Any tried to make skimmer square?? Will it work?

[Tanggy]

Hi all. Been broswing in this forum for a while. I have just upgraded to a 180gallon tank and in the midst of getting a new skimmer. But browsing through this forum have made me wanna try doing one to see if it works.

But I have a question which I hope wont sound silly. Can I make a skimmer square instead of a round acrylic tube. Coz where I came from, its alot easier to get flat sheets rather than tubes.

I have see a couple of deltec skimmer that's square and wonder why just about every skimmer is round. Does it work better. Any assistance is deeply appreciated.

[dragon_slayer]

the aqua-c remora style skimmers are square and have good reviews from most (i don't like mine)

if you have a good design, it will work in any shape.


kc

[Tanggy]

How about the collection cup and riser? is it square also? Was thinking of following the deltec design where its a rectangle with a piece if acrylic at an angle at the top to act as the collection. Bubbles to pump in via a modified pin wheel. and another pump to recirculate the water inside and further reduce the bubble size.

[567a]

the cpr bak pak skimmers are also square and have a fairly good rep. the collection cup is square too.

[dragon_slayer]

the square aqua c's have a square collection cup but the riser is a small round tube.

kc

[Tanggy]

Thanks guys. :D

[Tanggy]

Will try making one and see the results. Hope it works well.

[Acrylics]

Believe it or not, they are made out of cylinder to actually save $$.
If you look at it from a business perpective, making them square involves cutting 4 pieces, machining 4 pieces (12 passes), doing 4 glue joints, 4 ends to flush cut, then 4 edges to ease. Ends up being quite a bit of labor. Cylinders involve just "flattening out" the two ends of the tube an that's it. Also, since it's round, it's inherently stronger so you can use thinner material.
Aqua C and CPR's parts are small so can be injection molded cheaply enough. Larger parts become very cost prohibitive to mfr in this way.
That said, there are some distinct advantages to making them square; it's much easier to put pipe threads in flat stock, or you can actually use standard bulkheads, & flat stock itself is cheaper so it lends itself well to the DIY hobbyist.
There are also a coupla disadvantages; standard o-rings are pretty much out the door - one basically one must rely on making neoprene type gaskets and as stated above, more steps.
If one is particularly more efficient than the other simply by being round or square - I couldn't say

James

[grim]

I would guess, at worst case, the effective diameter of the square skimmer would be the diameter of a circle that circumscribed the area of the square.. Is my geometry terminology right?

jb

[Cheapreef]

Bubbles tend to "hang" in the corners of a square skimmer from my builing of the remora clone. I think if you make an angle piece for the corners, so they are 45^ instead of 90^ you would be better off.

Clinton

[waverz]

Heres my skimmer...works pretty well.
http://reefcentral.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=23919&papass=&sort=1&thecat=3315

[Crawdad1]

Heres what your looking for.


http://members.shaw.ca/dj88/rx/rx_5.jpg

Heres some light reading.


http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=144438&highlight=skimmer+and+square

[Cheapreef]

Originally posted by Crawdad1
Heres what your looking for.


http://members.shaw.ca/dj88/rx/rx_5.jpg

Heres some light reading.


http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=144438&highlight=skimmer+and+square

That's not a skimmer, that's a square calcium reactor. :lol:

Clinton

[Cheapreef]

Here this is what your looking for.;) http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=292069&perpage=25&pagenumber=1

Clinton

[Tanggy]

Was thinking of making on with a collection cup similiar withthe deltec. at 45deg angle so there wont be bubbles trap at the corners.

Will be making the lower 5x5x20inch and a 6inch collection cup. Bubbles will be via on pump feeding the water to the skimmer with a modified impeller. And 1-2 powerhead for recirculation. Will try it on my 55gal lion tank to see the results. Have cut the crylic but need to get the glue after work. what do you guys think?

Will then be doing a proper one for my new reef tank (need lotsa stocking up.)



http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-34-1075393795.jpg

[Crawdad1]

LOL, Thats what I get for quick surfing @ work!

[SciGuy2]

I've been using a square body on the DIY big box, recirc. beckett skimmer I've been playing with for the last 6 months. I haven't had any particular problems with bubbles hanging up in corners, etc. It works just as well as the tube body skimmers that I've worked with and I didn't have to mail order materials which is a big plus for people that enjoy messing about with skimmer designs.

For slow flow skimmers (recirculating beckett, recir. venturi, counter-current, etc.) square bodies seem to work fine, IMO. I suspect that if a design pumps a large volume of water through the skimmer body that a square cross section becomes a liability due to turbulance issues, however.

[Tanggy]

Thanks for the info. Do you have any photo of your skimmer. Would like to have some reference. ;)

[Tanggy]

Hi guys. Have made a small one out of used materials I have laying around just for trial. Here a pic.

http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-9-1076254809.jpg

[Tanggy]

http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-9-1076258027.jpg

[Tanggy]

http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-9-1076258229.jpg

[Tanggy]

The impeller. From a used surplus pump.

http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-9-1076257918.jpg

[Tanggy]

Forgive the workmanship. Acrylic was used and very old. The joint are cut with a knive so silicone was used to ensure water-tightness. Will be using this for trial and error before making a bigger one and this time, Round!! ke ke

Will keep you guys posted on the out come. Waiting for the joint to cure.:p

[dragon_slayer]

i hope you used something like weld-on to glue the acrylic and not just the slilcone. silicone doesnt "bond" to acrylic and it will leak and seperate.

kc

[Tanggy]

Ya I use acrylic glue to bond. But coz the edges arent as straight as they should be. so use the silicon as an extra measure to stop water from flowing out just in case. Thanks for the concern. Upz.. :D

[Tanggy]

Update. Have just did a wet run on the skimmer. It is now sitting in my sump. Almost couldnt put it in. I am amazed by the amount of bubbles created. Very fine bubbles I would say.

Notice large bubble form on the walls. Wonder if this is due to the rough surface of the used acrylic.

Those big bubbles just stick to the wall. They are not generated by the pump. the bubbles from the pump are very fine. but these bubbles are created at the beginning when water is filling up the chamber and refuse to move. hope it dont affect the performance!!


Fullview. the top half all white with bubbles. The riser has not been completed yet. just need to glue the bottom piece in.
http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-9-1076337099.jpg

[Tanggy]

http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-9-1076336597.jpg

[Tanggy]

Got some update. This is the foam from the skimmer after 3hrs.

http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-9-1076606168.jpg

[Tanggy]

Pic of the riser deflector to direct the foam to the collection cup.

http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-9-1076606303.jpg

[Tanggy]

I originally tried a tube riser but due to poor workmanship, water sip into the cup from the chamber.

http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-9-1076415846.jpg

[Tanggy]

So this is what I ended up with but not sure is performance has been compromised?

http://www.sgreefclub.com/forum/uploads/post-9-1076430387.jpg

[T Sandman]

Not too shabby.

[Tanggy]

I actually find it quite ugly. Not sourcing for acrylic tubes to make another one. This one is actually for trial to determine feasibility.

[T Sandman]

Well, ya, It's ugly. But it's working. Good job.