Euro-Reef DIY clone.

[Rendos]

Completed skimmer being water testing...

 

[H20ENG]

Is that 1" in 1.25" for the drain?

 

[1234]

No, it's 1.25" sch 40 in 1.5" sch 200. I had asked him cause I had gotten 1.25" and 1.5" and it aint going in

The out form the skimmer is 1.5" and the rest is 1.25". I found some and had to buy 20" of it. But it was only $6

R- I hope you don't mind me answering for you.

 

[Rendos]

1234 - No problem.

H20ENG - That is correct...1.5" schedule 20 for the first part out of the skimmer, then the rest is 1.25" schedule 40.

 

[tampa-reefer]

Pikey, your lid doesnt have a vent hole?
Does it still allow the foam to rise ,well?

 

[Rendos]

The lid has 8 holes in it to vent air.

 

[grreefer]

The lid has 8 holes in it to vent air.

Do you think just drilling a hole in the side for an overflow tube would be enough?

 

[Rendos]

I don't see why not. I would use 1/4" to 1/2" hole for it.

 

[tampa-reefer]

Pikey, homedepot sell some latex tubing. Its in a natural color. The inside Dia. of its wider. And you can inlarge the hole on the pvc/plastic air intake, with a slightly larger drill bit. The water level in my skimmer neck dropped about 1". So im seeing more air is being injected/chopped.

 

[gatohoser]

So how much does this whole project cost for the last project you did not including a sedra or any main pump.

 

[Rendos]

$27.50 per foot for the 8" diameter acrylic. $41.25 for the 18 inches used here.(you have to buy a minimum of 4 feet to get this price)
$4.00 for the Uniseals.
$25.71 for the union.
$6.00 for the Red acrylic. ($1.50 per square foot locally...it was on clearance)
$10.00 worth of PVC parts.
$10.00 for the other diameter acrylic pieces used. (2 X 1" tall 4" diameter pieces for the neck, 1 X 4.5" tall 4" diameter for the inside of the collection cup, and 1 X 1" tall piece of 6" diameter for the piece attached to the collection cup top)
$0.89 for the O-ring.

$107.39 including tax (9.75%)
The Sedra 9000 from fishsupply.com is $110.00 + $7.00 for shipping = $117.00.
The grand total with the pump is a whopping $224.39. This skimmer is equivalent to a EuroReef 8-1 (upgraded to a 9000 pump) which sells for $429.95 on Premium Aquatics and that is with the Sedra 5000, not the 9000.

 

[grreefer]

Where did you get the 8" for 27.50?

 

[EnFuego]

if anybody wants to split some 6" acrylic pipe, let me know. I want to get some, but only want about 2'-3', not the required 6'. PM me if you want to split it with me (or buy 2' from me, or if you have 2' of it you want to sell).

 

[christsoldiers]

A 70% cost savings not bad at all....Great work man....cant wait to see the crud it pulls out of the water!

+1 to all of the above points! Great job!

 

[GreshamH]

I got a 4" schedule 40 true union from Custom Aquatics a while back, but they're retail price is kinda high ($50.00)

http://www.customaquatic.com/customaquatic/subsubcategorypage.asp?subcatindexid=pf-un-u8

 

[1234]

Pikey

Have you thought of adding a fitting on the bottom of the cup, hose to a waste collector? You'll have to seal the holes on the lid and when the waste collecor gets full, it'll stop some what - just empty the collector and keep on going. Thought that this would ease maintence on duping out the cup.

Just a thought :thumbsup:

 

[radone]

Pikey, what pump does this "RED" skimmer use?
If its' the 9000 could you provide the overall footprint of the skimmer and pump attached?
Are you feeding this via the pump alone or external source? Ever thought about doing a recirc model?

Thanks

 

[Rendos]

grreefer - the 4" union for $25.71 came locally at Ferguson's spa store.

1234 - I like to remove the collection cup very often to make sure it is not only drained, but also cleaned. Skimmers work better IMO when the neck and collection cup are clean.

radone - this skimmer uses a Sedra 9000. not sure about the overall footprint, but I will check when I get home. I am using only the 9000 for this skimmer. I have done a recirculating model, but haven't noticed a huge difference in performance as opposed to a regular non-recirc model.

 

[grreefer]

grreefer - the 4" union for $25.71 came locally at Ferguson's spa store.

I was wondering about the 8" dia. acrylic. for 27.50 (min 4 ft), its 32.00 (with a 5 ft min.) at usplastics.

 

[yettihead]

You could always order your cast acrylic tube from McMaster. You can buy 1, 3 or 5 foot sections at a very reasonable price.
McMaster Cast Acrylic Tube