DIY Swirler Stein

[DeathWish302]

My motor was a Frigidaire type similar to dngspot's.

I did an inspection teardown saturday on my SS. Figured it was a good time to soak the PH in vinegar, so why not inspect the onboard wiring and bearing. I did find that the Lowe's SS fasteners blow and I've been leaching some rust into the water likely over the last year. Anyone have a good source for Titanium fastners? I need 10-24 or 1/4-20 threads by 1" & 1.5".

As for the bearing method, I would highly reccomend a bearing to eliminate the hassle with adding lube to the bushing design. I was initially concerned with rust of the bearing, but found this weekend that my fasteners are more of a concern than the bearing that is buried in the case.

 

[chrismunn]

my bearing was so rusted that i had to replace it. since my housing sits so close to the water that when ever there's a wave the water will hit the bottom ofthe housing and weep into the bearing.

 

[Jude]

Anyone have an updated complete parts list?

 

[reefscape15]

Very nice erikk!

 

[Bryan]

Most microwave motors are 21 VAC,. Did you hook them up to 120 VAC.?

yeah ive tried 2 microwave motors now and the first one didn't work at all and the second one worked for about 5 minutes. I'd rather not spend the money on another one trying to find one that does work, if the clock motors are 120v and do 2-3 rpms and fairly cheap, i'd be willing to give them a try.

 

[CBehr]

How do I attach the long PVC pipe to the box...I can't quite figure this part out. If I just put a coupler on the inside fo the box that doesn't hold it well enough.

 

[nauticac4]

I cut a shoulder on the pipe that rest on the bottom of the bearing and then placed a bolt on top. this sandwiches the bearing and the bearing rest in a race inside the box. Hope that made sense.

 

[DeathWish302]

I cut a shoulder on the pipe that rest on the bottom of the bearing and then placed a bolt on top. this sandwiches the bearing and the bearing rest in a race inside the box. Hope that made sense.

You can use a bolt. If you remove only enough material on the downtube so that it has an interference fit to the bearing it will never move. My downtube is an interference fit that I wet sanded with 600grit until I could seat the downtube on the bearing using a c-clamp.

After the downtube is seated on the bearing, the bearing can be held in place with a bored-out pvc 'retainer' that is glued to the project box or a plate can be bolted on top of the bearing through the bottom of the project box. I preferred to used both methods. I sanded out I believe a 1.5" piece of pvc for my VXB bearing. This was a interference fit, but not nearly as tight as the downtube to bearing interface. This was then glued with the blue pvc glue to the pvc junction box.

I inspected this assembly about a month ago after ~18 months of use with no problems. The only flaws in my design are the cheap Lowe's SS fasteners I used that are externally exposed. I will just replace these with Ti fasteners when I can find a reasonably proced source. Best ~$45 (minus PH) I have spent on a flow supplement minus my $5 surge bucket.

 

[nauticac4]

Deathwish - check out harbour freight tools. I was in there a few days ago and they had Titanium hardware kits pretty cheap.

 

[DeathWish302]

Deathwish - check out harbour freight tools. I was in there a few days ago and they had Titanium hardware kits pretty cheap.

Thanks for the heads up.

 

[SFeST]

I want to do this badly but I have a rimless tank with no hood so I needed to get even more creative with the mounting and execution. I also wanted the whole thing to be as invisible as possible.

I drew this up super quick, dimensions aren't exact and I omitted a few things I didn't feel like drawing but you get the idea. This is just a quick concept that came into my head. I have plenty of leftover acrylics hanging around to make it.

Do you think that an acrylic brace would hold it fine like that? You can't see it very well at the angle I have posted but the brace on the motor side is a lot wider than the in-tank side to give it plenty of support from twisting and hopefully holds it in place better. I may have to tap a hole in the back of it and get a plastic screw to really get the thing to stand still.

Also, I don't have a good idea in my head of what that lawn mower bearing looks like so I'm wondering if you think that would still work the same way to hold the down tube. I didn't draw anything because it's the only part I'm really unsure of so far. And, I still plan on using the rc steering tie rod like in the opening post, I just was too lazy to draw it 3D :spin1:

Thoughts?

 

[nauticac4]

I've been using R12 spec bearings which are .750 I.D. 1.625 O.D. and .43 thick. There easy to find and cheap. This bearing fits loosely inside of a 1.1/4" pipe coupling a couple of shims or some glue makes a great seat for the bearing.

The plan looks good I think youll definetly need to tap the plastic or double side tape it place to minimize vibrations. The distance between the motor shaft and down tube play a big role in the needed arm lenght to get the desired amount of rotation.

 

[DeathWish302]

The distance between the motor shaft and down tube play a big role in the needed arm lenght to get the desired amount of rotation.

SFeST:

If you need an Excel program to compute link lengths, I have created a simple sheet to determine link lengths for the desired rotation. Shoot me a email address through PM if needed.

 

[CBehr]

Does anyone want to fix/build me one of these I've tried a couple times taking a few hours at a shot and just can't get it going. I spend 3 hours last weekend and it kind of swivels but binds up. I didn't do the bushing method but thought I could still get one working....extremely frustrated at this point!!! If someone could fix mine or build me a bushing style one I think I could build another 2 like I'd like to do

 

[DeathWish302]

Does anyone want to fix/build me one of these I've tried a couple times taking a few hours at a shot and just can't get it going. I spend 3 hours last weekend and it kind of swivels but binds up. I didn't do the bushing method but thought I could still get one working....extremely frustrated at this point!!! If someone could fix mine or build me a bushing style one I think I could build another 2 like I'd like to do

Can you post a pic of what you have? This would make the problem much easier to diagnose. If we can't figure it out online, I'm close enough to give you a hand. Mines been running for more than a year with no problems, so we CAN get your SS in working order.

 

[CBehr]

Here are two pictures, it runs great until I turn on the powerhead. I guess from the powerhead pushing backwards it makes it kind of bind and move in jerky motion.

I guess I should really have figured out how to put a bushing in but I've spent so much time on these already and thought others were making it work before the bushing idea came about... super frustrated and just need this to work so I can build another 2-3 for my display and prop system!

 

[CBehr]

Anyone? I really need to do something about the lack of flow in my tank!

 

[ctripi]

I'd suggest extending the PVC through the top of the outlet box so that the PVC has two places of contact rather than one. That way the powehead will have less freedom to bind or shuttler against the one point of contact. Last though is that the connecting rod needs to be longer.

 

[DeathWish302]

I'd suggest extending the PVC through the top of the outlet box so that the PVC has two places of contact rather than one. That way the powehead will have less freedom to bind or shuttler against the one point of contact. Last though is that the connecting rod needs to be longer.

I agree the downtube should extend through to the top. Some couplings and alot of sanding would fix it completely. Drill holes to hold the couplings after sanding and adhere those with PVC cement. Check for binding and sand anywhere contact occurs. Apply some silicone grease from the plumbing aisle and you should be good for 6 months before relube is required. I disagree and feel the arm coming from the downtube needs lengthened. With some simple measurements of the linkage, center point of downtube to the tie rod connection point, length between motor bolt and tie rod connecting point and the distance between the motor bolt and center of the downtube I could tell you what length the downtube arm and tie rod end needs to be. If you would prefer the program, PM your email addy. This is an easy fix, but will require some more elbow grease and time....

I woudl personally just scrap the bearing method as I have completely and buy the $5 VXB bearing. No lube required again in my design and eliminate the labor intensive sanding of the coupling. Best $5 fix I ever made to my SSs'.

 

[fishwonder]

If you need an Excel program to compute link lengths, I have created a simple sheet to determine link lengths for the desired rotation. Shoot me a email address through PM if needed.
Please email me one kevincmai@hotmail.com Thanks.