skimmer waste line?

[Joel A]

so my skimmer seems to accumulate waste rather quickly (does a good job). I've seen euroreefs, PM, etc. etc. with waste collector bodies next the the actual skimmer with simply a hole in the bottom of the collection cup, and a line feeding down to the waste collector.

Seems like this would be a fairly easy mod to make to a skimmer, then you could just purchase a waste collector...

anyone know of this or has anyone done this?

 

[zax_papa]

I saw this done once with a permanent tube drilled into the bottom of the collection cup running down to a gallon sized milk jug. The good news was that it was cheap and the milk jug was just replaced by another one instead of having to empty and clean out the dirty one. The bad news is unless you set this up over the sump or have some kind of overflow protection it has the potential of an overflow mess.
I have also added a small magnet glued to an unused credit card to the inside of the collection cup. What I did before emptying the milk jug was use the DIY scraper and cleaned the inside of the cup. This greatly reduced the amount of times I had to break it down to clean it completely.
Hope this helps, good luck.

 

[biggyclops]

i would drill through the bottom of the collection cup versus the side.. only because there will be a lot less skim mate in the cup when you go to clean it out... equaling less chance to dump it on yourself! also by having it on the bottom i think it will drain better!..

My current setup is through the side.. which becomes loose and drips a little... i would think if it was from the bottom there would be less dripage

 

[jayinh]

i agree with bigg , drill thru the bottom. i have my ER drilled on the side and piped into a 2 gal. jug and there is still a small amount that is always lingering in the cup.

 

[FOXYB]

my er is drilled thru the bottom and id have a sweet collection cup but my sump is tight so i just have it plugged no leakage

 

[Joel A]

what would you guys recommend drilling the bottom of it with?

Also, what type of fitting would go into the hole? I think its some sort of elbow?

 

[FOXYB]

mine has a quick connect pressure valve i believe it was from an rodi unit

 

[JohnK]

You can use almost anythig for a fitting as long as you have space for it.

A john Guest fitting would be great because it's so easy to disconnect the line for cleaning. (I'd use a larger size one, not a 1/4" like RO tube though)

 

[FOXYB]

+1 on what jimmy said mine is actually a little larger than the 1/4 just checked

 

[Joel A]

what should i use for drilling the bottom of the acrylic cup? A standard drill press, or would that be to harsh on it?

 

[JohnK]

Drilling acrylic can be tricky.

The biggest problem is that normal drill bits will catch at/grab at the material, and often when this happens it will crack or shatter the material (and quite likely injure whoever is holding it).

That said, if you can set it up on a drill press, and firmly clamp the workpiece down, you should be fine. The key here is to clamp the part in place solidly so it can't move around at all. This way, the drill is kept from getting out of control via the drill press, and the material is also kept under control. With both the drill and the material held firmly, it won't grab and you should be able to drill it without much difficluty. Just be careful of the drill heating up.

Fostner bits, hole saws, and spade bits all will drill acrylic a little easier, but there's still some risk of grabbing-cracking-and slicing your hands up....

Plan it out carefully and it's do-able. Don't try it with a hand drill, if you do you will probably end up with a broken skimmer cup.

Can you post a pic of the skimmer cup you have? It might be easier to suggest the best way to do it with a visual.

 

[Joel A]

yeah, i'll post a pick tonight.

Thanks,.

 

[jrmx635]

waste

just remember that an auto shutoff waste collector will not shutoff with needlewheel skimmers.
they need a skimmer that uses a drain as an air exhaust too.
the air in needlewheels can blow out the top of the cup because the cup/lid isn't sealed.
so you will have to keep an eye on it so it doesn't overfill.
and glad to hear the skimmer is working well for you.

 

[Joel A]

just remember that an auto shutoff waste collector will not shutoff with needlewheel skimmers.
they need a skimmer that uses a drain as an air exhaust too.
the air in needlewheels can blow out the top of the cup because the cup/lid isn't sealed.
so you will have to keep an eye on it so it doesn't overfill.
and glad to hear the skimmer is working well for you.

Thanks for the input John.

Yeah, the skimmer is working fantastic, just needed a bit of break in time.