Diy Drippers

[Hammsreefbeer]

Hello,
I need to dose to get my parameter up alittle and would like to see your home made drippers.Ive always used a aqualifter but it getts clogged alot,so im looking for a simple way of dripping.
Thanx alot guys/gals

[bebitte70]

I was wondering the same thing, I want to drip limewater but I don't have a sump so it's not easy. I was thinking of a closed container preferably tall. Then insert a long tubing and a short tubing through the cap. Hook up a small air pump to the short tubing and the long tubing will drip (maybe to fast though).
Anyways it's a thought if anyone has tried this and wanna share thoughts or ideas.

[richie shepherd]

yea sounds good but im still learning too ive been looking for homade doser too

[rguyler]

The simplest dosing setups use gravity feed with a simple pinch valve to regulate the flow. This is a very inexpensive setup and can actually perform pretty well. You could also use a plastic airline valve or better yet a laboratory-grade stopcock valve. The airline valves tend to clog so not the best choice. Depending on what you're dosing (such as kalk) almost any valve can eventually clog so whatever you come up with, make it easy to service.

Another thought I have is that many of the dosing solutions don't stay in solution real well. Some method of constant or semi-constant agitation would be ideal for whatever holding tank you decide to use for the mix. I like the over-pressure idea with the tall tower but you really would have to agitate that unit quite a bit as much of the dosing minerals would settle on the bottom. Maybe if you placed the tower on top of the air pump to take advantage of the pump's vibration...

Or you can just say screw it and buy a nice dosing system! ;-) Seriously though, it might be worth your time to call a local hospital or two to see if they would sell or even give away an old dosing pump or not (I used to work for a large hospital - ask for the Bio-Med department). They cycle these devices in and out as upgrades come out so who knows. You might even find a dealer of used medical equipment who could hook you up.

That's about it for my thoughts on this subject. Good luck!

[0k.]

http://pet.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pPETS-3758919dt.jpg

The little ballvalves act just like a a bulkhead. I have used this for a year now with no leaks. For a while i was using standard 1/4" airline tubing but switched over to an IV drip line to control flow even better. The top green handle is stong enough to hang from say a hook screw. I have a carabiner latched around the green handle, and then the carabiner attaches to an eye screw which is attached to a 2x4 above my sump. The best $12 i ever spent.


This product is made by ZOO- MED, but i have only found it in the smaller pet stores, not the big box places.

[Mike31154]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15513189#post15513189 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bebitte70
I was wondering the same thing, I want to drip limewater but I don't have a sump so it's not easy. I was thinking of a closed container preferably tall. Then insert a long tubing and a short tubing through the cap. Hook up a small air pump to the short tubing and the long tubing will drip (maybe to fast though).
Anyways it's a thought if anyone has tried this and wanna share thoughts or ideas.

My system is currently sumpless as well and I've rigged up a 7 gallon glass carboy mainly as my auto top off in exactly the configuration you describe. Rubber stopper with two rigid tubes, one long, one short and an air pump on a timer to run for 1 minute 3 - 4 times a day depending on evaporation rate. I've been dissolving some dow flake in every other bottle to maintain calcium. Takes roughly a week to empty the carboy on my 75 gallon tank. So far no issue with any calcium precipitating or settling in the bottom of the carboy, but I tend to 'underdose' the dow flake rather than going for saturation level. I run the tube going into the tank to a small, cheapo all plastic air regulator affair with valves wide open. So far it hasn't clogged, the main reason I use it because it hangs securely over the rim of the tank, holding the flexible tube in place nicely.

The whole thing might be considered a little unsightly next to the display, but I've seen posts where folks have hidden this type of rig inside nicely made or purchased containers, wicker or whatever. I like the gravity feed idea as well though, no pumps or power involved, just need some altitude above your tank. When I upgrade to a larger tank with basement sump, my ATO will be gravity feed into the sump controlled by a mechanical furnace humidifier float.

[Rybren]

I use a 5 gal HD pail full of kalkwasser to drip into my tank (no sump). It is mounted on a shelf and gravity feeds through airline tubing to the tank. I use a hose-crimping valve to control the drip rate (1 drip per 3-4 secs matches the evaporation rate in my 30 gal fairly well). Every couple of weeks I blow fresh water through the hose to clean out the sediment.

Simple, yet it works like a charm.

[coralfragger101]

The problem with any drip system for kalk is that it will clog in short order. You simply won't be able to keep a constant drip rate.

Rather than trying to drip the kalkwasser you can make yourself a kalk reactor. I'm in the process of doing this right now. I guestimate that I'll end up spending maybe $50 to make the reactor. That's pretty good considering that it is based on a Deltec reactor that costs about $500.


Pics of where I'm at with this project:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1672714

[29reef]

For all the folks using gravity fed drips, have you experimented with garden drippers? I remember seeing ones with different gph ratings. No doubt that they would clog with Kalk but they are pretty cheep. Maybe it's worth a try. I think they are 1/4" already so you can just use airline tubing.

[Hammsreefbeer]

Thanks everyone for the replys and help.I dont want to spend any cash on drippers because i just need to bump my #'s up a little then ill turn my Rx reactor back on.

[JMBoehling]

I've used gravity fed Kalk/Make up Water for over 6 years using a Kent Float Valve. Just soak it in vinegar once a year and you'll have no problems. Highly recommend this method.

[coralfragger101]

One of my tanks currently has a gravity fed system w/Kent float valve and kalkwasser as a top off.

Does your calcium precipitate out of the water and form hard deposits all around the float? Mine does. There is always like a 1" thin hard calcium ring stuck onto the float. If I knock it off it is back within days. This can't be good.