My DIY Recirculating Skimmer

[Chompers]

Made with scrap, junk, discards, and other cheap stuff.

The collection cup and reaction chamber body are from a set of three nesting acrylic containers that I got from Goodwill for $3.99
The top of the reaction chamber is an inverted acrylic bowl from Walmart for $1.98
The majority of other parts were free(ish).

 

[Chompers]

I actually had been scrounging up parts for a while.



I can (might) build more designs, but I started to like this one more and more.

 

[Chompers]

My camera actually ate a significant number of my pictures, so I'm really starting in the middle somewhere and improvising.
The photo for the container used in this skimmer was one of them that was lost. This picture will give you an idea of what it looked like prior to cutting the bottom off. This picture is actually the making of the cup.

 

[Chompers]

The main body started with the largest of the three containers and the Walmart bowl (they are still on the shelves but are seasonal).

It ended up like this after the bottom was cut off and the bowl glued on. I used a two inch hole saw to cut the bottom off the bowl.

 

[Chompers]

By the way, the union for the cup is a two inch plumbing union that was (lost) in my garage. I cut it down with my miter saw (chop saw).

 

[Chompers]

The flange on the reaction chamber started as a square piece of acrylic and ended up like this:

To make the flange, you need a router table, a scrap of plywood, and a type of pin (I used plastic air line).




Everything was good until the pin broke...

 

[Chompers]

I reinforced the new pin by sticking a nail in the center. And I took extra care cutting the next one. In the end, all was good.

 

[Chompers]

Before I get too far into this, I'd like to give credit to my inspiration for the final design of this skimmer. And the DIY skills and router skills are way better than mine. This link is worth reading in its entirety. However, please note that it is Canadian. For those not familiar with the native Canadian language, I have made up a quick translation guide in the next post...
The thread:
DIY Askoll (Laguna) 1500 Recirculating Needlewheel Skimmer

 

[Chompers]

Canadian Translation Guide:
Eh? = Right? ...as in "ya get what I said, right?"
Eh? = Huh? ...as in "Huh? I didn't hear you."
Eh? = I'm autistic and in a minute I'm going to bark.
a boot = about
a boot = A boot. Footware that is sturdier than shoes. Usually occurs in pairs.

Ok, so now you are pretty much up to speed with the native Canadian language. Now you can go back to the above thread and have it mean something.

 

[Chompers]

Ok, so enough sillieness for one thread. On with the show...
I drilled the eight holes in the flange prior to gluing it on the body (that makes sense, eh?)

And here's a pic to better illustrate the flange:

 

[Chompers]

That picture skips ahead a little bit. It also is a reminder of some missing photos. The pictures of the construction of the white box (the skimmer sump) didn't survive. Anyway, it is just a plastic box. I made it using a free sheet of white acrylic that was rescued from a dumpster. The clear flange material was also free.
The gasket is cut from a camping mat ($5 at Walmart). It is closed cell foam. I've used it on other flanges and for floating food rings. It is also awsome as a vibration damper (under or around pumps).

 

[Chompers]

This is the bubble diffuser. Notice that it has two parts...

The eggcrate part is four stacked layers. The purpose lends from wind tunnels in that it smooths out the flow of the current.

It was cut on the band saw to fit a scrap of acrylic tube...

The lower bubble plate is plastic pegboard with some extra holes drilled in it. I made it removable in case it ever needs to be cleaned (thinking about snails and small fish, etc.).


...and then I plumbed it so that it is centered in the main body.

 

[Chompers]

And here it is installed...

Notice the plumbing. There are two inputs and two outputs. This is so I can run it as a recirculating skimmer. I don't think I will though. Tests from my needle wheel pump showed that it chops the bubbles up too small when it recirculates. Yes, I know, but the bubbles are in fact too small to remove from the water column in a timely manner. I made the sump box extra tall to help remove the bubbles.

 

[Chompers]

Here's the plumbing inside the box. At the bottom is the two pipes with 90's pointing toward the center. These are the outputs. They are using the bubble diffuser assembly as a sort of baffle. It also helps keep the downward water flow even as it exits the reaction chamber and thus allows the air bubbles to rise better.

 

[Chompers]

And lastly, going back to the skimmer cup, remember this picture?

...put that and this together...

...to get this.

You have to drill a two inch hole in the bottom of the cup. The cup gets glued to the top piece of the trimmed down union. Then the tube gets glued over the hole.

 

[Chompers]

The cup and union ends up looking like this.

And then it gets topped off with a lid made using a circle with a ring glued on. The ring is slightly smaller than the circle. Its purpose is to keep the lid centered. The ring fits inside the cup and the circle rests on top of it.

(I still need to track down one more inner ring to direct the skimmate foam downward into the cup.)

 

[Chompers]

And to finish, the shot of the completed skimmer in its new home (the tank is at least a month from completion).

 

[Chompers]

Here's the thread for my DIY needle wheel pump that will power the skimmer.

https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/do-yourself-diy/69096-diy-needle-wheel-pump.html

 

[BlazinNano]

Awesome! DIY is awesome!

 

[MitchReef]

That thing is sick....I gotta come see it.....

Blue fish is still on the loose!