DIY "Stream" Style Pump
- Thread starter thunt
- Start date
ejmeier
Active member
Hey, it's supposed to be a SECRET. 
Okay, honestly, I have a bunch of ideas that I wanted to incorporate into one V2.0 model, but I am hesitant to share them until I know they work.
Anyway, some of my *untested* ideas are:
Use a dremel/saw to cut off the very base of the original maxi-jet guard piece, just the part that clicks onto the bottom and holds it in place. Then make an adapter mount for this piece so it will fit into the bottom of the DIY 2" PVC base. This way you can easily attach and detach the guard, just like on a real maxi-jet.
As thunt originally suggested, make a stop just slightly above the propeller to knock it back into place and get it spinning the right way. I think the stop he was thinking of was mainly to smack the propeller on the side and change its spinning direction, not merely to have it move up and down until the magnet finally "learns" to spin the other direction. I was just going to use some epoxy putty for this as it will be easy to make it in the shape I want and easy to attach to the curved inside surface of the guard.
Lastly, use an ABS fitting with horizontal slits so it looks really cool.
Maybe use some black eggcrate (which I can't get locally, so I'll just use white) on the very end of the output nozzle just to be safe. My Anthias FLOCKS to this thing if I ever turn it off. I would hate to see a fish get mulched by this thing in a power outage or during maintenance.
Okay, honestly, I have a bunch of ideas that I wanted to incorporate into one V2.0 model, but I am hesitant to share them until I know they work.
Anyway, some of my *untested* ideas are:
Use a dremel/saw to cut off the very base of the original maxi-jet guard piece, just the part that clicks onto the bottom and holds it in place. Then make an adapter mount for this piece so it will fit into the bottom of the DIY 2" PVC base. This way you can easily attach and detach the guard, just like on a real maxi-jet.
As thunt originally suggested, make a stop just slightly above the propeller to knock it back into place and get it spinning the right way. I think the stop he was thinking of was mainly to smack the propeller on the side and change its spinning direction, not merely to have it move up and down until the magnet finally "learns" to spin the other direction. I was just going to use some epoxy putty for this as it will be easy to make it in the shape I want and easy to attach to the curved inside surface of the guard.
Lastly, use an ABS fitting with horizontal slits so it looks really cool.
Maybe use some black eggcrate (which I can't get locally, so I'll just use white) on the very end of the output nozzle just to be safe. My Anthias FLOCKS to this thing if I ever turn it off. I would hate to see a fish get mulched by this thing in a power outage or during maintenance.
niko5
New member
Cool cant wait to see that 
I really wish I would have though about the sawing off the original cover and using that on the fitting that would work perfect I bet. maybe next time hehe if it works for you.
I think the eggcrate might mess up the flow you get out of it because it is a spinning flow and the eggcrate might mess that up.. but worth a shot and it would defiantly be safer.
That makes since about just stopping the prop rather than letting it slide out and back in hum... defiantly like to see if that works.
Well here is my V2.11 Not as clean looking as ied like though.
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/Bell Guard.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/bottom bell.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/Inside bell.JPG
As you can see on the bottom of my fitting I cut a piece of acrylic to put in it to serve as a mount which is currently hot glued to the maxi jet but would have been a PERFECT base to mount the original piece that locks on the maxi jet.
I really wish I would have though about the sawing off the original cover and using that on the fitting that would work perfect I bet.
maybe next time hehe if it works for you.I think the eggcrate might mess up the flow you get out of it because it is a spinning flow and the eggcrate might mess that up.. but worth a shot and it would defiantly be safer.
That makes since about just stopping the prop rather than letting it slide out and back in hum... defiantly like to see if that works.
Well here is my V2.11 Not as clean looking as ied like though.
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/Bell Guard.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/bottom bell.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/Inside bell.JPG
As you can see on the bottom of my fitting I cut a piece of acrylic to put in it to serve as a mount which is currently hot glued to the maxi jet but would have been a PERFECT base to mount the original piece that locks on the maxi jet.
ejmeier
Active member
Whoa! That thing is huge! What is that, like a 4" to 2" reducer?
On a good note, I went out to in the garage with my maxi-jet shaft and tape measure in hand. Guess what I found all over the wheels of a bike? Tons of Maxi-Jet shafts!
I did some research, and found that bike spokes are basically 14 gauge rods. 14 gauge works out to about .08, while 3/32" is about .092, but that's close enough for me! Technically 3/32" is equivalent to a 13 gauge wire, though I've never heard of anything being 13 gauge. I'm definitely making a stop to the bike shop tomorrow, I am becoming more and more optimistic about this project.
What is that, like a 4" to 2" reducer?On a good note, I went out to in the garage with my maxi-jet shaft and tape measure in hand. Guess what I found all over the wheels of a bike? Tons of Maxi-Jet shafts!
I did some research, and found that bike spokes are basically 14 gauge rods. 14 gauge works out to about .08, while 3/32" is about .092, but that's close enough for me! Technically 3/32" is equivalent to a 13 gauge wire, though I've never heard of anything being 13 gauge. I'm definitely making a stop to the bike shop tomorrow, I am becoming more and more optimistic about this project.
niko5
New member
Well awsome Ill have to pick up a spoke or 2 for further upgrades
Its only a 2" to 1 1/2" reducer hehe Its about the size of a real stream. If i dont notice any difference in flow (its still drying havent tested) them in gonna stick with my other slightly cleaner look
Its only a 2" to 1 1/2" reducer hehe Its about the size of a real stream. If i dont notice any difference in flow (its still drying havent tested) them in gonna stick with my other slightly cleaner look
Last edited:
niko5
New member
Well I was sittin here thinking about what you were saying about this thing being huge.. and I was thinking.. wait.. that plate I cut was 3 1/2" the fitting is a 3" to 1 1/2" recuder.. I picked it up out of the 2" to 1 1/2" box and it looked like the size I wanted I dident even think about looking at it closer thats home depot for you..
ejmeier
Active member
That's a bummer, but not a complete loss. I guess it would look better than the gobs of hot glue I was originally planning on covering the base of the MJ.niko5 said:
This way, the gobs of hot glue would be on the inside (out of sight) to attach the maxi-jet base to the guard. I guess its just a matter of where you want to pull the gobs of glue off.
Anyway, I won't comment on this any further until I've actually tried it....
ejmeier
Active member
Okay, so I lied.ejmeier said:
How about this: do the maxi-jet base mount thing, but on the guard, have it be a cleanout adapter. You know, the ones with the ends threaded. Then buy a cleanout plug and drill a big hole in it (basically as big as the pipe itself) so all you are left with is the threads.
Then mount the acrylic cross brace thing and the whole shooting match onto this threaded piece. The piece then threads into the end of the output nozzle. Then you could just unscrew the end and remove the whole shaft and magnet from the front.
That's all for me tonight, I'm tired.
gwrulzmylife
New member
looks like that would work
ejmeier
Active member
Well an update to my project.
Things didn't quite go off the way I wanted, but where would be the fun if everything worked out perfectly?
I started by calling a few bike shops and finding that most if not all shops don't carry titanium bike spokes.
They said they could order them for me, but it would be a full set, which would cost a lot of money.
I went to the hardware store and must've looked at practically everything that was metal, or was made of titanium. I came up empty. At one point I was even looking at 3/32" titanium drill bits, but they were the same length as the regular maxi-jet shaft.
How ironic.
Also, I couldn't find the part that I specifcally wanted in ABS, though I got a backup part that is very similar and probably would've worked if I had used a 1 1/4" propeller. So I had to settle for white PVC.
I think this contraption will work, but it is still untested. I'll throw together a post in a few minutes detailing what I built.
Things didn't quite go off the way I wanted, but where would be the fun if everything worked out perfectly?
I started by calling a few bike shops and finding that most if not all shops don't carry titanium bike spokes.
They said they could order them for me, but it would be a full set, which would cost a lot of money.I went to the hardware store and must've looked at practically everything that was metal, or was made of titanium. I came up empty. At one point I was even looking at 3/32" titanium drill bits, but they were the same length as the regular maxi-jet shaft.
How ironic.Also, I couldn't find the part that I specifcally wanted in ABS, though I got a backup part that is very similar and probably would've worked if I had used a 1 1/4" propeller. So I had to settle for white PVC.
I think this contraption will work, but it is still untested. I'll throw together a post in a few minutes detailing what I built.
ejmeier
Active member
Okay, what I came up with (as explained in previous posts) is a modified maxi-jet that uses a fixed inner shaft to stabilize the outer moving shaft. I wanted to make something reliable but also accessible, so I tried to make it easy to take apart.
First, I used the old base of the maxi-jet, sawed off about 1/2" up from where it meets the base of the MJ.
Then I attached this to a 1 1/2" cleanout adapter. The outer dia. of the maxi-jet base, ironically, is *very* close to being 1 1/2", so I used a small length of 1 1/2" PVC as a bushing. I then hot glued it in place, sawed some slots at the base of the fitting, and I now had a removable guard piece that fits on the top of the MJ.
However, like niko5 mentioned, the propeller cannot fit through the small opening on the MJ base piece. What I did was drill out a 1 1/2" cap to use as another removable piece for the front of the unit. This would let me unscrew the front and take out the propeller and magnet, then I could detach the guard if needed. Here's a picture of the drilled out cap:
Once this was done, I just cut some eggcrate to fit in the threaded piece, borrowed the shaft "holder" cap piece from the original MJ, and glued it all into the front of the unit.
I also put a little piece of epoxy putty inside the wall of the guard piece. This is meant to stop the propeller from spinning the wrong way and popping out of place. If it starts up spinning incorrectly, its own back-current will push it up and out of the shaft. When this happens, in theory, the prop should hit the stop and reverse directions. Once it is then spinning the right way, the current it makes will instead push it down against the MJ body where it's supposed to be. Here's another pic:
Like I mentioned in the earlier post, I couldn't find a replacement shaft, so I borrowed one from my other MJ. I cut it fairly short, and used it in the base of the unit to stabilze the bottom of the magnet. The other shaft is on the front and stabilizes the propeller shaft and the top of the magnet.
Here's an exploded view of the whole thing:
And here's a pic of the finished, assembled unit:
First, I used the old base of the maxi-jet, sawed off about 1/2" up from where it meets the base of the MJ.
Then I attached this to a 1 1/2" cleanout adapter. The outer dia. of the maxi-jet base, ironically, is *very* close to being 1 1/2", so I used a small length of 1 1/2" PVC as a bushing. I then hot glued it in place, sawed some slots at the base of the fitting, and I now had a removable guard piece that fits on the top of the MJ.
However, like niko5 mentioned, the propeller cannot fit through the small opening on the MJ base piece. What I did was drill out a 1 1/2" cap to use as another removable piece for the front of the unit. This would let me unscrew the front and take out the propeller and magnet, then I could detach the guard if needed. Here's a picture of the drilled out cap:
Once this was done, I just cut some eggcrate to fit in the threaded piece, borrowed the shaft "holder" cap piece from the original MJ, and glued it all into the front of the unit.
I also put a little piece of epoxy putty inside the wall of the guard piece. This is meant to stop the propeller from spinning the wrong way and popping out of place. If it starts up spinning incorrectly, its own back-current will push it up and out of the shaft. When this happens, in theory, the prop should hit the stop and reverse directions. Once it is then spinning the right way, the current it makes will instead push it down against the MJ body where it's supposed to be. Here's another pic:
Like I mentioned in the earlier post, I couldn't find a replacement shaft, so I borrowed one from my other MJ. I cut it fairly short, and used it in the base of the unit to stabilze the bottom of the magnet. The other shaft is on the front and stabilizes the propeller shaft and the top of the magnet.
Here's an exploded view of the whole thing:
And here's a pic of the finished, assembled unit:
ejmeier
Active member
By the way, this is all *untested* and probably won't work!
I will give it a shot in a few hours once the epoxy has hardened. Some of my concerns are:
Enough flow coming in through the sawed out slots.
Slots too big to allow snails into prop area. (Slots are about 3/8" wide).
Too much flow restriction on the end with the eggcrate in place.
Prop stop won't reverse direction of propeller.
Any other weird or unforeseen problem.
If I can get past all of this stuff, then it should work like a champ! I'll have to wait and see what happens. Don't want anybody to go out and build something like this until I know it actually works!
I will give it a shot in a few hours once the epoxy has hardened. Some of my concerns are:
Enough flow coming in through the sawed out slots.
Slots too big to allow snails into prop area. (Slots are about 3/8" wide).
Too much flow restriction on the end with the eggcrate in place.
Prop stop won't reverse direction of propeller.
Any other weird or unforeseen problem.
If I can get past all of this stuff, then it should work like a champ!
I'll have to wait and see what happens. Don't want anybody to go out and build something like this until I know it actually works!
ejmeier
Active member
I'm hoping that the suction will be enough to discourage and critters from getting too close. I figure eggcrate does a decent job, and the holes are 1/2", so I should be able to get by with 3/8" openings. The only snail I'm worried about is a Cerith, those things are kinda small.
On my last model, an Astrea *teleported* inside the propeller area and caused some decent damage. Basically the airline shaft came unglued. The snail was fine.
I have no idea how long it is going to take for the epoxy to cure. Mostly I'm just too lazy to put it to work, plus I'm afraid that it will explode in a ball of flames, negating all of my work today.
On my last model, an Astrea *teleported* inside the propeller area and caused some decent damage. Basically the airline shaft came unglued. The snail was fine.
I have no idea how long it is going to take for the epoxy to cure. Mostly I'm just too lazy to put it to work, plus I'm afraid that it will explode in a ball of flames, negating all of my work today.
niko5
New member
Here is my days work Version 3.0
This time i got a REAL 2" to 1 1/2" Reducer, A threaded clean out adapter and a cap. The fitting were all cut down to shorten the length. Did like ejmeier did with the maxi jet base on the cap to make it removable. The new props I got are a little different and will actually stop when they hit my center support because the outer edges stick up above the shaft.
Here my pics... not tested yet still curing
My slots aren't as clean as ied like.. i cut both pieces separately and then glued the tougher... still need a better method.
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/MJS 3.0.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/Guard 3.0.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy...0Base 3.0.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/Parts 3.0.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/Prop 3.0.JPG
Also ejmeier, you said you did not want to put SS in your tank well i always though the maxi jet rods were titanium but they aren't its SS.
This time i got a REAL 2" to 1 1/2" Reducer, A threaded clean out adapter and a cap. The fitting were all cut down to shorten the length. Did like ejmeier did with the maxi jet base on the cap to make it removable. The new props I got are a little different and will actually stop when they hit my center support because the outer edges stick up above the shaft.
Here my pics... not tested yet still curing
My slots aren't as clean as ied like.. i cut both pieces separately and then glued the tougher... still need a better method.
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/MJS 3.0.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/Guard 3.0.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy...0Base 3.0.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/Parts 3.0.JPG
http://www.nicksreef.com/images/diy/MJS/Prop 3.0.JPG
Also ejmeier, you said you did not want to put SS in your tank well i always though the maxi jet rods were titanium but they aren't its SS.
