New&Improved 5Gal bucket skimmer with Orca

[Plankt0s]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13193575#post13193575 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dew2loud1
Stu,
Glad to hear its coming along, thats exactly how I mounted the pump on mine with the wet end down,
Here is a pic of my big ugly I made, it was about 75" tall, reaction chamber was 10"x 60", 6" neck. There are also a couple pics of some other concoctions on there.

This pic hasn't been brought up enough. I love it.

 

[dew2loud1]

Glad to see someone saved it, I meant to link it to the ghetto"fabulous" link,
I hope it inspires lots of re "uses".
I actually really miss that skimmer, best one i've ever owned, lol.
'

 

[cdbias2]

Now THAT is funny.

 

[DamnPepShrimp]

D@MN! I was just about to start my 5g bucket skimmer! Sucks I can't use one now unless I use uniseals. I am considering a tall square bucket though, similar to what jnarowe did on his 1000g tank. So what is next stu? Can't wait to see the next DIY skimmer, I really want to try to make one. Something big, gravity fed with a couple askoll (or similar pumps) pumps recirc, maybe even running an air pump, I don't know. Love the inspiration!

 

[stugray]

DamnPepShrimp,

The first 5 gall BS I built used homemade bulkheads & worked fine.
I tried the extra heavy duty BHs which stressed the bucket that was the only mistake.

If you have a square bucket, then BHs will be fine.
Distorting the bucket was what caused the problem.

Uniseals are even cheaper that BHs, why not just use them?

As for the next build..... I gave up & bought a Reeflo 200 for ~$400.

Stu

 

[DamnPepShrimp]

I may try the uniseals, I have never worked with them before, only seen them online. I think a 5g bucket with a couple askoll recirc pumps fed by a gravity drain overflow would skim better then most skimmers around the $500 price range. I was looking into an MSX 300 skimmer, but I love the DIY and the bucket just seems like a good way to go. So normal bulkheads would work? I have a lot of those laying around.

 

[tuzeman]

This is a very cool idea. Can't wait to see how it all goes.

 

[stugray]

tuzeman,

"This is a very cool idea. Can't wait to see how it all goes."

If you look through the whole thread & the previous thread you will find that this design is totally DIY-able.
I ran various versions for years.

In the end my experimenting got the best of me & I decided in the sake of dependability, that I have more money than I do time....;-)


I say someone should carry on the 5Gal-bucket torch.

( I might even contribute the carcass of the above to a worthy party ;-)

Stu

 

[troylee]

rite here stu
i use google just type 5gal bucket skimmer reef central and tada!!!!!!!

 

[stugray]

edit.
This forum is not for selling.

 

[NanoNana]

That's incredible! I wanna try one of these so bad!! I have a Reeflo Dart in the garage, would that work? If so, are there any DIY venturi plans for a dart?

 

[stugray]

You could buy just the venturi from reeflo.

Where it says "This forum is not for selling." above, I was offering to GIVE AWAY all of the pieces for that skimmer if the recipient payed for shipping.
I guess that is "selling"

All the parts went in the recycle/trash bin many months ago.....

Stu