Box Skimmer Design

[Chin_Lee]

After looking at the large footprints of the ASM skimmers, i started to think of a way to save on height space. So I started thinking of a square shaped skimmer with baffles within to direct the bubbles upwards while increasing contact time between water and bubbles. The following design should allow an equivalent of a 5 feet high circular tube skimmer into a 2 feet high box. The top is still the beckett design because I already have the parts. The design is as follows:
1) Three holes at the bottom which can incorporate 2-3 pumps. Options are for one pump can be an intake from sump or tank, one or two pumps can be recirculating. If you use recir and to save space, one can put plumb a pipe to the rear chamber where the water is returning to tank.
2) the bubble rise to the top and into the circular chamber. Water and bubbles will folow into the rear large chamber and down to the bottom. As this happens, micro bubbles will be removed.
3) the water in the larger rear chamber will flow into the smaller rear chamber at the very bottom and up to the return via bulkhead and gate valve attachment. The gatevalve will adjust the level in the circular riser.

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o309/chin_lee/Skimmer%20Design/skimmer4.jpg

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o309/chin_lee/Skimmer%20Design/skimmer3r.jpg

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o309/chin_lee/Skimmer%20Design/skimmer2.jpg

http://i123.photobucket.com/albums/o309/chin_lee/Skimmer%20Design/skimmer1.jpg


I have designed this to my needs but it can be modified to suit anybody's tank or system. Even a form of a HOB can be made with the same concept. One can make it much smaller but like said, i'm building this to my needs.
So my question to you DIYers, will this work? My best educated guess is that it can work. Its basically an elongated box for a beckett skimmer.
Input or comments will be appreciated.

[Jaws]

Tagging along. Fascinating idea.

[Midknight]

Coming along also. Hey Chin.. nice pic. :wink:

[Midknight]

To help visualize this , what are the measurements?
Would love to give you a hand putting it together or testing it. :wink:

[AndyL]

Are you sure that baffle system is the best way to remove microbubbles? I'd think a simple over under over baffle would be more effective... However you'd have to add a couple holes in the top of the under baffle for air to escape.

[BCOrchidGuy]

I'm probably missing something but wouldn't the baffles cause the microbubbles to join together and you'd end up with bigger bubbles that wouldn't collect waste??

Doug

[Chin_Lee]

I'm probably missing something but wouldn't the baffles cause the microbubbles to join together and you'd end up with bigger bubbles that wouldn't collect waste??

Doug
I'm not exactly sure which is why i'm asking for any opinions. I got the same consensus on RC regarding the turbulance it will create but yet on the same post states that a person who had built something similar in the past and it had worked very well - not sure what point was being made.
After seeing the way the bubbles react in my beckett when it goes from the box into the first riser and then into the second riser, I'm not very convinced that the baffles will create so much turbulence to be detrimental. I should also note that I rounded all the sharp corners with a 1/4" quarter circle router bit which may be the reason the bubbles flow around the corners so well.
When i get some time this spring, i might look into build one to experiment on. Another option is to simply remove all the baffles and work with a square skimmer body instead of a circular.

[mark]

you mentioned box skimmerhttp://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h316/das75/skimme1.jpg

Found from this thread (http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=732601&perpage=25&pagenumber=18) , needle wheel mod on a Dart

[SuperFudge]

Hey Chin,

I think the problem lies in that you would have to push water through it too fast to prevent bubbles from joining underneath the baffle plates, sort of defeating the purpose of your mod.
I bet if you simply converted your original beckett to recirculating, you would be most suprised at its stability and consistancy.
It was night and day for mine.

Looks damn cool tho :).

Marc.

[StirCrazy]

I think for this to work good, you might have to make it a recirc style skimmer and reduce the baffels to 2 or 3. I am not getting a couple things from the picture (could be that I was up drinking to lait last night though :mrgreen: ) but where exactly does the beckett go, where does the overflow of water back to the tank go?

I would look at this designe as a low flow high recirc type set up where you are pushing say 600gph through it with one pump, and then have 1 or two other pumps powwering twin becketts or needle wheels.

Steve