Canister Filter

[fatheadminnow]

Looks good! I would turn the inside part so it lays flat against the tank wall on the inside!

I believe you want the vertical pipe in the back to be a little taller than the "U" part that goes over the top of the tank.

-FHM

 

[mini_matt]

awesome, its actually about an inch below the top of the tank, didn't know if that would be too high a water line but I can take out and trim down, so the check valve is for what sorry? makes it easier to suck the air out? thankyou so much for the info you have shared with both of us! sure lots of people will benifit from this! also what is the benifit of that weld stuff vurses silicone? just because I can get Aquarium recomended stuff for £3 but the weld stuff is £5 and I need to get silicone for other bits anyway cheers

 

[fatheadminnow]

I would set it up and try it out and if the water level is too high, then just take it out and cut it down. It is always easier to cut it shorter then it is to extend it.

-FHM

 

[bitteraspects]

the check valve is a crucial part of the overflow system . it stops any cavitation in the pipe that can cause it to lose its prime.

silicon can help seal it, but PVC glue is a better choice. silicon can peel away, and may not bond correctly.
pvc glue is made specifically for this purpose. while the silicon fills the cracks, the pvc glue actually creates a chemical bond between the two pieces of plastic. basically it melts the surface of both pieces of PVC and welds them together.

I would set it up and try it out and if the water level is too high, then just take it out and cut it down. It is always easier to cut it shorter then it is to extend it.

-FHM

actually, its just as easy to extend it as it is to cut it down.

you will want the intake a little bit below the trim of the tank (look at the picture of the one i posted as a reference). depending on the size of your pump, the water level may be a little higher or lower than your intake.

 

[bitteraspects]

there we go. changed it. now to delete the videos off the old account, and add more here.

http://www.youtube.com/user/AquaticAspects101

 

[fatheadminnow]

Nice!

I subscribed! lol

Here is my filter cleaning video:


-FHM

 

[bitteraspects]

 

[fatheadminnow]

I posted this up here a long time ago, lol, there is a link to the thread in my sig,

-FHM

 

[mini_matt]

hey BA, for my sump not sure what return rate I need? what turn over is recommended? so for my 100litre tank what should I look for in pump performance? how many lph? the tank will be about a foot and a half off the ground cheers and do you recon it would be better to buy several small pumps or 1 big one?

 

[fatheadminnow]

hey BA, for my sump not sure what return rate I need? what turn over is recommended? so for my 100litre tank what should I look for in pump performance? how many lph? the tank will be about a foot and a half off the ground cheers and do you recon it would be better to buy several small pumps or 1 big one?

For any tank the minimum turn over rate should be at least 5x. For planted tanks the minimum should be at least 10x. You should not go over a 20x turn over rate because at this point it would really be beyond the efficiency of the filter. There is a limit to this, and over 20x your are going to loose the benefits of a high turn over rate.

If you have smaller pumps, then if one failed you would still have the other ones working, just like running more than one filter on a tank.

IF you had one large one, then if that failed, and lets say you were gone, then you are going to loose a lot of things.

EDIT: You are going to want at least a 500 LPH (liter per hour) pump(s). I would look more at 800-1000 LPH pump(s).

-FHM

 

[bitteraspects]

actually, while there may be a point where the waterflow is too fast for bacteria to effectively process ammonia, there is nothing to show that we are reaching anywhere near those flow rates in our home or commercial set ups. Larger tanks use flow rates upwards of thousands of gallons per hour, and even at these "extreme" flow rates nitrification is achieved without any problem.
Even at well over 20x turnover, matts tank will successfully complete the nitrogen cycle and maintain proper water parameters.
The added bonus of higher flow in your tank is that it can help with the removal of solid wastes by keeing it suspended longer, making it easier and more likely to be picked up by the overflow.
The downside to the higher flow rate is that not all fish like that much movement in tthe tank. If the fish you keepp are sensitive to high amounts of water movement, it will cause them stress that can lead to disease or even death.

Nuuuuuut.... None of that answers your question.
The flow rate of your return pump will be determined by the flow rate of your overflow. Besides a few secondary factors, this is almost solely decided by the size of the PVC you used.

So... What size PVC did you use to build your overflow?
(I'm sure you posted it earlier, but I'm posting from my BB, and I'm too lazy to check. Lol.)

 

[mini_matt]

I used 22mm 3/4inch overflow pipe...

 

[fatheadminnow]

The nitrogen cycle will of course take place no matter what turn over rate is present. There is proof that nitrifying takes place within out water pipes, even though this is in insignificant amounts (just enough so the bacteria can stay alive), but it still demonstrates that the nitrogen cycle can still function at these extremes. However, there is always going to be a limit at which the the flow rate is going to exceed an efficiency level. With a planted tank, a turn over rate should not exceed that of 20x. After this, the benefits of nutrient delivery is going to decrease. I also assume this is the case for non-planted tanks, where the nitrifying process can reach a limit, at which point, no matter how high your turn-over rate is, the nitrifying process can not exceed that of its natural limit. A limit in which can be obtain from a lower flow rate.

Just like a turbo on a car. There is going to be a limit to how much boost the turbo can efficiently push out. After that point the turbo would be beyond its efficiency range and will have no positive, rather it would have negative effects on the engine. And this has been proven.

-FHM

 

[bitteraspects]

I used 22mm 3/4inch overflow pipe...

ok.

with a 3/4" overflow, you are getting a max gravitational vertical flow of 337.5/gph (1277.58/lph)
keep in mind, this is if your overflow was built and sealed properly, and all excess air is removed from the pipe via the check valve.

so, essentially, as long as your return pump it rated at 337.5/gph (1277.58/lph) or less after factoring in pump head, your system will run smoothly. the closer you can get to this number, the better. if your pump is too small (like, way too small) you run the risk of having more air enter the pipe, and that can lead to cavitation.
10o0-1200lph will be fine. you can probably get away with something smaller than 1000lph if you had to. just make sure your check valve is in place and functioning properly.

 

[fatheadminnow]

I used 22mm 3/4inch overflow pipe...

ok.

with a 3/4" overflow, you are getting a max gravitational vertical flow of 337.5/gph (1277.58/lph)
keep in mind, this is if your overflow was built and sealed properly, and all excess air is removed from the pipe via the check valve.

so, essentially, as long as your return pump it rated at 337.5/gph (1277.58/lph) or less after factoring in pump head, your system will run smoothly. the closer you can get to this number, the better. if your pump is too small (like, way too small) you run the risk of having more air enter the pipe, and that can lead to cavitation.
10o0-1200lph will be fine. you can probably get away with something smaller than 1000lph if you had to. just make sure your check valve is in place and functioning properly.

What equation did you use to figure out the gravitational vertical flow?

Thanks!

-FHM