem with that thoery is that when i had the skimmer running and skimming well with the water level good, if i shut off the air valve completely there wasn't enough pressure to pump the water over to the collection area. now, i can't run it at all w/o it skimming really wet. wtf? i really need to fix this, cause if not i'm gonna have to shut the skimmer down and go back to the drawing board...

[HobokenAddict]

Hi there, you skimmer is perfect size for my acrylic sump and will be replacing my cprbakpak2r. I've done some work with weldon 4 and was curious on one thing. When you glue the front of your skimmer on, is it same to assume you're only gluing the outer edges? Are you putting any weldon16 or other type of adhesive on the various internal parts so you have clean welds on the front and back? Going to make this over Labor day weekend.

 

Thanks

 

Flananuts

[ojyarumaru]

I'm having trouble with the skimmer I made (the injection). I get a large bubble at the bottom:

 

 

like that. I am using a JBJ 1300 powerhead (240gph). Why is this happening?

[doncb]

Originally posted by HobokenAddict

Hi there, you skimmer is perfect size for my acrylic sump and will be replacing my cprbakpak2r.  I've done some work with weldon 4 and was curious on one thing.  When you glue the front of your skimmer on, is it same to assume you're only gluing the outer edges?  Are you putting any weldon16 or other type of adhesive on the various internal parts so you have clean welds on the front and back?  Going to make this over Labor day weekend.

 

Thanks

 

Flananuts

 

You need to glue the internal parts to the front & back so the sections are sealed. Otherwise you'll get blowby and the skimmer w/n work right.

[HobokenAddict]

I was thinking it have to be done that way, but I can't figure how to get the weldon to it. What did you use, or how did you do it?

 

After looking at the pics, I'm sure I can bond both side of the internal parts up at the collection area, above the cpvc, and the top angled part of the long diagonal near the collection area. I figure that would prevent blowthrough specifically in the top and the collection area.

 

Thoughts?

[doncb]

Originally posted by HobokenAddict

I was thinking it have to be done that way, but I can't figure how to get the weldon to it.  What did you use, or how did you do it?

 

After looking at the pics, I'm sure I can bond both side of the internal parts up at the collection area, above the cpvc, and the top angled part of the long diagonal near the collection area.  I figure that would prevent blowthrough specifically in the top and the collection area.

 

Thoughts?

 

You have to lay a bead of Weldon on the edges when you put it together. (I didn't use Weldon. See below)

 

If the long (10") piece isn't sealed you'll get water & bubbles blowing past into the 1/2" exit area. Also if the bottom part of the diagonal isn't sealed you can get blow-by which would disrupt the bubble "head" formation. Either way flow is disrupted.

 

I just made one like this and since I didn't have any Weldon I used PVC cement. Actually works! Contains acetone & MEK along w/ PVC rosin. Since it's thick it takes a little while to cure but works well for something like this.

[cseeton]

You just need to seal the top area where the junk accumulates. The bottom portion only needs to be a good fit. If there are large voids, those need to be filled in, but otherwise it will not matter.

[ojyarumaru]

Can someone please help me with this problem?

[cseeton]

If you want the air bubble to disappear, insert a piece of airline and that will release it. Otherwise, it will grow until it gets large enough to dislodge itself. Shouldn't affect the skimmer either way.

[Undertheradar]

The bubble does get so large that it would rise up, but the pressure of the water trying to get through that narrow channel keeps it from doing so...so it becomes a blockage that can cause the skimmer to overflow. That is why in later versions, I eliminate that baffle and its ability to hinder flow. In testing I realized that there really is no reason for it at this scale.

[ojyarumaru]

So should I stick in an airline or try to take it apart and remove the baffle?