modifying Euroreef to recirculate
 

Can someone show me how to modifying an insump Euroreef 8-3 to a recirculating skimmer (external). Please specify what parts are required and where they can be purchase.

Thx.

What you need to do is cut a hole in the body of the skimmer where the intake of the pump will be, and install a bulkhead and connect the pump to your new hole.

Now the pump is drawing its water from inside the skimmer, and returning the bubbles into the skimmer.

Now you need to feed the skimmer with a water source, a powerhead or the drain line from your display will work. Cut a hole to do this as well.

I have only seen it done on ASM's which have to be run in-sump so leaking doesn't matter, but you will have to make sure all your connections and bulkheads don't leak.

Posting a link to a site with pictures will probably help some people may need pic's to follow along with. Not trying to bash just a hint.


mike

http://www.asmskimmer.com/mod2.htm

Warning: The bulkheads used in this link will not work for you, they are not water tight.

I found with thou Uniseals they are not good, I had them on my kalk reactor and they leaked like crazy as soon as you put any pressure on them. IE turning on the pump to mix up the kalk.

Yep, hence my warning against using them.

That mod kit that ASM uses will most likely leak, seems to be for in-sump use only. I wonder what Euroreef uses for there recir externals? If it is the same uniseal, then I would suspect that some sort of adhesive is applied as well to seal it from leaking. What do you think?

Yes, you need a bulkhead, not a uniseal.

Check the RC thread on RDSBs for a link to curved bulkheads.

We have an external Euro as you know Will. Are there any simple (really simple) questions I could answer? :lol:

Deb off the record how's the tank coming anyways

Off the record, it's a mess Mike.......:lol:

can you post a good link for this as we all know how good RC's search function works if you don't pay

Steve

This should work

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showth...9&goto=newpost

Wrong link perhaps. There's nothing about converting to recirculate in that thread. Please try again.

Its not about recirculating, that was the previous link that showed you what to do. But in that link it is for in-sump ASM skimmers with uniseals. You cannot use uniseals, you need bulkheads that won't leak. In the RDSB thread I posted, I remember there being some info on curved bulkheads because for a RDSB in a bucket they have to deal with sealing a curved surface (a 5g bucket) just like you have to deal with sealing your curved skimmer body.

I found these,
http://www.aquaticeco.com/index.cfm/.../8600/cid/2009

Any thoughts?

I really don't know what to say.

Did you read any of my or asmodeus's posts or check out the links?

What is the wall thickness of the acrylic tubing on your EuroReef? I've found that Uniseals work better on thicker acrylic (1/4" and up).

Hey Rory, I think in that "RDSB in a bucket" thread, they were referring to uniseals but just calling them "curved bulkheads".

I'm using 1" uniseals externally in my RDSB-in-a-bucket and in three months there hasn't been a leak. It could just be that some are better than others? But what I had to do is really reef the pipe into the uniseal to give pressure on the seal keeping it watertight. However, this may not be a fair comparison as it's a low-pressure situation. Then again though, a skimmer isn't exactly a pressurized vessel .. I don't see why it wouldn't work.

The one concern, I think, you may have still after that, is that if you bump the pipe you might dislodge it and then you might have a leak on your hands, since it's just a pressure-fit instead of a solid welded connection.

So anyhow ... What I'd do, is consider using bushings. They can be used like bulkheads but are less bulky. You'd have to seal the bushing with something like weldon-16. It won't be going anywhere after that and will be watertight. Something like a 1.25 slip to 1" threaded, then you thread your pump attachments to that piece, and you're done.

But if you want to try the uniseals, I think I have some extra 1" uniseals, since they were a pain to find I ordered more than I needed just in case someone in Calgary ever wanted any. The only drawback is that you'll need a bigger hole for the uniseals than you will for a bushing, so there's kind of no turning back. Well, that's not entirely true .. you can always patch in the hole using the plug you cut out, welding it in place with weld-on 16. I did this (I didn't like where I had cut my first hole), it works fine, it's just not very pretty.

I checked through the thread again, and cannot find the reference anymore. There was information about a hard plastic curved bulkhead, but I cannot find it anymore unfortunately.

Give the uniseals a try, let us know how they work out for you.

Read this link first, they might leak on thin material, and I am guessing your skimmer body is pretty thin.

http://www.aquaforums.com/forums/lof....php/t293.html

I am going to try and find the curved bulkheads. I don't trust the uniseal because if I accidentally bump into it, the seal may losen and leak. Failing to find the bulkheads I will try to find some thick rubber bushing or just end up making something like Tony mentioned.

I've used the common type bulkhead that you get from Hydroponic stores on various sized containers, without problem.

Measured a small one I've got, it's for 1/2" tubing (barbed) with a bulkhead face of 1.25". Looking at it against my ASM G3, could see using it on the skimmer without overly distorting the chamber. A hydroponic store might even have smaller but still sufficient for a skimmer recir mod.

Let us know if you do find the curved bulkheads.