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Myhahockeykid

DIY - Carbon Filtering Skimmer Lid LOTS OF PICS

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Myhahockeykid
, 01-05-2011 at 10:20 PM (8620 Views)
Hello everyone, hope you've all had a happy new year !

I as I'm sure many others do have my tank setup in my bedroom, and sometimes the smell of the rotting goo in the protein skimmer collection cup creates quite a funk that has been getting quite noticeable in my room

This clearly needed fixing, and after a bit of research I happened upon a few prebuilt skimmer lids with carbon chambers to filter the air and absorb the smell from the skimmate. But I couldn't justify spending nearly $100 on something that I could build myself.

So this was created:


And now for how I did it!

Supplies:
1.5" long section of 6" acrylic tubing - Avast Marine Works - $7
My Reef Octopus NWB 150 Stock Skimmer Lid - Already Owned
Weld-On #4 - Avast Marine Works - $3.50
Super Glue Gel - Any Local HD or Hardware Store - $2
Filter Pad - Already Owned
Activated Carbon - Already Owned
Custom Made 6" Skimmer Cup Top - Avast Marine Works - $12
Scissors
Weights



First step: Dry fit the finished lid to check for fit



Second step: Put weights on top of dry fitted assembly



Third step: Pour Weld-On #4 into applicator bottle and apply around seam, making sure to go around the entire circumference





Fourth Step: While allowing this time to dry, trim the filter pad to fit inside of the acrylic tubing you just glued on



Fifth step: After the Weld-On dries, you should end up with something that looks like this



Sixth step: Next I drilled an extra 6 1/4" holes around the pre existing holes in my skimmer lid for a total of 12 holes to allow for extra airflow





Seventh Step: I then put a bead of super glue gel around the inside of the acrylic tubing to attach the filter pad to



Eight Step: Then I put the filter pad in and pressed it into the superglue gel until it set, after all the filter pad was in, it looked like this



Ninth Step: The final step was to fill the top section with activated carbon, place the lid on and put the cup back on the skimmer





The smell is gone! And my skimmer is alot quieter which is an added bonus

So there is my DIY guide to building your own skimmer carbon filtering lid for under $30! Enjoy!

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Categories
‎ New Additions , ‎ Plumbing , ‎ DIY projects

Comments

  1. melev's Avatar
    That's pretty neat. Why did you feel the need to glue in the bottom pad? Don't you think from time to time you'll have to clean it? If the skimmer goes nuts, foam will get into the padding, for example.

    Thanks for sharing your project with us!
  2. Heathd's Avatar
    Most impressive.
  3. Myhahockeykid's Avatar
    Thank you both for the complements!

    Regarding your question Marc,

    If you look very carefully you will see that the "filter pad" is actually the blue pad cut out of the tops of some prepackaged filter pads that I had laying around. They are pictured in the materials photo. Mine is made up of 3 separate strips of padding and I was concerned about the carbon falling through and into my skimmer possibly causing trouble. If my skimmer goes nuts I could easily tear or cut out the foam that is in there and redo it properly out of one big circle of foam, but for the time being I don't think I should have a problem.

    Hope this helps clear that question up.

    As a side note, I purchased all of the acrylic products from Avast Marine Works, the maker of the Skimmer Swabbie, and the owner Dan was incredibly helpful by working with me via email to get exactly the parts that I needed. A+ for their customer service, I highly recommend them to anyone who needs equipment or raw materials as they will make custom CNC acrylic parts at very very reasonable costs.
  4. melev's Avatar
    You might opt to use needlepoint plastic material instead as a protector. You can even buy them in circles at Walmart in the fabrics section. Picture a placemat or coaster with a ton of tiny holes in it. That's what I'm talking about. Then you can place filter pad or floss on top, and the loose carbon. http://www.enasco.com/product/7500165H
  5. Myhahockeykid's Avatar
    Wow thanks! That looks awesome, I think I'll go pick that up this weekend. I think that would make this even better. Thanks for the compliment, from the master of reef acrylics himself!