H20cooled Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 I just finished up on my new CA Reactor, I still need to leak test it but I want to give it a day to dry. It is based on a design I found on RC with a few changes of my own. It should be very efficent at keeping the Co2 out of the effulent and use very little Co2, another nice thing is it can take a ton of media and have no problem circulating water through it. And with the Ehiem pump it will be very dependable and silent. Stats: 6" diameter body Circulation with Eheim 1260 pump Total height 27 1/2" Here are a couple of pics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted July 14, 2006 Author Share Posted July 14, 2006 And just for the fun of it. Here are 2 pictures of the Kalk reactor and waste container that I made for the guy that is making my stand and canopy... Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nyles Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 impressive, mind if I ask how much you got into it with pump, reg, and tank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted July 14, 2006 Author Share Posted July 14, 2006 The Eheim pump was about $100, I bought the Co2 tank and reg over a year ago so I'm not exactly sure the cost but I think the tand was $50 and the reg $65. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nu2reef-n Posted July 14, 2006 Share Posted July 14, 2006 Nice job. Looks very professional. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted July 14, 2006 Author Share Posted July 14, 2006 Thank you, I'm quite happy with the results and hope the CA reactor performs as well as planned. Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted July 16, 2006 Author Share Posted July 16, 2006 Well its hooked up and working. I had a small leak around the neck of it that was a real pain to get fixed. But it is leak free now. Here is a picture of it in action... By the way that is a whole container of the GenX CA media and its only half full, it could very easily take 2 containers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted August 13, 2006 Author Share Posted August 13, 2006 Well my new reactor is doing great, I'm still trying to fine tune it. Well stupid me told someone from RC that I would build him a monster CA reactor like mine for his 800G total volume tank. The reactor is almost done, its been a lot of work due to the size but it should kick butt for his tank. I think this is my last DIY project for someone else for a while, I really need to get my tank done and some house projects done... Here are some pics of the CA reactor, it is 10" diameter, 24" tall body and total height will end up around 32". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R-3 Posted August 13, 2006 Share Posted August 13, 2006 Man Rich looking good! Who do you buy your Eheim pumps from? Im looking for one for my return on my new 37. Later Ryan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted August 13, 2006 Author Share Posted August 13, 2006 Thank you! I've tried to buy them locally and had a hard time finding them, so I've been buying them from reefgeek.com Greg is a great guy with some of the best customer service around. I'm not sure if the pumps are listed on his site yet, if not call him. Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battledomefetus Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 i like how in the first post third picture your chiller is in front of your fireplace, kind of an oxy moron (spelling?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted August 17, 2006 Author Share Posted August 17, 2006 LOL, yeah my Dual 250W HQI ballast is also in the fireplace. As you might guess I don't really use it much... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 Hey Rich, You mentioned earlier on in the thread that you had a leak in the neck; how did you end up fixing it? What I do is make a gel from Weld-on mixed with acrylic shavings, then 'flow' it down the inside of the leaky seam. It works ok on low-pressure seams like overflow boxes but I worry it might not be enough on a reactor. I'd hate to have a blow-out and spray saltwater everywhere. I've had all kinds of trouble getting good, void-free seams on my acrylic DIY projects so fixing leaks is something I'm really interested in ;-) Of course, I'd love to not get the voids in the first place, but I guess that's another thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted August 17, 2006 Author Share Posted August 17, 2006 Yeah so far on both of them that I've built I cannot get a really strong bond between the neck and the main body. The pressure there is really strong and it will leak. To fix both of them I've used the Plastic Fusion 2 part epoxy (from Home Depot). The good part about it is it is acrylic based so it bonds really good, the bad part is it is a yellow/cream color so it looks like crap in there. On this last one I went out of my way to make sure I had a really good edges and a good bond but I still had it leak while under pressure; so I had to use the epoxy again. I think the solution for this is to create a grove into the top of top for the neck to sit into. This way it is bonded on the side and bottom not the bottom only. This is a pain to do because it requires very small adjustments with the Router circle jig to get precise. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted August 17, 2006 Share Posted August 17, 2006 I think the solution for this is to create a grove into the top of top for the neck to sit into. This way it is bonded on the side and bottom not the bottom only. This is a pain to do because it requires very small adjustments with the Router circle jig to get precise. Yes, I came to the same conclusion for overflows -- but as you imply, it is a lot easier on straight joints. I considered routing a circular slot into the bottom of my Phosban reactor, but had basically zero confidence in my ability to get the groove in the right place. Instead, I just butt-joined and glued. Hopefully the relatively low pressures needed for Phosban will help. Any idea how the high-end skimmer manufacturers get their welded acrylic joints? Is it a heat-based welding, or solvent? Thanks for the tip on the acrylic-based epoxy, if I do end up with a leak I'll use some of that to seal things up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted August 17, 2006 Author Share Posted August 17, 2006 I know that some of them use plastic welding (heat), but that only works for pvc to acrylic. Another thing a lot of them do not have a neck on the CA reactors. A flange is easy enough to make and I have no problem with them leaking, the issue is with gluing a thin tube onto a flat surface. Another thing you could do is to get a thicker walled tube, I use 1/8" thick, if you went to 1/4" it would give you a LOT more surface area for the joint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay Posted September 27, 2006 Share Posted September 27, 2006 Man I wish I could do stuff like that. Easier if you have lots of tools I guess. Great job. How big is your display tank and what do you think the reactor you made for yourself would be good for, as far as gallons goes? Jay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted September 28, 2006 Author Share Posted September 28, 2006 Yeah its a lot easier with the right tools for the job, but I don't even have what is needed for them. To do it right you really need a CNC, it would allow you to get a lot more precise cuts. The tank is a 130G custom job (48lx 24wx26t). I think that reactor could easily handle a 300 to 400g tank... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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