DIY canister + heater

yes u can pul it out half way to check the temp setting and that the light is on

well theres not a big difference between the wet and dry model pumps so i think it will be ok outside the water, and water is running thru it constantly at 26deg to cool it partly

will make the next filter in 2 pieces that will be connected with plumbing to minimize the lenth but that will make it more expensive, because the srew on end caps are R65 each, thats about the most expensive part on the project except for the heater that was R150

the oil seal ring was bought at a hydraulics shop

 

Hey Carl the is a pet shop in Orkney that sell that heater at R100 Pm me if you want to know the places name.

 

But that thing of pulling the heater out to check if it's running is quite likely to end in tears... The glass could shatter if it comes in contact with air while it's hot.

Otherwise it looks like an awesome project. You just need some ball valves and maybe some way of disconnecting it from your inlet and outlet pipe for when you want to open the filter up or move it.

And you might find that your pipes go black/brown from algae on the inside. Mine did that, which would explain why they use black pipes on all the external canister filters.

I'm still not quite sure about one thing though, how do the end caps screw on and off? Are they 2-part with thread and cap that you glue onto the pipe? Or did you have to thread the pipe yourself?

 

I'm still not quite sure about one thing though, how do the end caps screw on and off? Are they 2-part with thread and cap that you glue onto the pipe? jip

go to any plumbing or hardware store and check for the 110mm marley end caps, they are 2-part, the one part glues on with pvc weld and the cap screws on

 

nice looking filter , is the sillicon holding on the Pvc? which silicon did u use?

 

I thought it might be a 2 part end cap, thanks for clarifying
This project really has limitless potential, you could pretty much build a series of these under your tank to give you as much filtration as you want. Provided of course that you can find the expensive bits for cheap enough.

 

well a proper canister is going to cost more than R1000 this 1.1meter canister costed less than R400, for a R1000 i will build a filter able to do anything wanted with filtration,

why do we still bother to buy canisters if we can diy them, the hoses just doesnt look as good as a shop one, and almost everything is replaceble on the filter,
what do u do when a R1000 canister filter pump packs up? mine i just replace for R50 from senwes.

normal marine silicone, its stil holding on, well they asemble our tanks with silicone, and glass is alot smoother than pvc, and silicone clings to almost anything except saliva, thats the best way to smooth it out and not sticking on your fingers

 

The idea you have there is awesome dude. Am I correct in saying you rely on gravity to bring water down, and pump back up?

If the power goes off, is the system fail safe that it won't drain the tank?

I'm thinking of a few of these connected in series each having different filtration material. Can you imagine how effective this system will work!

 

I've been thinking about it now, and I can't see how you're keeping the media separate, have you made trays or inserts?

And why filter floss in the first stage? Because it doesn't work very well for biological filtration, it's purely mechanical. Surely you'd want to keep maintenance down to a minimum by doing the mechanical filtration before the water gets to your canister?

 

the filter floss is just a precaution since theres enough space for it, the mechanical filtration is inside the tank, but on my other canister filter i made, i only cleaned it after 4months and the filter floss wasnt that dirty inside there is no mechanical filtration inside the tank,

theres nothing keeping the media apart because theres no need for it, but u can ad plastic mesh between the media if u use something like ceramic rings etc, just make sure it doesnt restrict the water flow. the pot scourers is thightly packed inside and stays in place

 

Carl

Can you confirm if this is still in action? Or have you packed it up and gone the purchased canister filter route?

 

zoom, it stil works like magic on my 1.2m, i have just slightly altered the design,

i have replaced the 800liter per hour pump that was glued to the one end cap because it was a el cheapo R50 model.

the end cap was replaced with a new one with a normal 15mm straight pipe fitting glued to it with hose conected to that and a new R200 1000 L/H inline pump installed in the hose.

on the intake side inside the tank i modified one of those air pump bio filter sponges so that the mechanical filtration happen outside of the filter. on the sponge filter were the air hose fits on i closed that of and where the bubles usualy go up i atached the hose for suction to filter now my water going towards the filter the "solids" is filtered out via the double sponge bio filter, now if i clean, i only clean the 2 sponges under the tap, and ive got one mother of a bio fitler. with internal heater

this design is working very very very well

I WILL NEVER BUY A CANISTER FILTER IN MY LIFE AGAIN.

ive got a smaller moddel fitted to my 60L aswell

 

SOunds good Carl.

Was just curious as another guy on the forum was interested in DIYing one, but I wasn't sure if you kept yours hooked up.

Now you gotta make some more, and sell them.