canister filter idea

[deepdivered]

this filter didnot work any longer so i tore the pump out of it.

Too bad.
Good news is all you have learned.
I have always picked up, “Tricks-n-Procedures” on a build.
Quite often more knowledge on the projects that didn`t work.

no lol this project is not what did not work. i was replying to his comment about how i was tearing apart a ehiem pro 2 to get the pump out of it.

this project is still in the stage of looking for parts

 

[xdragonxb0i]

so how is it the project going?

excuse us deep diver, we dont like to read. To clarify his filter was already leaking/broken

 

[deepdivered]

so how is it the project going?

excuse us deep diver, we dont like to read. To clarify his filter was already leaking/broken

well i am currently trying to find a threaded cap for 6" pipe.

one like the cap in this project (part #2) if any one can find one for a desent price let me know! thanks

 

[deepdivered]

so i spent hours at the hardware store and on-line. i going with 4" pipe as its so much more redly available and there is a lot more choices of connectors. i kinda dont want to drill a hole threw the side around the bottom like others have cause i think its a week spot for leaking. would it be just as good to put a reducer at the bottom and pipe right in to it like that for the inlet. or maybe have a t or y section at the bottom with a plug in one end to seal it off.

 

[KaiserSousay]

I see you have hit the flaw in a PVC/DIY canister.
$$$$$$$$$$$
The pipe is cheap, but man, are those fittings costly.
I had wanted to build something similar, kind of based on the Lifegard, modular series filters I had seen.
Once I costed the whole project out, I was shocked. Then I started to think of the added hassle of taking the whole show apart for cleaning.
Shelved the thought.
But it did lead to using spin on, whole house water filter canisters.
A few others have done this.
dawnmarie being one of the nicer examples.
Before you shell out a bunch of money, check his system out.

 

[deepdivered]

I see you have hit the flaw in a PVC/DIY canister.
$$$$$$$$$$$
The pipe is cheap, but man, are those fittings costly.
I had wanted to build something similar, kind of based on the Lifegard, modular series filters I had seen.
Once I costed the whole project out, I was shocked. Then I started to think of the added hassle of taking the whole show apart for cleaning.
Shelved the thought.
But it did lead to using spin on, whole house water filter canisters.
A few others have done this.
dawnmarie being one of the nicer examples.
Before you shell out a bunch of money, check his system out.

thanks for the idea but would rather stick with original idea. i did look into these sediment housings after you showed me this though.

 

[deepdivered]

this is what i am basicly doing

Hi People,
After reading and contemplating about canisters, I couldnt keep myself from DIYing one. It took a lot of time, I was too busy sometimes, so the process stood on halt for long periods. Thats why I wasnt able to take the pics then.
I starting plotting the cheapest ways possible and posted some kiddish plans earlier, that used buckets / some odd containers, but neither seemed good enough for a big canister.
The mechanism is pretty simple as that of Eheim classic series(for example) - Water gets siphoned into the canister from bottom, passing through various media moves upwards into a pump situated at the top that throws the water back into the aquarium.....


Materials used:
18" tall 4"dia PVC pipe with 4mm gauge
4"dia slip type end cap for base
4"dia threaded socket with lid for the top
3/4"dia PVC pipe
A couple of 1/2" ball valves
4" 'O' Ring to make the container air tight
A 'Chinese' pump 750lph
Some odd numbers of Nozzles(1/2"),
couplings(slip type, slip type to inner threading type)
elbows
1m 1/2"dia multipurpose hose pipe.
PVC cement, Araldite and silicon

Tools:
Hacksaw blade, Drill(with various sized bits), dremel, paint brush(for applying adhesives), Sharp knife, pliers, scissor, file.

All the above combined gave 7 simple parts that can be assembled and removed whenever needed with a little effort.

1-The Canister
2-Lid with a pump
3-'O' Ring
4-Controllers
5-U-bends to go into the tank
6-Strainer
7-Spray bar

A 3/4" hole was drilled at the bottom of canister for inlet, which was made pasting pvc couplings,elbow and nozzle together.

The 'O' Ring is an essential part, that keeps the system from leakage. Luckily I was able to find one which is used in heavy machinery for gas compression.

I was looking for union ball valves which I couldnt find, so I had to settle with the normal ones. which I permanently fixed using adhesives. These valves can be closed while cleaning, hence they save me from priming it every time I open the canister.

I was thinking of using a 5 or 6"dia pipe for canister but they being very rare and their lids that are not found around, I didnt had patience to search them all, so went for 4"... will use a bigger diameter for next filters I make.

The pump has a slip type nozzle, so I drilled a 1/2" hole on lid, permanently fixed the nozzle, the pump can be pushed in to attach. this gives an advantage of removing the pump whenever needed for cleaning the propeller n other parts inside. The electrical chord passes through a 3-4mm hole on the same lid, hole is temporarily sealed using silicon(so that later the pump can be removed for claiming guarantee if needed).

The spray bar and the strainer attached to the U-bends

Note-
-This filter is for my 30g planted tank, thats why used a pump with minimum output.
-PVC cement should be only used for pvc-pvc joints, it'll not fasten pvc on any other mateial, so araldite was used for pvc-plastc joints.
-Dremel was an additional tool used to make quick n clean cuttings, hacksaw can be used otherwise for the same and later the surface or edges can be filed and sanded to give a neat look.

As of any equipment this has flaws in itself:
1-Its too narrow
2-The lid has to be tightly replaced after opening, to avoid leaks
3-To open the lid we have to make over a dozen rotations! but yet can be done once or twice a month.
4-The base cap is round headed, so am keeping a 4" coupling under it.

Looking forward to know your views.

 

[aquaventions]

hello! i am new to this forum and hobby. i am a professional scuba diver so i need a fish tank right. lol well i found a 20 long and its still cycling. but i dream of building my own plywood tank after seeing them here on this site. i have wasted countless hours on here reading about building filters. i want to stick to canister filters cause lol thats what i want to do.

i was given a ehiem pro 2. it leaks. i know i can change the seal but.... i love building things. so i read up on several filters made here.

i got a lot of ideas fron scratanut canister filter

and

Jgray152 6 gal bucket filter

so my idea is to have 3 canisters made of 6 inch pvc pipe linked together doing mechanical, chemical, and biological filtration . i will have the inlets and outlets turned as to create a "tornado effect"

here is my scetch

pleas give me some opinions of this idea!

there is a pluming suply shop where i can get the suplyes and i have a pump.

Given your background can you build filters using used or obsolete scuba tanks? They would have a lot of capacity.

 

[deepdivered]

Given your background can you build filters using used or obsolete scuba tanks? They would have a lot of capacity.

the tanks are expensive even if used and would be hard to work with. but yes they would have a large capacity lol and be very heavy.

 

[deepdivered]

i allready have buckets and the sealing screw on gasketed lid. i may just go for a bucket filter. but i really really want to make it out of pvc. just the bucket wil be cheeper. shoot hard decision lol