I did it again......

[DgenR8]

Another Diatom filter bites the dust. Anyone have a Vortex XL model for sale?

 

[quagmire]

Which part failed?

 

[quagmire]

Hard to tell from the picture if this is an xl but this person has one for sale and they are on long island.
http://www.manhattanreefs.com/forum/sale-trade/149202-tank-stuff-f-s.html

 

[mbg75]

I have plenty of XL parts except a motor.

 

[DgenR8]

Which part failed?

I have one with a working motor, but the plastic housing (where the thumbscrews are) broke. I have another that has good plastic, but the motor is ceased. I tried to free it, but it's locked up good. I have a habit of forgetting to clean it after use. A week or so later, maybe longer, I find myself cleaning a stinky, stagnant mess.

Hard to tell from the picture if this is an xl but this person has one for sale and they are on long island.
http://www.manhattanreefs.com/forum/sale-trade/149202-tank-stuff-f-s.html

That is the smaller model.

I have plenty of XL parts except a motor.

If I could figure out how to separate the motor from the housing, I could build a Frankenfilter out of parts I have on hand. I removed the three nuts, but I can't get the impeller off the motor to save my life, and that seems to be what's holding it all together.

 

[mbg75]

The impeller screws off. You have to lock the motor from turning.

 

[DgenR8]

The impeller screws off. You have to lock the motor from turning.

I'm sitting here laughing at myself, I never tried spinning it, I thought it was pressed on.:facepalm: It's not left handed thread, is it?

 

[quagmire]

Mine has left hand threads.

 

[DgenR8]

I'll try to pull it apart again this weekend.

 

[DgenR8]

Well...
It is left handed thread on the impeller, and I took apart the bad motor pretty easily. Of course, the good motor wasn't so easy. I wound up having to replace one of the three studs that hold the motor to the, uh, I guess you'd call it a volute. There were some trials and tribulations as I tried to fit something I found among my "stuff" in the garage into where the original stud came from.
After putting it all back together, I have a leak. Where can I buy that rubber seal that lives in the volute, behind the impeller?

 

[ebrady1440]

auto part stores carry a lot of size o rings if its that type

 

[DgenR8]

This isn't going to be that easy.

 

[Vinny Kreyling]

Larry,
Direct from Vortex!
www.diatomfilter.com

 

[quagmire]

If you're talking about the small seal that the impeller shaft goes through, i bought one at AH a few years ago. It was an item that they had in stock. It needs to be packed with aquarium safe grease. I got that there also. IIRC the grease tube had the vortex name on it.

 

[mbg75]

Aquahut usually has the shaft seal on stock. If u need any other parts I have some diatom XL parts laying around.