hi everyone. here is the pvc pipe canister filter i built, it was quite easy to make and probably 60% less of the cost of purchasing one with a brand. (which are actually almost impossible to find where i live in ecuador).
the materials are (sorry for the metric system):
1m of 160mm PVC pipe
1 PVC cap
1 PVC screw lid
4 PVC screens
PVC glue
1 1/2 elbow
2 double sided screw 1/2 plastic tubes
2 gardening valves
1 simple valve
1 compression gland
seals
2 hose adaptors
1 700lph pump
thick flexible hose
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we cut 30cm of pvc tube. we make a hole for the water entrance and a semicircular hole on the bottom lid.
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then, we make a hole for the water exit on the top lid and placed the screw tubes with seals.
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we glue the pvc pieces, cleaning them well and sanding them lightly.
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then we make a hole for the compression gland.
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for the baskets, we cut the bases of the pvc screens. then from the rest of the pvc pipe we cut three 6cm pieces, making them a bit smaller to fit inside the canister. then glue the pieces.
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we glue the pump to the top lid and adapted the water exit from the pump to the other 1/2 pipe with a little piece of hose.
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we put the compression gland and let dry for 24 hours.
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we cut the filtering material to fit the baskets. sponge, fiber and biceramic.
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we put the baskets inside the canister. first the sponge, then fiber, then bioceramic. and top it of with a single pvc screen to prevent things from getting sucked by the pump.
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we connect the hoses to the valves using the adaptors. the valve in the water entrance is permanent and is used for keeping the water from spilling when servicing the filter. same thing with the other valves, we shut them and can leave the hoses in the aquarium.
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we do a 24 hour hermeticity test.
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we put the in and outflow pipes in the aquarium (note the horrible filter that used to be in that tank).
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and there it is. two weeks after installation. working like a charm.
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the materials are (sorry for the metric system):
1m of 160mm PVC pipe
1 PVC cap
1 PVC screw lid
4 PVC screens
PVC glue
1 1/2 elbow
2 double sided screw 1/2 plastic tubes
2 gardening valves
1 simple valve
1 compression gland
seals
2 hose adaptors
1 700lph pump
thick flexible hose
we cut 30cm of pvc tube. we make a hole for the water entrance and a semicircular hole on the bottom lid.
then, we make a hole for the water exit on the top lid and placed the screw tubes with seals.
we glue the pvc pieces, cleaning them well and sanding them lightly.
then we make a hole for the compression gland.
for the baskets, we cut the bases of the pvc screens. then from the rest of the pvc pipe we cut three 6cm pieces, making them a bit smaller to fit inside the canister. then glue the pieces.
we glue the pump to the top lid and adapted the water exit from the pump to the other 1/2 pipe with a little piece of hose.
we put the compression gland and let dry for 24 hours.
we cut the filtering material to fit the baskets. sponge, fiber and biceramic.
we put the baskets inside the canister. first the sponge, then fiber, then bioceramic. and top it of with a single pvc screen to prevent things from getting sucked by the pump.
we connect the hoses to the valves using the adaptors. the valve in the water entrance is permanent and is used for keeping the water from spilling when servicing the filter. same thing with the other valves, we shut them and can leave the hoses in the aquarium.
we do a 24 hour hermeticity test.
we put the in and outflow pipes in the aquarium (note the horrible filter that used to be in that tank).
and there it is. two weeks after installation. working like a charm.
Beautiful tank as well.
