salt bucket ca reactor!
 

ok

im attempting to use a instant ocean 5 gallon water bucket as a ca reactor

first attempt failed as nothing glues to the bucket

tommorrow i will go buy some bulkheads and try again

the idea is since the bucket has a o ring it should seal very well.

anyone try this before.. should i jsut quit and go try a clear filter housing from homedepot instead ( i think those have metal inthe top since they have the bypass thing)

You need those fittings that work well on buckets. Can't remember their name though..

I don't think a normal bulkhead will work :(

use uniseals instead of bulkheads to account for the curved wall.

the bucket's o-ring *might* seal well enough. it would be risky long term though, since any leak will probably mean a wet carpet.

its outside. i could even put it so any drips would go into the tnak
i am able to bend the bucket to make a smalla rea perfect for teh bulkheads

ahh yes, uniseals was the word I was looking for..
That's them!!

Interesting thread. Good luck with it.

yeah take pictures if you can... you know we love pictures. keep us posted.

gotta track down 1/2 inch bulkheads.... gonna be hard! called the guy i work with telling him to pick some up while hes at the wholesaler but as usual he dosnt pickup his cell!! " the vibrator on my phone dosnt work" yeah so turnit to RING!!! think of that!!!

ok started total cost excluding pump and bucket 22 bucks so far

I'm sure you can get the bulkheads & lid to seal.

I made the bulkheads on this from plumbing parts & rubber seals I cut myself.

[IMG]http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/607725gal_bucket_skimmer_1_small.JPG[/IMG]

Stu

yeah i just got bulk heads lol

waiting for pump to seal to pvc.. i belive it is abs so it should work

anyways. almost done

i know i know thread is worthless without picts.. but ill post them once its done

i am severly undersizing the recirc pump due to budget ( maxijet 1200 lol)

i got an air leak somewhere i have a feeling the air tight lid isnt really air tight
its kinda annoying :(

how did you seal the lid?

[IMG]http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/curent.jpg[/IMG]



make any sense?

well it dosnt work well.... so the new plan is to move the output to the top so that any excess air can escape ( while still allowing some co2 buildup ) this will allow me to SEAL the top to the bucket and i will use the opening at the top to fill the unit ( using a union and a wider pipe before reducing it to 1/4

im thinking of siliconing the top inplace. but im going to try chaning the output first..

right now im leak testing it by turning hte bucket upside down.. so far so leaks.. weird... i guess the o ring was sealing
[IMG]http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/fut.jpg[/IMG]

intake works by splitting the pump intake iv seen it doen on bermuda brand ca reactors

[IMG]http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/curent.jpg[/IMG]



make any sense?

well it dosnt work well.... so the new plan is to move the output to the top so that any excess air can escape ( while still allowing some co2 buildup ) this will allow me to SEAL the top to the bucket and i will use the opening at the top to fill the unit ( using a union and a wider pipe before reducing it to 1/4

im thinking of siliconing the top inplace. but im going to try chaning the output first..

right now im leak testing it by turning hte bucket upside down.. so far so leaks.. weird... i guess the o ring was sealing
[IMG]http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/fut.jpg[/IMG]

intake works by splitting the pump intake iv seen it doen on bermuda brand ca reactors

[QUOTE][i]<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11550737#post11550737 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by stugray [/i]
[B]I'm sure you can get the bulkheads & lid to seal.

I made the bulkheads on this from plumbing parts & rubber seals I cut myself.

[IMG]http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/607725gal_bucket_skimmer_1_small.JPG[/IMG]

Stu [/B][/QUOTE]


ROTFLMAO:D Now thats a DIY skimmer!:rollface: Whered you get that funnel?

[IMG]http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/DSCK0010_edited.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i275/astreafish/DSCK0011_edited.jpg[/IMG]

maxijet glues to the pipe perfectly!

working great so far