Just finished Nilson kalkwasser reactor
- Thread starter plankton
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If your trying to bond pvc and acrylic weldon 16 wont give you a solid hold it is made to weld together acryilic witch is a differnet plastic than pvc as you know. The best way to bond these two together is weldon 40 it is a two part epoxy and will hold up to your presures. I currantly have 180 psi on a pvc and acrylic jiont so i dont think you would have any problems.
Also in the heating and cooling industry we us soliod state time delays that are adjustible from 1 to 10 min and can delay the power on or off any hvac supply will have them and grainger they are cheap and with two of them you could easily time the water into the tank and then run your mixing pump.
Also in the heating and cooling industry we us soliod state time delays that are adjustible from 1 to 10 min and can delay the power on or off any hvac supply will have them and grainger they are cheap and with two of them you could easily time the water into the tank and then run your mixing pump.
I got the acrylic tubing last night. It has a VERY loose fit in the 4" PVC coupler that I bought. I can bottom it out completely in the coupler. It will take a lot of glue to make it seal. The acrylic will have to be cut perfectly straight to bottom out with a good seal against the ring in the middle of the coupler. On top of this, I will probably end up using some epoxy on the inside and outside of these joints to keep them from leaking.
Would any old epoxy work in this situation? I don't want to introduce something toxic to the system.
Would any old epoxy work in this situation? I don't want to introduce something toxic to the system.
No, You need a epoxy rated for acryilic and also water weldon 40 mixis up thick so it wont take as much as you think. Your local acryilic guy will have it but if you need an online guy the only place i no of is dave at life reef. Also if you go to his site I think its lifereef.com he has acrylic flanges that are easy to get open with key hole, holes and thumb screws they are worth the thirty bucks he charges. The pvc screw caps can be a pain to open when the time comes to do so. the only porblem is i think he only has them for 6" round not four but he should adapt one for you if you ask nice.
I called a number of plastic supply companies in the Worcester area, and not one of them carries Weldon products, let alone Weldon 40.
I checked the weldon web site, and they say that Weldon 16 is appropriate for use in bonding acrylic to PVC.
But I don't think I have enough.
I did not have AES cut the acrylic tubing for me, since I wasn't sure where I would want it. I think I will be able to make a good cut with my dremel and some planning. I did not have to buy 6 feet. I bought just 2 feet, and I got more like 27 inches.
I will not be using a PVC cap for this project. I have a T cone test plug from Savko. It is a yellow screw in plug that screws into a coarse threaded rubber plug. It is made to seal up a 3" cleanout adapter. I also bought a 4"PVC pipe to 3" cleanout adapter uhh...adapter from Savko. It should work great.
What did you guys use for the base? I have a 4" toilet flange, but it doesn't slide over the PVC end cap I have. So I figure I will just epoxy it to the end cap.
Sorry for such a flurry of posts, but I'm an acrylic newbie.
I checked the weldon web site, and they say that Weldon 16 is appropriate for use in bonding acrylic to PVC.
But I don't think I have enough.
I did not have AES cut the acrylic tubing for me, since I wasn't sure where I would want it. I think I will be able to make a good cut with my dremel and some planning. I did not have to buy 6 feet. I bought just 2 feet, and I got more like 27 inches.
I will not be using a PVC cap for this project. I have a T cone test plug from Savko. It is a yellow screw in plug that screws into a coarse threaded rubber plug. It is made to seal up a 3" cleanout adapter. I also bought a 4"PVC pipe to 3" cleanout adapter uhh...adapter from Savko. It should work great.
What did you guys use for the base? I have a 4" toilet flange, but it doesn't slide over the PVC end cap I have. So I figure I will just epoxy it to the end cap.
Sorry for such a flurry of posts, but I'm an acrylic newbie.
plankton
Premium Member
Tap plastics is a pretty good source for all kinds of acrylic stuff.
Tap Plastics
For acylic/acylic I almost always use the thick weldon-16 glue, since I don't cut very straight and don't feel like investing the time to make clean straight lines, etc.
Don't forget the pics when you're done!
Scott
Tap Plastics
For acylic/acylic I almost always use the thick weldon-16 glue, since I don't cut very straight and don't feel like investing the time to make clean straight lines, etc.
Don't forget the pics when you're done!
Scott
the problem I and many of my friend have with the 16 is not the seal but the tension from twisting the cap on and off. 16 seems to come apart easier when used with pvc ,so just be aware not to stress the jiont when you upen and close the reactor.
As far as the bottem the flange will work but a square peice of acrylic will give you better stibilty.
As far as the bottem the flange will work but a square peice of acrylic will give you better stibilty.
Just an update.
I cut the 4" pipe with my dremel. I actually got the cut pretty darn flat. I just had to have a guide line to follow. I then used PVC primer and cement to put the two halves (ok, 1/3 and 2/3) together with a slip coupler. And I used some epoxy both inside and out to ensure a good seal.
I can't use the epoxy on the inside of the base joint, though. It is simply too far to reach. So I may use the weldon 16 down there. Or just use a 2 part epoxy.
I am using an epoxy I found at Home Depot. I hope it doesn't have a reaction with the kalk. I don't think that it should.
I also drilled two 7/8" holes for the 1/2" PVC. It should seal ok with the epoxy. It should all come together this week.
I cut the 4" pipe with my dremel. I actually got the cut pretty darn flat. I just had to have a guide line to follow. I then used PVC primer and cement to put the two halves (ok, 1/3 and 2/3) together with a slip coupler. And I used some epoxy both inside and out to ensure a good seal.
I can't use the epoxy on the inside of the base joint, though. It is simply too far to reach.
So I may use the weldon 16 down there. Or just use a 2 part epoxy.I am using an epoxy I found at Home Depot. I hope it doesn't have a reaction with the kalk. I don't think that it should.
I also drilled two 7/8" holes for the 1/2" PVC. It should seal ok with the epoxy. It should all come together this week.
indeep said:
I've had bad luck with those twist caps before, so I am not using one. I am instead using a t-cone test plug from Savko. It is a black rubber insert with a yellow twist in plug. Just put in the rubber plug, twist in the yellow cap till it is snug, give it a 1/4 turn with a wrench and it is completely sealed.
Gone for a few months and everyone's building Nilsen Reactors. 
FWIW, I'm using a rubber end cap with a clamp at the top of my reactor instead of a threaded fitting so I don't have to fight with it for cleaning and adding kalk. I just used PVC cement and primer to glue the PVC to the acrylic and haven't had any problems.
Unit's been in service for about 1 year now I think. Ball's Pickling Lime hasn't affected the MaxiJet 1200 mixing pump too badly, but it makes a mess of the reactor so I'm switching to ESV.
FWIW, I'm using a rubber end cap with a clamp at the top of my reactor instead of a threaded fitting so I don't have to fight with it for cleaning and adding kalk. I just used PVC cement and primer to glue the PVC to the acrylic and haven't had any problems.
Unit's been in service for about 1 year now I think. Ball's Pickling Lime hasn't affected the MaxiJet 1200 mixing pump too badly, but it makes a mess of the reactor so I'm switching to ESV.
I finished the reactor last night. It took me a while because we have a new baby. Gluing 1 or 2 connections per night isn't all that speedy. It worked out pretty well. I have my solenoid and float valves set up in the tank already.
I may or may not drill a hole in the side of my sump to get the Mag 9.5 out of it before I install the whole system. If I decide to do this, the installation will have to wait until this weekend. I also have to drill a hole in the floor for the RO water feed.
I can't wait to get it set up, though!
I was a bit messy with the epoxy, but I think that it should seal well. And I think that my method for connecting the pump to the reactor should work well.
I'll take some pictures and post them tonight.
Thanks for your help!
Josh
It worked out pretty well. I have my solenoid and float valves set up in the tank already.I may or may not drill a hole in the side of my sump to get the Mag 9.5 out of it before I install the whole system. If I decide to do this, the installation will have to wait until this weekend. I also have to drill a hole in the floor for the RO water feed.
I can't wait to get it set up, though!
I was a bit messy with the epoxy, but I think that it should seal well. And I think that my method for connecting the pump to the reactor should work well.
I'll take some pictures and post them tonight.
Thanks for your help!
Josh
From the top. I used a 1/4" NPT tap to tap the hole for the water feed. I tapped it pretty deep. Then I tapped it shallow from the other side. On the outside, I used a Jaco 90 degree fitting with a ball valve in it. On the inside, I used a regular ol Jaco 90 degree fitting. The fresh water nylon hose then goes down from that fitting to below the mixing pump.
I forgot to take pictures of my tee cone test plug that I tapped and put a 90 degree ball valve fitting into. I'll try and remember to do that tonight.
The bottom is just a capped toilet flange that I got at Lowes. Home Depot didn't have a capped one for some reason.
I forgot to take pictures of my tee cone test plug that I tapped and put a 90 degree ball valve fitting into. I'll try and remember to do that tonight.
The bottom is just a capped toilet flange that I got at Lowes. Home Depot didn't have a capped one for some reason.
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