DIY canister?

[KaiserSousay]

Would think an intake line, going through a whole house style water filter would solve the crudding up problem. Spin on filters are easy to remove in order to replace filter cartridges. Might still have to pull down the tower once, twice a year for cleaning.
Like I said, pretty cool thinking on his part.

 

[Jgray152]

I am thinking of using a whole house filter as well. A very large one though with a clear housing. The larger the better due to the increase in surface area.

I suppose as long as you don't need to break it down all the time.

 

[yogurt_21]

One that pops on.

Granted, there are pop on lids of many types. So there may be some out there that ... "could" work but I wouldn't bet my fish on it. That screw top lid seems nice. I have been looking at the Gamma Seal lids. Although these have a ring that pops on, the rings fits tighter than anything I know. Not to sure how well the whole thing would work under pressure. I will be getting on to test it.

https://www.usaemergencysupply.com/emergency_supplies/gamma_seal_lid.htm

sorry just noticed you replied you're telling me this whole time you've been refering to the 5$ home depot buckets? EPIC FAIL! like serious.

second metal clips are chep and small on the magnum 350 and they cannot hold the pressure of my pond pump, a screw on 5 gallon can.

not sure what you mean when the pump is off, it's a canister not a sump.

and all your points on 90's seem to be neglecting pump engineering which I will nto go into if you do not know already as I'll be wasting my breath (probabally already am) sumersible pumps are what we use in aquariums and they have limited head. the more friction in the line, the less gph it pumps out. friction is caused by fittings, your argument again makes no sense unless you're refering to a 1/2hp 25' head pump. (which consumes 400watts btw) if you're using a submersible, most cap out at 8' head and remember it's likely 4' from your stand to the top of your tank leaving you with half the flow rate form the get go, the more 90's you put in the more reduced the flow is.

also it is impossible to speak from others experience you've only got your own which seems quite limited. come talk to me after you setup your own successful 3300g pond and then you may have learned something.

 

[swede]

i regret ever starting this thread

 

[yogurt_21]

i know I should have left it sorry swede, was early and I was cranky.

 

[swede]

no its fine. just as a whole this thread was a fail. i've decided that i would rather just get an aqua clear than spend the money on a DIY canister. they give the benefits of a canister but the ease of HOB. and for the money i would've spent on media and all the pieces, i can buy a nice ac70 or even ac110

 

[KaiserSousay]

thread was a fail. i've decided that i would rather just get an aqua clear than spend the money on a DIY canister

Then I wouldn`t call it a failed thread..aside from some posts...
Pros, cons, pitfalls were pretty well covered..plus that whole bio tower idea has some merit.
Overall, I`m glad you got it goin`

 

[Jgray152]

sorry just noticed you replied you're telling me this whole time you've been refering to the 5$ home depot buckets? EPIC FAIL! like serious.

Because this is what most will buy and refer too. I am not talking about those cheapo semi clear plastic pop on lids either.

BTW, This was also because of what Swede said he was going to use.

a bucket with lid is under 10.

What type of lid do you think he may have been looking at?

second metal clips are chep and small on the magnum 350 and they cannot hold the pressure of my pond pump, a screw on 5 gallon can.

They are not design to hold that amount of pressure.. Didn't I say that already? I think I did.

Second, what screw on lid where you using. the one pictured in this thread?

Third, a screw on lid will obviously hold more pressure better since the lid is kept on the bucket through a 360 degree thread and not just a few clamps.

not sure what you mean when the pump is off, it's a canister not a sump.

Of course its a canister. When you run a pump, depending on the flow rate, pressure may drop in the canister, this is what you said before, guess what happends when you turn the pump off? The pressure increases and you can even get a surge.

and all your points on 90's seem to be neglecting pump engineering which I will nto go into if you do not know already as I'll be wasting my breath

you will be wasting your breath since I already know about some about pump engineering.

sumersible pumps are what we use in aquariums and they have limited head.

ummmm.... yes...

the more friction in the line, the less gph it pumps out. friction is caused by fittings, your argument again makes no sense unless you're refering to a 1/2hp 25' head pump. (which consumes 400watts btw) if you're using a submersible, most cap out at 8' head and remember it's likely 4' from your stand to the top of your tank leaving you with half the flow rate form the get go, the more 90's you put in the more reduced the flow is.

Let me explain this to you and maybe you will understand a bit better as you seem to know everything.....

Question1 : How do you figure out TDC? (Total Discharge Head)
Answer1: Subtracting suction head from discharge head. Not including friction losses.

So since I just taught you that. What does this mean for canister filters? Well. There is 4' of suction head and 4' of discharge head. That means the pump is really only "circulating" the water and not pumping against any head caused by height. The only losses you will have is any minor frictional loses caused by the ANY fittings but the biggest restriction will be the media used.

Your also wrong about the pump you speak of consuming 400 watts. Many consume less. This depends on many factors and especially depends on the impeller design used.

PVC and Vinyl tubing friction losses are near zero.

PVC fittings , from pipe to fitting to pipe are usually a very smooth transition from one to another so friction losses are not great.

90 degree fittings are the worst to use but you don't loose as much as you claim. This depends on the material used, the type of 90 and the internal construction of the 90 as many differ from one to another.

My Fx5 was measured at 600 GPH with ribbed tubing bent at 180 degree over the rim of the tank. Ribbed tubing would have the most frictional loses. I switched out the tubing with Vinyl tubing and used 2 90* fittigs which do not have a smooth transition inside either, on the intake and output to go over the rim. I even have barbed fittings which reduce the overall ID to a small size slightly. Guess what?? I am still at 600 GPH.

also it is impossible to speak from others experience you've only got your own

Are you kidding me? So sharing peoples experiences with setups similar to this I can not speak of?

come talk to me after you setup your own successful 3300g pond and then you may have learned something.

Ponds are a different world. I build water features and ponds for a living. Can I talk to you now? Head height will be the most restriction in a correctly plumbed system.

You need to learn a few things I hope I cleared up some of your knowledge.

 

[Jgray152]

most cap out at 8' head and remember it's likely 4' from your stand to the top of your tank leaving you with half the flow rate form the get go

Btw, you don't just get 50% flow reduction from pumping against half the rated head. This depends on the impeller, house, motor, etc.. Only a pump flow chart/table will tell you this.

If you look at many flow charts, you actually have more than 60-70% flow at half the rated head.

Most canister filters are low head high flow pumps as you know and actually, some will barely go past 4-5 ft head. This depends on the strength of the pump. A good guy over on FishForums.com took at Eheim 2234 and tested how much head the pump could flow at. At 4', there was only a very small trickle.

The specs of the filter say max head is at 4' 3". Even though, he still gets the full flow of the filter at 4' when its setup as a sealed balanced system.

 

[Jgray152]

come talk to me after you setup your own successful 3300g pond and then you may have learned somethin

Let me ask you this? how many ponds of you created?

Your also wrong about the pump you speak of consuming 400 watts. Many consume less. This depends on many factors and especially depends on the impeller design used.

Clarify.. The are many pumps that you can use which consume a lot less energy and move the same amount of water with the same restrictions.

reply: actually I lost more than I thought when I used them indoors. my pond pumps outdoors have 25' of head so they don't notice as much.

Which pumps were you using? What were their specs? Were they used in a canister or sump? If a canister, what canister design? If a sump, how much head height was there?