180 gallon build: Modular control system, 3D printed equipment, open-source

[jrhupp]

So time for some updates. There is a lot that has been under way to post up.

Lets start with the quickies:

I modeled up a PaulB style brine shrimp feeder. It prints as three pieces (and clip to hold the fill tube in place). The top and bottom halves are threaded and screw apart for easy assembly/cleaning. The third piece is a simple plastic ring that snaps into the top to hold the mesh in place. The fill tube I used was 6 mm glass tubing (7 mm OD).

Here are the STL files if you are interested: STL files

I also knocked out a test tube drying rack. It prints in several pieces and snap-fits together.

I updated the link for the tool tray from the earlier post with these files.

 

[Fredfish]

So time for some updates. There is a lot that has been under way to post up.

Lets start with the quickies:

I modeled up a PaulB style brine shrimp feeder. It prints as three pieces (and clip to hold the fill tube in place). The top and bottom halves are threaded and screw apart for easy assembly/cleaning. The third piece is a simple plastic ring that snaps into the top to hold the mesh in place. The fill tube I used was 6 mm glass tubing (7 mm OD).

Damn that is slick! Really compact.

 

[jrhupp]

The rest of the update:

I got the parts for two of the reactor bodies printed, assembled and up and running. Right now there is just a bit of GAC in one of them.

Here are the two as installed on the system (I need to do some clean up on soft tubing, but otherwise i think it looks good). The main part of the body is 2" PVC and they are permanently daisy chained together with 3/4" PVC.

Some assembly shots:

This is looking down from above; one side exits at the top, the other links to 1/2" PVC and exits at the bottom of the reactor body. I did't vapor polish these, but did solvent brush the inside of the parts. That is why a bit of surface haze can be seen in a few spots.

This is the view from the bottom.

The caps I did as two pieces each. I printed them open side down with support. To cover the rough surface this left on the inside bottom of the cap, I printed a thin solid disk and solvent glued it in place. The caps for the top are solid. Those on the bottom have a 3/4" male slip x 1/2 FNPT PVC insert glued in them (the same insert is used on the inlet/outlet of the body).

I had some 1/4" MNPT x 1/4" quick connect valves on hand, so I used those for the drains in the bottom caps. Its just a nylon bushing to do the thread size adaption. The idea behind this is that they can be used to drain the water out of the reactor body before opening the bottom cap to change media.

For seals I printed a template (top) and then cut the seals from EPDM rubber sheet.

I'll post up the source files after I get them cleaned up.

I like the design as the parts allow for some flexibility in assembly. With just the parts used for the bottom of these it could be built up into an inline design like the typical DI resin cartridge for an RO/DI system.

 

[CafeReef]

damn...I need to pay you to come to Omaha and help me get my printer calibrated...0% chance I could get anything that round. beautiful work still.

 

[madweazl]

Awesome as usual!

 

[jrhupp]

So I have been slow to respond; just too busy lately.

damn...I need to pay you to come to Omaha and help me get my printer calibrated...0% chance I could get anything that round. beautiful work still.

Thanks.

Tight belts? I have had tons of issues over the time with the printer, but I don't ever remember curves being an issue. But I run the belts for X and Y pretty tight. I would have to imagine slack in these would translate to poor precision when implementing moves that require the X and Y to act together.

I seem to remember reading somewhere that Cura does some funky math with coming up with gcode from "curves" in the stl file. I believe the stl files are a collection planes, no real curves and when processed to gcode they have some mechanism for recognizing arcs and smoothing these when creating gcode.

Awesome as usual!

Thanks.

And on to a small update. I had a chance to clean up the SketchUp model for the reactor parts. I only laid them out in one configuration in the model. But at least if anyone wants the parts now they are up. 2" reactor parts

 

[saf1]

Shoot Paul a message and show him what you made, he would get a kick out of it. Honestly, good job.

Edit: Any chance for a wider shot of your tank the feeder is in with the macro algae? Part of my upgrade has me adding some macro algae in my sump which I'll get from indo pacific. Tangs love the stuff so I was going to grow it. The algae you had caught my eye and I could almost do the same thing instead of keeping it in the sump. Since I'm mostly a soft coral tank already I think the algae would give it a nice touch.

 

[jrhupp]

Shoot Paul a message and show him what you made, he would get a kick out of it. Honestly, good job.

Edit: Any chance for a wider shot of your tank the feeder is in with the macro algae? Part of my upgrade has me adding some macro algae in my sump which I'll get from indo pacific. Tangs love the stuff so I was going to grow it. The algae you had caught my eye and I could almost do the same thing instead of keeping it in the sump. Since I'm mostly a soft coral tank already I think the algae would give it a nice touch.

Thanks. I hadn't thought about PMing him. I'll do that. As I think about it, I know I would appreciate it if the situation was reversed.

I'm in the midst of modeling up a revision of the feeder that has a mag mount. Give me a bit and I'll post it up.

As to a wider pic, there are some full tank shots further back in the thread. Unfortunately I'm away from home at the moment and don't have anything more current on my phone. The macros have filled in since the earlier pics, but general layout is the same: its a lagoon style tank, two large rock structures and a third of the sand bed is rockless and covered with macro. Mostly it is Caulerpa prolifera, with some unknown Gracilaria species, an unknown Codium species and a little of what is likely Halodule wrightii (vascular plant, not a macro algae). I'll see what I can get for pics when I get home and try to post up something more current.

 

[saf1]

Thanks. I hadn't thought about PMing him. I'll do that. As I think about it, I know I would appreciate it if the situation was reversed.

I'm in the midst of modeling up a revision of the feeder that has a mag mount. Give me a bit and I'll post it up.

As to a wider pic, there are some full tank shots further back in the thread. Unfortunately I'm away from home at the moment and don't have anything more current on my phone. The macros have filled in since the earlier pics, but general layout is the same: its a lagoon style tank, two large rock structures and a third of the sand bed is rockless and covered with macro. Mostly it is Caulerpa prolifera, with some unknown Gracilaria species, an unknown Codium species and a little of what is likely Halodule wrightii (vascular plant, not a macro algae). I'll see what I can get for pics when I get home and try to post up something more current.

Thanks for the note about going back a page or so, let me start there. I should probably go back and start over I have sort of glossed over the 3D printing stuff so may have passed them. Not that I don't like that stuff just that I don't want to end up buying one

You typically just hear or read about people making a bracelet or something like an ornament. In your use case there is actual value add. This is one area 3D printers are not making any headway and should be shown has use. Still only at the hobby level but think about it. Model train, air planes, wood working, etc. Some good examples how it would help and your thread has many prime examples of how it works.

Great job btw.

 

[jrhupp]

You typically just hear or read about people making a bracelet or something like an ornament. In your use case there is actual value add. This is one area 3D printers are not making any headway and should be shown has use. Still only at the hobby level but think about it. Model train, air planes, wood working, etc. Some good examples how it would help and your thread has many prime examples of how it works.

Thanks! This means a lot. I would absolutely love to see more folks doing similar stuff.

Post #166 has a full tank shot. Not very grown in in it.

 

[Fredfish]

Thanks! This means a lot. I would absolutely love to see more folks doing similar stuff...

You've already convinced a few to buy and try. I'll probably pick one up this winter.

You've definitely shown how a printer can benefit your average hobbyist.

Out of curiosity, did you have previous design/cad experience? One thing I truly appreciate working in manufacturing is just how much effort goes into a properly designed component.

 

[BigDave]

We have a few guys at work with printers. I've designed a few things and have had them print them for me.

One of the guys recently purchase an UP 2 for here in the office.

The most recent design I did was for a wall mount for a piece of electronic equipment for in my closet.

The nice thing about rapid prototyping is that you can make a design, print it, test it, and modify it in a few hours. My first iteration of the design was off, so after I tested it and modified it, the second one worked perfect.

I do have previous engineering experience and I do a lot of woodworking, so my brain is already mechanically inclined. I don't think it would take much for someone to pick it up and learn the software to design stuff. If you've every played with google sketchup, then you already have a good start on what it takes.

 

[jrhupp]

You've already convinced a few to buy and try. I'll probably pick one up this winter.

You've definitely shown how a printer can benefit your average hobbyist.

Out of curiosity, did you have previous design/cad experience? One thing I truly appreciate working in manufacturing is just how much effort goes into a properly designed component.

Cool. Post what you do with it once you have it.

I had some mechanical drawing in high school (all on paper) and grew up doing woodworking/legos/tinkering with mechanical/electrical stuff. But I have never had any training in computer based design platforms. SketchUp is easy enough to pickup by brute force (and with basic math and spatial reasoning skills).

That said, I'm pretty well immersed in this kind of stuff professionally: I work as a scientist involved in the design, manufacture, support and application of instrumentation. My work feeds my hobbies and my hobbies feed what I do at work.

 

[Fredfish]

Cool! I have a similar background. Grew up on a farm where you learn how to do a lot of stuff badly, but good enough to keep things running.

Are you doing all your design in sketchup? I've played with it a little.

 

[Scottedontknow]

dude omg! you need to start your own business! you could make a killing on all these mods!! what an epic build!

 

[jrhupp]

Cool! I have a similar background. Grew up on a farm where you learn how to do a lot of stuff badly, but good enough to keep things running.

Are you doing all your design in sketchup? I've played with it a little.

Yep; All the mechanical stuff has been done in the free version of SketchUp. I do make use of a hand full of plugins that make it easier/possible to do some stuff that would be hard to do with SketchUp's basic tools.

dude omg! you need to start your own business! you could make a killing on all these mods!! what an epic build!

Thanks. I have considered it, but its not for me.

 

[2smokes]

Awesome build.I think i will build myself somme of thoose diy temperature sensors too but i will use titanium tube .

 

[jrhupp]

Awesome build.I think i will build myself somme of thoose diy temperature sensors too but i will use titanium tube .

Thanks. The part number for the thermistor I used and the SteinHart coefficients are in the temperature controller sketch.

 

[jrhupp]

Nothing fancy and printed today, just a few pics of the tank.

 

[JonezNReef]

Nice set up on the tank. The rock work is awesome and I really like the sea grass at the one end of the tank. Can't wait to see a video of the surge and tank in action.