Cheap and simple PVC Beckett Housing. LOTS of pics.

MarkS · #1 08/30/2005, 11:21 PM

I am 100% certain that this has been posted before, but I haven't seen the thread and figured it could be usefull.

These are the three main parts you'll need. On the right is the ballvalve to control the air flow into the injector. In the middle is the housing. It's called an expansion coupling. Home Depot sells these for about $4.15. You'll need the 1" size. On the left is the Beckett injector.

This is the Beckett. It comes with two gromets. You'll need to keep the one on the top right. The one on the top left needs to be discarded. The two o-rings (7/8" ID) are not needed and do not come with the Beckett, but I find them usefull. More on this later.

This is the Beckett assembled. Notice the orientation. Up is the top. This is important. The two o-rings help keep the Beckett together and act as spacers in the housing. The injector will work without these.

This is the ballvalve. You can get these at Home Depot. The threaded end is too long and needs to be cut down to 1/4" long. The top one is just out of the package and the bottom one is modified. The threads are 1/4" NPT and you'll need a 1/4" NPT pipe tap.

Here I drilled the 7/16" hole for the tap. I drilled it a little too close to the top. You can see where the drill cut into the little plastic lip. This will not hurt the housing, but the top of the hole should be about 1/8" below this lip. I had to grind the lip down to install the ballvalve.

Here is the hole being tapped.

Wrap the modified ballvalve's threads with teflon tape and screw it into the tapped hole.

In order to use the housing, you'll need to glue in a 1" length of 1" PVC pipe so you can attach a fitting. However, you must be carefull how far you insert it. The Beckett will not fit into the pipe, so install the Beckett into the top, insert the pipe and mark where it bottoms out at. Remove the Beckett and glue the pipe in, only inserting it to the mark.

Here is the top with the Beckett and a 90Â° ell. I actually will not be using the ell, but included it here for illustration. I would recommend putting a 1" union between the housing and any fitting you choose to use. This is what I will end up doing. It will make accessing the inside of the housing much easier for cleaning.

And here is the completed housing. I only need three more...

This is amazingly simple and cheap. Not counting the tools, I spent less than $20 for the housing. The ball valve was $7, the Beckett was $4 on eBay and the expansion coupling was $4.15. I had the misc. fittings laying around.

H20ENG · #2 08/31/2005, 12:47 AM

Nice step by step, Mark

lho · #3 08/31/2005, 02:02 AM

Mark,

Where did you buy the 1/4" NPT pipe tap?
I couldn't find it at Lowes or Home Depot.

Thanks!

Lee

Black71gp · #4 08/31/2005, 07:16 AM

good deal on this.. i had this for my houseing messed it up many times before getting it right.. this would have helped.. thanks a bucnh

Ramble On Rose · #5 08/31/2005, 09:32 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by lho
Mark,

Where did you buy the 1/4" NPT pipe tap?
I couldn't find it at Lowes or Home Depot.

Thanks!

Lee

I ordered a set of pipe taps for like $10 from harbor freight.

headshrink · #6 08/31/2005, 09:45 AM

Where do u find the beckett?

robwsup · #7 08/31/2005, 12:23 PM

Nice, I just picked up a few of those.

aquajal · #8 08/31/2005, 01:16 PM

yes MarkS ware did u buy the beckett?

MarkS · #9 08/31/2005, 01:21 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by headshrink
Where do u find the beckett?

I provided a link in the original post. Click on "Beckett" where you see "the Beckett was $4 on eBay".

Quote:

Originally posted by lho
Mark,

Where did you buy the 1/4" NPT pipe tap?
I couldn't find it at Lowes or Home Depot.

I got my locally at Ferguson's. Check at any local plumbing supply shop.

Reeforbust · #10 08/31/2005, 01:42 PM

Thanks for the pics.........

MarkS · #11 08/31/2005, 02:44 PM

I have an extra housing laying around and did some measurements. The bottom of the expansion coupling (not the telescoping tube part) measures 1.25". I don't have any 1.25" PVC fittings, but I am willing to bet we could elliminate the telescoping tube, reducing the length of the housing by 1/2.

headshrink · #12 08/31/2005, 10:45 PM

I know this guy is saying 800gph is recommended, but anyone know how a Mag7 might perform? Good enough?

MarkS · #13 08/31/2005, 11:03 PM

I've always heard that 1000 GPH was the minimum.

headshrink · #14 08/31/2005, 11:06 PM

Than maybe I shouldn't get one since that will be once $$$ beckett if I have to buy a 1000gph pump

MarkS · #15 08/31/2005, 11:21 PM

Actually, I take that back. 1000 GPH is the maximum that will flow through the Beckett at pressure. It will work under lower flow and pressures, but not as well.

Stryyf · #16 09/01/2005, 10:49 AM

I have a question that may seem a little stupid but here it goes.

The air inlet ballvalve, what is it for?
and does it need to have a air pump attached?

robwsup · #17 09/01/2005, 12:33 PM

It's to regulate air flow into the Beckett housing.

No, it doesn't need a pump. It draws air in similar to a venturi.

lho · #18 09/01/2005, 04:40 PM

Finally got my 1/4" NPT pipe tap...Thank you for your info.
But I'm confuse about pre-tap drill bit size...
That is, do I use a 1/4" drill bit or must I use something slightly smaller than 1/4"?

EDITED:
Just re-read your original post, again...you mentioned 7/16" drill bit. Sorry!

TIA

Lee

MarkS · #19 09/02/2005, 01:12 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by lho

EDITED:
Just re-read your original post, again...you mentioned 7/16" drill bit. Sorry!

Yup. It is also stamped on the side of the tap.

Lunchbucket · #20 09/02/2005, 01:16 PM

i've seen a couple posts on using these fittings. also some used the grey electircal conduit. not sure what parts or what size though

Lunchbucket

MarkS · #21 09/07/2005, 12:42 AM

What I did here was remove the telescoping tube and sanded down the base so it fits in a 1 1/4" PVC male adaptor. It cut the length down by almost half and looks cleaner. It does tank a LOT of sanding though!

Black71gp · #22 09/07/2005, 06:56 AM

that is what i twas thinking of trying.. my questiong is though... is it ok to have the whole base of the beckket in water and not have a seperate chamber for the air... could you cut the telescoping tube so that it does not extend pass the bottom of the beckett head and then use 1.25 tubing for the rest of the way.. this is how i was thinking of doing it.. unsing 1.25 instead of 1 inch.. might help a bit....

slug · #23 09/07/2005, 10:29 AM

Personally I've found the telescoping tube usefull. It allows you to rotate the orientation of the skimmer input which is nice for some setups.

I've been using one of these for over 3 years =)
http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...threadid=72146

prafferty · #24 09/07/2005, 03:37 PM

I like to leave it on and then add a union so its easier to get it off for cleaning.

Here

brackishdude · #25 09/29/2005, 11:22 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by robwsup
It's to regulate air flow into the Beckett housing.

No, it doesn't need a pump. It draws air in similar to a venturi.

So the beckett is simply a venturi/bernoulli-esque narrowing of the flow area within another pipe, resulting in a pressure loss that pulls air in through the ball valve?

If so, why does this result in microbubbles rather than large/variable-sized ones?