My Fist Wet/Dry Completed. Dont Laugh 2 Hard :-)

[Gr8KarmaSF]

Wow!

...and the this years winner for the most colorful wet/dry ever to exist goes to...

 

[nfored]

Ok did some testing, on the lip its high enough to keep the water flowing. As for the intake I will look at how I can change it, because not only of the water level but also I didn't like how it wouldn't spread out the water.

 

[nfored]

The intake on your DIY overflow is too low. You should have the intake where you want the water level to be in the tank. If the water goes above the intake, you either have too much flow or a restriction in the overflow.

I may have used the wrong term; you’re talking about the intake being too low, are you referring to the CPR siphon tank intake? Or the cup/pvc sump intake? I’m just not connecting the dots here, as to how the cup portion would affect the tank water level. the overflow siphon pipe i made will have the intake 2 and a half inches below the tanks water level. I drills some holes in the cup to make it flow more like a shower head, spreading the water over more of the filter pads.

 

[Fish Eat Fish]

on your DIY overflow the intake is too low. It determines the water level and at its current position your looking at a tank thats only 3/4 full. unless your doing something weird with it. Also the holes in the inlet will be very prone to clogging and overflowing your tank.

 

[nfored]

I put it 2 inches bellow the tank water level to keep air out of it from fish splashing. I also used the plans found on the DIY overflow sticky, and made min look just like the photos. But at any cost I’ll trust you guys, I am just getting started and don’t want a mess because I didn’t listen, so ill raise the inlet on the overflow. As far as the holes in the inlet on the overflow, can you give other suggestions? I don't want any fish to get sucked, so what should I do instead.

those would work the same, but the DIY overflow sticky posted here seems to get air into the system because it's skimming the surface. That's what I've experienced anyway. When a fish splashes like mad when feeding, the DIY in the sticky seems to get air in it.

The only reason I like the first image is that it's easier to fine tune the water level.

I see in the picture where it says the inlet on the overflow sets the water level, i just figured as long as it wasn't draining faster than it could pump it would balance out. here are the two pictures i found on the diy overflow sticky i used to make mine.

 

[Tongue33]

First I want to thank all of you for your help and suggestions. This is my first every aquarium and first DIY wet dry, hopefully my next one will be made from acrylic. One thought after drilling what seemed like 1000 holes, all I have to say is where’s my laser cuter

I choose to use three type of media for the bio chamber, bottom layer is thin 1/4' sponges, then I placed 18 small lather builder, followed by 1000 cut up straws. All together about 5 gallons of stuff with about 1 inch of air room at the top.

I then drilled as many 3/8 inch holes in the bottom of the tube as i could

The top had the big hole in it from another project I stole it from, I was to cheap to buy another lid.

I used a cup with a 1" ID pvc pipe going to the bottom for the intake, the cup is in hopes of spreading the water out and quieting the system.

The gravel is for two things, 1 to hold the PVC pip in place, and to store small amounts of bacteria, so I can use this grave in another tank in a few months.

I drilled holes in the PVC to let the water out evenly and in hopes of pushing oxygen rich water to the gravel.

For the mechanical filter, I doubled up; on the bottom I used micro cloth, and topped it off with Fluval filter pad.

The hole in the center is where I place my intake cup.

The sump area is a 50 Gallon container. With room for about 23 gallons of water after I place everything inside.

The bio-media chamber has about 1" clearance on both sides and about 6 on the front and back. This is in case there is a clog it will overflow into the main sump.

With the lid on there is about a half inch of space between the lid and the bio-media chamber

When I place the mechanical filter chamber on top of the unit there is about 1" clearance.

Finally I used the sticky from MFK to build a CPR Siphon with 1" ID PVC which is reduced to 3/4 at the T, and includes a ball valve to shut the system down. I reduced it at the T to insure that the system won’t drain so faster than it can siphon and make the gargling sound.

There are just no words sometimes for things THIS AWESOME ! That is some Harcore in your house Macgyver Shizz there!!!

 

[nfored]

Ok here is what I have come up with, I have found a float switch for 15 dollars. I will let the system run for about 6 hours to determine the median water level in the sump. I will set the float switch to this level, so if it falls below this level (E.g. the overflow stops) the pump stops. This will save my pump from running dry and more importantly save my tank from over filling.

 

[Bud8Fan]

Looking good. The only thing I see that you may have a problem with is where the green sponges are. You may find your water flow will quickly slow and or stop as the sponges slowly build with BB and gunk. Put some egg crate between the sponges and the holes to help with this. Personally I would throw the sponges in the trash but that's just me.

Nice work! Cheers!!

 

[CichlidAddict]

Ghetto style FTW!

 

[nfored]

You think I can put the sponges in the bottom of the sump? My goal is two sided here, I want the wet dry for my tank, but I am also trying to get a nice amount of bacteria built up on the sponges and gravel. I want to take these sponges and the gravel and place them 200 gallon tank when I get it, to speed up cycling.