240 Inwall Construction (Image Intense)
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weatherson
Premium Member
Airman, Thank you very much.
Joseph.
Joseph.
weatherson
Premium Member
Emster, Thanks. I feed one sheet of Musubi Nori (Dried Seaweed) every other day. It typically takes the tank pigs less than an hour to devour this. And no, never had nitrate issues. I would mostly attribute this to keeping my efficient skimmer clean and performing well. That, and lots of in-tank flow to keep things moving. 
Joseph.
Joseph.
weatherson
Premium Member
It’s time for an update. With summer heat here in the Central Valley of California upon us, I’ve done a few projects attempting to combat this as much as possible as well as to be as efficient as possible with our electricity. Have I mentioned here before how costly this is in California? First of all, it's probably time I posted a photo of the evaporative chiller I made and installed in my sump. This has been in place for a few months now but I neglected posting it for no particular reason. This unit was designed after the Tunze evaporative chiller but done so to fit within my sump. I'd previously had the muffin fan pictured below installed as it is seen, but just blowing across the water which flows in the opposite direction. With the relatively high air and water flow and associated surface agitation, this had done well in aiding in evaporation and thus, water temperature reduction. It also aids in the ability to add as much Kalkwasser as possible to help replenish some of the calcium used up by my inhabitants. As my corals/clams mature, this has increased quite a bit. What I did was to install a rigid plastic, 90-degree tubing piece so the air is forced into the box where water trickles down though black plastic gutter guard material. The water is provided by the return line from my refugium as it is a slow flow as needed and relatively clean of debris. I've not done any official testing but the seat-of-my-pants tells me this new evaporative chiller is slightly more efficient due to the seemingly fewer 1/3 hp chiller starts. Here's a shot...
Now... on to my latest project. With my tank and all its associated equipment in its own room, when my 1/3 hp drop-in coil chiller would come on, all the heat developed by it would be blown directly into this room. A counter-productive situation at best. I'd considered switching to a pass-through or inline chiller but I am not a fan of the plumbing with tank water within running outside in our ultra hot summertime temperatures. So my ideal would be to have my existing chiller unit outside and its chilling coil inside. Sort of the best of both worlds. In order to do this, I needed a housing that would fit around the chiller coil and be water-tight. The coil and its connected hose/line would then be passed through a 4" hole I drilled in the outside wall of the room. There's a rose garden just outside this wall that camouflages and shades the chiller quite well. I will then expanding-foam seal around the hose and fill the hole for insulation. I'll be placing plastic cover plates with holes for the chiller hose and power cord over both sides of this hole to finish it off and protect the insulated hole from weather and for cosmetic reasons inside.
Beings I enjoy working with acrylic, what better material to construct this housing out of. That and I'm a sucker for shiny objects. I wanted a heavy cast acrylic for strength and when pricing it at my local plastics store, I was offered 1.25" for the price of 1". I guess it's good to be a frequent customer. Anyway... the ends would be of this heavy acrylic with one end, the input side, two layers thick which is the flange where the coil enters the housing and makes the water-tight connection. The output end is a single layer. I drilled and threaded a 1" pipe thread hole on both ends for the plumbing to attach. Here's a shot of the output end piece...
Next is a shot of the inlet/flange end. You can see the straight, vertical passage where the coil line exits the housing. This was eventually sealed with O-rings and silicone for good measure. This shot was prior to cleaning out the bolt holes after drilling them with the rubber flange gasket in place. Basically, the rubber "smeared" inside the holes. Some sandpaper rolled cleaned this out well later.
Next up is a shot of the inner portion of the flange that attaches to the cylinders of the housing. The threaded hole at the left I will describe in a bit but this piece mates up to the previous to make up the flange.
This following shot is simply of the rubber gasket I made to seal between the two halves of the flange.
First of all, it's probably time I posted a photo of the evaporative chiller I made and installed in my sump. This has been in place for a few months now but I neglected posting it for no particular reason. This unit was designed after the Tunze evaporative chiller but done so to fit within my sump. I'd previously had the muffin fan pictured below installed as it is seen, but just blowing across the water which flows in the opposite direction. With the relatively high air and water flow and associated surface agitation, this had done well in aiding in evaporation and thus, water temperature reduction. It also aids in the ability to add as much Kalkwasser as possible to help replenish some of the calcium used up by my inhabitants. As my corals/clams mature, this has increased quite a bit. What I did was to install a rigid plastic, 90-degree tubing piece so the air is forced into the box where water trickles down though black plastic gutter guard material. The water is provided by the return line from my refugium as it is a slow flow as needed and relatively clean of debris. I've not done any official testing but the seat-of-my-pants tells me this new evaporative chiller is slightly more efficient due to the seemingly fewer 1/3 hp chiller starts. Here's a shot...
Now... on to my latest project. With my tank and all its associated equipment in its own room, when my 1/3 hp drop-in coil chiller would come on, all the heat developed by it would be blown directly into this room. A counter-productive situation at best. I'd considered switching to a pass-through or inline chiller but I am not a fan of the plumbing with tank water within running outside in our ultra hot summertime temperatures. So my ideal would be to have my existing chiller unit outside and its chilling coil inside. Sort of the best of both worlds. In order to do this, I needed a housing that would fit around the chiller coil and be water-tight. The coil and its connected hose/line would then be passed through a 4" hole I drilled in the outside wall of the room. There's a rose garden just outside this wall that camouflages and shades the chiller quite well. I will then expanding-foam seal around the hose and fill the hole for insulation. I'll be placing plastic cover plates with holes for the chiller hose and power cord over both sides of this hole to finish it off and protect the insulated hole from weather and for cosmetic reasons inside.
Beings I enjoy working with acrylic, what better material to construct this housing out of. That and I'm a sucker for shiny objects.
I wanted a heavy cast acrylic for strength and when pricing it at my local plastics store, I was offered 1.25" for the price of 1". I guess it's good to be a frequent customer. Anyway... the ends would be of this heavy acrylic with one end, the input side, two layers thick which is the flange where the coil enters the housing and makes the water-tight connection. The output end is a single layer. I drilled and threaded a 1" pipe thread hole on both ends for the plumbing to attach. Here's a shot of the output end piece...
Next is a shot of the inlet/flange end. You can see the straight, vertical passage where the coil line exits the housing. This was eventually sealed with O-rings and silicone for good measure.
This shot was prior to cleaning out the bolt holes after drilling them with the rubber flange gasket in place. Basically, the rubber "smeared" inside the holes. Some sandpaper rolled cleaned this out well later.
Next up is a shot of the inner portion of the flange that attaches to the cylinders of the housing. The threaded hole at the left I will describe in a bit but this piece mates up to the previous to make up the flange.
This following shot is simply of the rubber gasket I made to seal between the two halves of the flange.
weatherson
Premium Member
I also picked up a 5" and a 6", .25" wall cast acrylic tubing. The reason I designed this with two cylinders was so that I could create a vacuum between the two to keep temperature transfer at a minimum. Basically, so the cold remains in the inner chamber and the ambient room temperature outside of the outer cylinder. A little overkill but since I was at it, why not.
I should mention also that I built this housing to fit my 1/3 hp chiller coil as well as the 1/2 hp chiller coil. This way, should I need or want to upgrade chillers, the housing won't be obsolete. This next shot is of the housing completely assembled with all the clamping bolts and gasket in place. This is looking at the inlet end...
The bolts are ¼-20, 3" button-head, stainless steel as well as the washers. These tighten to the black wing-nuts. Here's a side shot wih the housing on its side and again, looking at its inlet end...
I also drilled a hole at the output end that enters the area between the two cylinders as it does on the inlet end. In this shot looking at the outlet end, I hadn't yet finished drilling and tapping the rest of this hole. It'll make sense in a second... read on...
And here's a side shot from the outlet end...
I should mention also that I built this housing to fit my 1/3 hp chiller coil as well as the 1/2 hp chiller coil. This way, should I need or want to upgrade chillers, the housing won't be obsolete. This next shot is of the housing completely assembled with all the clamping bolts and gasket in place. This is looking at the inlet end...
The bolts are ¼-20, 3" button-head, stainless steel as well as the washers. These tighten to the black wing-nuts. Here's a side shot wih the housing on its side and again, looking at its inlet end...
I also drilled a hole at the output end that enters the area between the two cylinders as it does on the inlet end. In this shot looking at the outlet end, I hadn't yet finished drilling and tapping the rest of this hole. It'll make sense in a second... read on
...
And here's a side shot from the outlet end...
weatherson
Premium Member
OK... so here's what's up with those small holes. As mentioned, I wanted to create a vacuum between the two cylinders. I also want to be able to monitor exactly how much vacuum i created. This means I needed an access hole for a vacuum gauge as well as an access hole for a valve to allow me to vacuum out the air and keep the vacuum sealed with a valve. Here's a tight shot of the hole where I later mounted the gauge. It's a little difficult to determine but this hole is in the middle of the inner layer of one half of the flange piece. It's basically a hole that bends 90-degrees and aligns with the empty chamber between the two cylinders. Note that the following shot is looking at this threaded access hole through the rounded-over corner which distorts the view of the threads.
So we now jump forward a bit to the point when I finally placed everything in its proper place and ran water through the unit. The chiller now sits outside with the coil within the housing all snug and water-tight. I also created an acrylic piece that is zip tied to the end of the coil that stops the flow of water from just passing straight through the coil. This way, the water has to pass into the coil and out through and over all the coils for the best efficiency. This acrylic piece also helps to keep the coil centered within the housing with extended tabs. You'll also see the installed vacuum gauge as well as the valve on the opposite end where the air is evacuated from the chamber between the cylinders. Plumbing is all 1" spa flex and 45's for the least amount of flow restriction. Also, note the extra space at the output end for the longer 1/2 hp chiller coil.
Here's a shot of the flow switch I installed to prevent the chiller from coming on in the event of a malfunction where no water is flowing through the housing. In this scenario, the potential is that the water within the chamber could freeze and expand, breaking the housing apart. The likelihood is very, very slim but I feel better knowing that this additional device will prevent it from happening. Basically, this device has a small flapper inside that when flow is passing through, raises and activates a magnetic switch allowing current to pass though its attached male and female cords. It sits between the chiller controller and the chiller itself, electrically. Here's a shot of this switch and the plumbing leading to and coming from the chiller coil housing...
And finally, a just-for-the-heck-of-it shot of the spaghetti that is my current plumbing. The line with the black handled valve to the left of the post is the feed line to the chiller housing and the line just behind and to the right of the post is the outlet line from the housing that now feeds into the sinusoidal valve and into the tank.
So there you have it. My new acrylic project that should aid in keeping our electrical bill from becoming higher than it already is.
Joseph.
So we now jump forward a bit to the point when I finally placed everything in its proper place and ran water through the unit. The chiller now sits outside with the coil within the housing all snug and water-tight. I also created an acrylic piece that is zip tied to the end of the coil that stops the flow of water from just passing straight through the coil. This way, the water has to pass into the coil and out through and over all the coils for the best efficiency. This acrylic piece also helps to keep the coil centered within the housing with extended tabs. You'll also see the installed vacuum gauge as well as the valve on the opposite end where the air is evacuated from the chamber between the cylinders. Plumbing is all 1" spa flex and 45's for the least amount of flow restriction. Also, note the extra space at the output end for the longer 1/2 hp chiller coil.
Here's a shot of the flow switch I installed to prevent the chiller from coming on in the event of a malfunction where no water is flowing through the housing. In this scenario, the potential is that the water within the chamber could freeze and expand, breaking the housing apart. The likelihood is very, very slim but I feel better knowing that this additional device will prevent it from happening. Basically, this device has a small flapper inside that when flow is passing through, raises and activates a magnetic switch allowing current to pass though its attached male and female cords. It sits between the chiller controller and the chiller itself, electrically. Here's a shot of this switch and the plumbing leading to and coming from the chiller coil housing...
And finally, a just-for-the-heck-of-it shot of the spaghetti that is my current plumbing.
The line with the black handled valve to the left of the post is the feed line to the chiller housing and the line just behind and to the right of the post is the outlet line from the housing that now feeds into the sinusoidal valve and into the tank.
So there you have it. My new acrylic project that should aid in keeping our electrical bill from becoming higher than it already is.
Joseph.
invincible569
New member
WOW!!! You could make some great money making that and selling it! I love the design!
jnarowe
New member
Always amazing to see your work. I have had a terrible time with flat rubber gaskets but I notice you used a LOT of bolts!
The vacuum idea ia very interesting. Do you have any data on how much it helps?
So getting to the heart of it, why did you need the housing in the first place? Couldn't you install the business end outside and still use it as a drop-in? Or was it an issue of reach?
The vacuum idea ia very interesting. Do you have any data on how much it helps?
So getting to the heart of it, why did you need the housing in the first place? Couldn't you install the business end outside and still use it as a drop-in? Or was it an issue of reach?
george1098
New member
Your talent with acrylic never fails to blow me away. nice work.
matt & pam
Member
When are you going to make an acrylic minisub with wireless camera for the tank?
I certainly enjoy your creativity. Thanks for showing us.
I certainly enjoy your creativity. Thanks for showing us.
weatherson
Premium Member
Thanks everyone for the kind words.
Jonathan,
I attempted to do some research online but came up empty as far as any specifics (volume, level of vacuum, etc.) so it's based on knowing how a Thermos was designed and works.
The reason for building this device was based on the fact that the hose that connects the chilling coil to the compressor unit wasn't long enough but more-so knowing that having a housing around the coil is more efficient than just dropping the coil in a high flow area of the sump. In this design, the water enters the middle of the coil and is directed out through and between each coil. Much more contact is achieved this way.
Joseph.
Jonathan,
I attempted to do some research online but came up empty as far as any specifics (volume, level of vacuum, etc.) so it's based on knowing how a Thermos was designed and works.
The reason for building this device was based on the fact that the hose that connects the chilling coil to the compressor unit wasn't long enough but more-so knowing that having a housing around the coil is more efficient than just dropping the coil in a high flow area of the sump. In this design, the water enters the middle of the coil and is directed out through and between each coil. Much more contact is achieved this way.
Joseph.
weatherson
Premium Member
matt & pam & Bax, Should this sub be web based controllable too? Maybe with audio also so you could hear the Pistol shrimp? Oh... and a controllable arm with a claw on the end for righting turned snails. And a scraper attachment as well. Hmm... maybe this would be a way to decrease my maintenance duties. 
Jonathan,
Joseph.
Jonathan,
Isn't this a contradiction in statements?
Joseph.
Rock Anemone
S.C.U.B.A. :)
Ok, your tanks too amazing now. You need to give it away and start from scratch again. 
melev
Well-known member
A very cool project indeed. Could you tell us more about your flapper system that measures constant flow? I think more chiller users should have such a device on the return line to make sure the system is working properly. What does it cost and where can we get one?
Beautiful work, as always.
Beautiful work, as always.
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