I had that idea too but I am not sure how I could do it with 2 inch perforated tubing. I would think it would work best if I wrapped the outside with something but the only thing I came up with was a filter pad. It works great for short term but is very unsightly and I only use it when cleaning my tank. I also looked into a strainer basket but I doubt that would help much with sand. I came across a Reticulated Fish Foam Filter Intake Assembly on Marine Depot site today but I am not too crazy about the green foam.
Yeah, they ain't cheap that's for sure, almost prohibitively expensive, but their energy consumption is INCREDIBLY low and they create almost no heat at all. Additionally, they have some calcium precipitate bypass doohickey (that's the technical term) that prevents the impeller from seizing, so they're almost maintenance-free.
