Excellent idea. Thank you for sharing it. Just a suggestion for the overflow risk, you could connect overflow pipes near the tops of the drawers from one side connecting to a hose & going down into the tank so in case if it does overflow, it will simply drain down back into the tank.
A trickle filter is much safer than a sump. Anaerobic conditions in the filter medium in case of a pump malfunction or a power-out are impossible, since the filter will empty itself completely. Oxygen is always plenty available for optimum oxidation of toxic decomposition products. 30 years ago I made a very simple horizontal trickle filter with a long plastic planter filled with expanded clay pellets and a layer of filter wool on top. It had just one tube with many fine holes, spraying the water over the filter wool. The water trickled through the holes in the bottom of the planter, straigth into the aquarium. Its performance was outstanding. I rinsed the wool once a week. A horizontal planter is long, low and narrow and it is very stable when put on top of the aquarium tank. It will never overflow, since it only consists of one compartment. It does not look bulky, since it only is 4 inches high. A selfmade trickle filter based on a 3 ft planter si dirt cheap, it can be made in no time for less than $15.
Not to mention the capacity that this filter can handle is awesome. That thing could handle around a 125- 175 easily. Great video dude, about to check some of your other videos. .
I attempted this today with a 3-drawer, top to bottom: Polyfil, Polyfil & Carbon, Lava rocks. This was worth the time and $ compared to purchasing an expensive filter. I have a 55-gallon with water not filled to the top, so if you're like me then it's gonna be LOUD. Thinking about filling it with more water and creating an above-tank basking area for the turtles now. One thing not mentioned though implied is that the submersible filter should be on the opposite end of the trickle filter so the trickling water will flow towards the submersed filter, thus cycling the entire tank. Anyways, thanks for the video!
ill reply, no need. im using professional over head trickle filter. no air stones require as when the water pulls down into the outflow tons of oxygen is in it
I wanted to tell you that I copied yours a year ago, I had a canister filter as well, I used both the these canisters were giving me worse results than the trickle filter alone. Now I got awesome result from my trickle filter.
Thanks a lot man. I knew I could make my own filter better and cheaper than the ones bought in the store and thanks to your videos I won't have to experiment too much.
I have been running my 3 drawer filter close to 2 year's , with 0 problems!!! I never have been concerned about "OVERFLOW" & with my pump inside of acrylic cereal storage box stuffed with pond filter foams ! I have been feeding heavy , and often as I have Cory's breeding all the time. The box is right @ the top of the surface JIC a hose were to come loose etc.( which will never happen especially when I have clamps on everything From Petco I bought the AQUEON pump & with the larger SEACHEM Media bag keeping the curious fish safe . The minute I start hearing the water churning I either top off or do my weekly 50% depending on the size of the Cory's ! Pro's - So much room for bio Media make this a no brainer way to filter my 40 breeder. Cons - Some would complain about the sound of the water but they don't have nothing better to do. So it's tricky to get everything dialed in but if you watch enough content to see what others are doing u should be good 😊
The holes situation really is dependent on the amount of flow from your pumps too. People getting into this would be wise to reference available charts on the internet for gravity flow rates through piping to figure the adequate amount of holes/sizes to accommodate their pumps!
I used a trickle filter much like yours but there is a big issue... If u got a planted tank i learned that they will not like this filtration. It simply stripps the water of all co2 because of the effective aeration of the water and my plants slowly checked out. In a non planted tank with a heavy fishstock it´s a great filter!
Wow... I've been dreaming up something that would do this job for compost tea. Mostly it was to remove debris but I've also been trying to incorporate a "feeding stage" for the microbiology going on in those barrels. This system is DAMN sweet genius! With such a multilayered filtration system you don't even have to shut down to clean, just hot swap a clean filter drawer for a the nasty one, (like a RAID 3 filter!), & never miss a beat.
Sweet idea! For your overflow concern, perhaps put the entire system inside a larger bin with holes that would drain back into the tank if that were to happen. Just an idea.
That is an excellent size trickle filter - awesome job, man. We're lucky in the UK as there are a few sellers bringing in some great aquarium trickle filters from China and I hope they become available in the US for a decent price. All the best for 2017.
My wet dry sump is designed similar to this. A guy made it 20 some years ago. Ppl that want a sump under their tank with overflow could use something like that in a aquarium and save a lot of money.
you can prevent flooding by using plastic storage containers that come with a lid instead of a shelf tower. A 3-gallon storage container costs $2-3 at walmart. Stack them on each other, apply some silicone glue, then drill some holes. It's what my friend does for his biggest fish tank
if you'd like to salve the problem you have with the slight chance of one of the chambers becoming clogged and overflowing all you have to do is add a bulkhead to each of the chambers so if the water reaches the top of the bulkhead the water still gets to the next chamber but a small percentage of it will get over the bulkhead and won't get filtered. if you check your filter every few days you'll know ahead of time when it's starting to clog up and you'll see how much water is skipping whatever chamber is clogged. at first when i did this i had trouble getting the draws in and out because of the bottom of the bulkhead and how it sticks out the bottom so you'll have the same problem you have with your fifth chamber going back into the tank but I solved that problem by siliconing the top half of the bulkhead inside the chamber (not using the bottom half that sticks out and keeps you from removing the tray) try it and you'll love it. if you want to go all out and add a reminder to clean, that not only tells you when it's time to clean but also tells you what chamber needs cleaning! this idea tells you which chamber is clogged without you having to look inside. all you need to do is add a small cap like a soda bottle cap tied to fishing twine leading to the top of the filter. when the water starts flowing down any of the "overflow" bulkheads because it's starting to get clogged, the flowing water pushes the cap down pulling the string that has the numbers of the chambers up on top inside of a small sign that reads "clean chamber __". when the string is pulled by the water pressure, that specific chamber number gets pulled up telling you what chamber to clean. I'm not sure if I explained that well enough... but I think you'll get the point of what I mean. it's a silly thing to waste time on but I thought it was funny so i made it and everyone loves it and wants one!
The added benefit of the first drawer is that the splash media actually helps to even out the water flow and keep it from condensing in the center of each tray, getting an equal use out of all of your media.
Awesome video... Btw, your sons math is spot on BECAUSE you said your 2 pumps are running at 90gph each...with no leaks (output) = (input) in this configuration...
I did a small one to one of my tanks and I have the rest on canister filters. I like the drip one better. Its so much easier to change things and do maintenance on than my canister filters. My canister filters I have to turn of dump out and break it down. Where as the trickle I don't have to do anything but shut the pump off to get to the floss other than that its the best way lol
I know it's been a while since posted but you also add a pipe to the first 2 chambers which allows unrestricted flow to the lower levels. That way when you start to see a chamber flowing through that pipe you know it's time to change the filter floss 😁
Great build. Personally I would cut the cost right down by not using bulk heads at the bottom, just holes. Also, 1 more powerful pump would be more cost effective than 2 cheapie ones. However, great video for sure and fantastic DIY for anyone not relying on having co2
You can find bulk pelleted activated carbon on ebay for waaaaaaaaaaaaay cheaper. I'm seeing it about $50/20 lbs. Also, to prevent problematic overflows, put a few holes somewhere on the side of the drawers where it can overflow in a controlled fashion. maybe two smaller bulkhead elbows out the front of the top drawer that run back down into the tank?
The only thing I would add is some sort of tray at the bottom with holes for the bulkheads. just in case it overflows I'd have the water running into the tray and back into the tank. Great video.
@@jdofishtank6018 He means a sump. A tray would probably not be big enough, but a small aquarium or a deep plastic sweater box to catch all of the overflow.
Great video, I now I’m subscribed to your channel and I appreciate all the cool ideas… After watching the video I kind a have an idea and hope it helps you. One of them was it looks as if the tray is roughly 16 inches or so wide and if that’s the case the frame on either side can be screwed into the studs in the wall as they are usually 16 inches on center. That may help with the support and could lift it off your tank to take off the stress from the actual aquarium.The other note was in regards to it overflowing, if you do left it on the wall you could then secure a pan like a plastic lid of some sort at an angle over your aquarium so if it does overflow that water would simply wash back into your aquarium as opposed to all over the place. Let me know what you think hope it helps. Thanks again for the great video!
Nice set up a couple small screws through the frame will hold it in place,and u won’t even see them.....or just put it under the tank with the pumps and draws in a small plastic tub I just built the same thing on my nano tank
If you need to access that bottom drawer, every layer of those containers easily comes apart and snaps back into place. Many crafters do so to paint them.
Just add some pvc pipes sticking above floss so if it gets clogged it will bypass. Also put them in bulkheads into tank so it cuts down on noise and your set 👍
Es un estupendo filtro muy biologico y a la vez muy estetico, probablemente igual o mejor que un canister, te felicito, estupenda dedicación a estas mascotas acuaticas.
hi there, you can make 2 more holes as a limiter for the over flow water to go out and direct go out to the tank, this can prevent the over flow on the 1st level since that absorb most of the big particles, hahahaha i have my guess room flooded the next morning with my aquarium 1/3 missing
Maybe i am wrong but carbon is not only really expensive , it clogs up very quickly and is essentially useless after just a few days. It is very good in an emergency situation where water has to be filtered quick for drinking. Use lava rocks or bioballs.
i still like submerges sumps, its just hard work transferring media from the box inside the aquarium when i change to air and turn of water pumps, the problem with trickle the media will dryout and lose most of the accumulated bacteria
I gave you a Sub for honestly, stating it was not your idea. I've seen so many steal ideas and pretend they were the creators, especially those bigger channels stealing from little ones, so disgusting. Keep up the great work and hopefully it turned out well for you👍
i have what looks like the same canister filter that you have. aqua top brand. works like a charm. what you created is pretty much the exact same thing. the aqua top uses an inclosed pressure system to circulate the water. the bakki shower uses simple gravity. yours has three great advantages over the aqua top. much much easier to clean. yours oxygenates the water extremely better. and just compare the cost. thanks for the idea.
i came across an old sump made of acrylic, i didn't want it but it had a big box with a draw at the top with holes a massive empty chamber underneath with 2 acrylic poles across the bottom opening which held a piece of egg crate......i connected my canister filters out put hose to the top of the box (sat on top of my tank) and filled the entire chamber with alfagrog media....the water goes thru the top tray holes and sprinkles down over the alfagrog creating a shower back into the tank.......every video i seen so far has the bottom bio media trays (no holes except one) flood the media and only outlets into the tank via a inch or 2 piece of pipe, the water rises to the height of the pipe then spills down it......I'm wondering if my setup is any good because the bio media is only wet thru water running over it and not submerged
Very impressed - simple but sooooo efficient. One basic aspect has not been covered though...can anyone see exactly how it is sitting on top of the tank? How much is hanging at the back of the tank - what is that supported by? It could even be at the side of a tank if there is inadequate room at the back. Just trying to figure what to stand the whole thing on. Thanks again
Get the base of trickle filter using dolphin brand, then u can diy the top trays above it or get mr aqua trays to stack above it. Dolphin brand hq is in malaysia. Mr aqua I think is from malaysia or china. Per tray is like $4 singapore dollars. U can imagine the manufacturing cost per simple ok thick plastic tray to be like 550 cents per tray max. We then to go for 1000 litres per hour for 2 ft tanks while higher flow rates like 1.5 to 2k litre per hour for 3 ft tanks. Ft = feet / foot. The benefit for dolphin brand is that there is a tube inlet ( on the submerged powerhead ) for an air tube to put n pump in air. While sucking water to the top of the ohf. Thus any over flow of water can be pushed out together with the air oor an additional source of air pump. The base tray for the 2 ft overhead filter as the base are like 1.5ish ft. For 3ft tanks, the base like 2.5 ish ft overhead filter as its base.
How about a fail-safe for overflow, on the bottom drawer facing the tank put a few small holes that will it would just go into the tank not all over the place.
I would at least add a bulkhead to each drawer with little standpipe in it that sticks up above the media but below the edge of the tray to serve as an emergency overflow to allow the water to get down to the next tray instead of flooding your house if the media gets too clogged up. I also don't agree with the "cut all pump flow in half" he mentions, that's a good way to have more flow than you think which could cause a flood. Yes, flow is greatly reduced, but that depends on the head height, I wouldn't just assume all pumps are moving half as much water as they claim. Although it seems to have worked in this case, I couldn't stand to set that up the way it is shown in the video because water can trickle along the trays and out the sides. Too risky for me. Great concept though, I just couldn't trust it outside of a sump where flooding wouldn't matter.
i have a 20litre capacity filter, 200lph, 4 trays, with UV. £80/$100. Brand new. Honestly, i like this idea, but for the price i can get this... i cant not do it haha.
Only change I would make is to put the trickle tower in a tote under the tank and pump the water back out of the tote like a cheap sump, would get rid of the issue of the overflow.
just get a big rubber tub at walmart, and put this inside it, put it under the tank. Then your one in tank pump will pump much more efficiently since it's going mostly down, as opposed to up. then the other pump can pump from the rubber tub up to the tank. No overflow problems, and out of sight.
+Dave Brosius In that arrangement, the flow rates of the pumps must match EXACTLY otherwise there will be overflow out of the tank or out of the filter. Likelihood of something going wrong is too high.
those convict's got it made in that tank! from my experience with them I found out they will damn near breed in anything! I definitely like the diy filter but not for me I don't like the look of it on top of the tank a bit of an eye sore. good helpful video! I will pass it on to some friends!
It would work better if you put it below the tank fed it with an overflow. Place the tower above a 10 gallon aquarium underneath and BOOM you have a full wet/dry sump for only $10 more, all your return pumps will moved into the sump and you could hide all your other equipment there too just need to add a HOB overflow. Also it solves the tower overflowing problem since you could leave the aquarium below half full.
There are 2 types of overflows. the ones that are drilled and the ones that are put on top and flow over the aquarium, I know what overflows are, don't try to get all genius with me.
You don't need do much carbon and definitely don't need two drawers of filter fiber...I would add an additional level of bio media...great setup, however you could just buy a Sunsun 304 for like $75 and it has 4 trays.
@@jdofishtank6018 yeah they are excellent filters for how cheap they are...I saw in the comment section that you took the carbon out...did you add more bio media? Lava rocks are awesome for Bio media...the only thing really better is biohome ultimate but it's very expensive.
ah yes like a standpipe. when the water gets high enough it overflows down to the next layer. I was thinking out the front down some tubes but this is better. maybe by sticking an inverted bulkhead fitting up through the bottom, kind of like his return bulkheads.
Followed your example except for using the bulk heads. It’s been working great for the last two months, the water is crystal clear. Only problem is now I don’t know when I’d need to change out everything in my filter lol. Do I wait until it stops cleaning my tanks water or should I play it safe and change it out every other month
becareful with your white canister filter. I got the bigger one with the uv light. it over heated and the glue in the top let go and it started spraying water and im so lucky i caught it in time.
I know filter floss is cheap, so why not use it? But for your carbon drawer, you can put it in nylon stockings, which cost, like, 80 cents at Walmart for a pair. Just make sure they don't "snag" on any rough edges from the holes you drilled.
Excellent idea. Thank you for sharing it.
Just a suggestion for the overflow risk, you could connect overflow pipes near the tops of the drawers from one side connecting to a hose & going down into the tank so in case if it does overflow, it will simply drain down back into the tank.
A trickle filter is much safer than a sump. Anaerobic conditions in the filter medium in case of a pump malfunction or a power-out are impossible, since the filter will empty itself completely. Oxygen is always plenty available for optimum oxidation of toxic decomposition products. 30 years ago I made a very simple horizontal trickle filter with a long plastic planter filled with expanded clay pellets and a layer of filter wool on top. It had just one tube with many fine holes, spraying the water over the filter wool. The water trickled through the holes in the bottom of the planter, straigth into the aquarium. Its performance was outstanding. I rinsed the wool once a week. A horizontal planter is long, low and narrow and it is very stable when put on top of the aquarium tank. It will never overflow, since it only consists of one compartment. It does not look bulky, since it only is 4 inches high. A selfmade trickle filter based on a 3 ft planter si dirt cheap, it can be made in no time for less than $15.
two years using this idea and it works real good.
Not to mention the capacity that this filter can handle is awesome. That thing could handle around a 125- 175 easily.
Great video dude, about to check some of your other videos. .
injoy987 thanks
I attempted this today with a 3-drawer, top to bottom: Polyfil, Polyfil & Carbon, Lava rocks. This was worth the time and $ compared to purchasing an expensive filter. I have a 55-gallon with water not filled to the top, so if you're like me then it's gonna be LOUD. Thinking about filling it with more water and creating an above-tank basking area for the turtles now. One thing not mentioned though implied is that the submersible filter should be on the opposite end of the trickle filter so the trickling water will flow towards the submersed filter, thus cycling the entire tank. Anyways, thanks for the video!
Looking into this for my turtle tank. What pump did you use?
You can tell how good it works look how healthy your fish are and your water is pristine.
Thank you for sharing.
Steve :)
Thanks
JDO Fishtank If this oxygenates the water, do i still need airstones?
ill reply, no need. im using professional over head trickle filter. no air stones require as when the water pulls down into the outflow tons of oxygen is in it
Very neat DIY project, and you can't argue with the cost.
Anthony Ragan now if fall water to be waterdowns :-) at down level flat
made by ikea :-) for bread
I wanted to tell you that I copied yours a year ago, I had a canister filter as well, I used both the these canisters were giving me worse results than the trickle filter alone. Now I got awesome result from my trickle filter.
sergio f4t nice!
Thanks a lot man. I knew I could make my own filter better and cheaper than the ones bought in the store and thanks to your videos I won't have to experiment too much.
I have been running my 3 drawer filter close to 2 year's , with 0 problems!!! I never have been concerned about "OVERFLOW" & with my pump inside of acrylic cereal storage box stuffed with pond filter foams ! I have been feeding heavy , and often as I have Cory's breeding all the time. The box is right @ the top of the surface JIC a hose were to come loose etc.( which will never happen especially when I have clamps on everything From Petco I bought the AQUEON pump & with the larger SEACHEM Media bag keeping the curious fish safe . The minute I start hearing the water churning I either top off or do my weekly 50% depending on the size of the Cory's !
Pro's - So much room for bio Media make this a no brainer way to filter my 40 breeder.
Cons - Some would complain about the sound of the water but they don't have nothing better to do. So it's tricky to get everything dialed in but if you watch enough content to see what others are doing u should be good 😊
The holes situation really is dependent on the amount of flow from your pumps too. People getting into this would be wise to reference available charts on the internet for gravity flow rates through piping to figure the adequate amount of holes/sizes to accommodate their pumps!
It's beautiful
I used a trickle filter much like yours but there is a big issue... If u got a planted tank i learned that they will not like this filtration. It simply stripps the water of all co2 because of the effective aeration of the water and my plants slowly checked out. In a non planted tank with a heavy fishstock it´s a great filter!
You are correct
Why do you cut the GPH in half?
aaaheim so if I want to use this for a outside pond filter for goldfish, the water lettuce would not live? Thanks
Jena Tucker Aquariums surface plants will get co2 from the air so should be fine. Submerged plants would have the issue.
I bet this wouldn't work for guppies??
Wow... I've been dreaming up something that would do this job for compost tea. Mostly it was to remove debris but I've also been trying to incorporate a "feeding stage" for the microbiology going on in those barrels.
This system is DAMN sweet genius! With such a multilayered filtration system you don't even have to shut down to clean, just hot swap a clean filter drawer for a the nasty one, (like a RAID 3 filter!), & never miss a beat.
Sweet idea! For your overflow concern, perhaps put the entire system inside a larger bin with holes that would drain back into the tank if that were to happen. Just an idea.
That is an excellent size trickle filter - awesome job, man.
We're lucky in the UK as there are a few sellers bringing in some great aquarium trickle filters from China and I hope they become available in the US for a decent price.
All the best for 2017.
Thanks, I wanted to buy the one in your video but to fit my tank I had to get one that was $80.
Yes its a bummer - not sure why they would cost way more in the US than they do in the UK as they all come from China.
Pondguru Outdoors Richard it might be cause America puts an inport tax on items made in China
We get hit with taxes too but you guys must really get hammered as its way more expensive on amazon.com than ebay.co.uk
My wet dry sump is designed similar to this. A guy made it 20 some years ago. Ppl that want a sump under their tank with overflow could use something like that in a aquarium and save a lot of money.
I picked up a couple trickle filters on a business trip to Guam last month. Interesting beasts. I'm setting them up on my breeding tanks.
you can prevent flooding by using plastic storage containers that come with a lid instead of a shelf tower. A 3-gallon storage container costs $2-3 at walmart. Stack them on each other, apply some silicone glue, then drill some holes. It's what my friend does for his biggest fish tank
Pond guru & his media is unreal i love him he keep me in this hobby always reply my emails and give me the best advice
if you'd like to salve the problem you have with the slight chance of one of the chambers becoming clogged and overflowing all you have to do is add a bulkhead to each of the chambers so if the water reaches the top of the bulkhead the water still gets to the next chamber but a small percentage of it will get over the bulkhead and won't get filtered. if you check your filter every few days you'll know ahead of time when it's starting to clog up and you'll see how much water is skipping whatever chamber is clogged. at first when i did this i had trouble getting the draws in and out because of the bottom of the bulkhead and how it sticks out the bottom so you'll have the same problem you have with your fifth chamber going back into the tank but I solved that problem by siliconing the top half of the bulkhead inside the chamber (not using the bottom half that sticks out and keeps you from removing the tray) try it and you'll love it.
if you want to go all out and add a reminder to clean, that not only tells you when it's time to clean but also tells you what chamber needs cleaning! this idea tells you which chamber is clogged without you having to look inside. all you need to do is add a small cap like a soda bottle cap tied to fishing twine leading to the top of the filter. when the water starts flowing down any of the "overflow" bulkheads because it's starting to get clogged, the flowing water pushes the cap down pulling the string that has the numbers of the chambers up on top inside of a small sign that reads "clean chamber __". when the string is pulled by the water pressure, that specific chamber number gets pulled up telling you what chamber to clean. I'm not sure if I explained that well enough... but I think you'll get the point of what I mean. it's a silly thing to waste time on but I thought it was funny so i made it and everyone loves it and wants one!
The added benefit of the first drawer is that the splash media actually helps to even out the water flow and keep it from condensing in the center of each tray, getting an equal use out of all of your media.
Awesome video...
Btw, your sons math is spot on BECAUSE you said your 2 pumps are running at 90gph each...with no leaks (output) = (input) in this configuration...
Love creativity if you took this to another level you could get this equivalent filtering of a very expensive filter. Thanks for sharing!
I did a small one to one of my tanks and I have the rest on canister filters. I like the drip one better. Its so much easier to change things and do maintenance on than my canister filters. My canister filters I have to turn of dump out and break it down. Where as the trickle I don't have to do anything but shut the pump off to get to the floss other than that its the best way lol
But damn that electricity bill. Beautiful tank and awesome DIY idea. I might try it as well.
MrDirtyDeedz thanks, electric bill not that bad
I know it's been a while since posted but you also add a pipe to the first 2 chambers which allows unrestricted flow to the lower levels. That way when you start to see a chamber flowing through that pipe you know it's time to change the filter floss 😁
Great build. Personally I would cut the cost right down by not using bulk heads at the bottom, just holes.
Also, 1 more powerful pump would be more cost effective than 2 cheapie ones.
However, great video for sure and fantastic DIY for anyone not relying on having co2
You can find bulk pelleted activated carbon on ebay for waaaaaaaaaaaaay cheaper. I'm seeing it about $50/20 lbs. Also, to prevent problematic overflows, put a few holes somewhere on the side of the drawers where it can overflow in a controlled fashion. maybe two smaller bulkhead elbows out the front of the top drawer that run back down into the tank?
Thank you for your effort and sharing it with us. God Bless.
The only thing I would add is some sort of tray at the bottom with holes for the bulkheads. just in case it overflows I'd have the water running into the tray and back into the tank.
Great video.
I'm confused, that's how I have the filter set up.
@@jdofishtank6018 He means a sump. A tray would probably not be big enough, but a small aquarium or a deep plastic sweater box to catch all of the overflow.
Great video, I now I’m subscribed to your channel and I appreciate all the cool ideas… After watching the video I kind a have an idea and hope it helps you. One of them was it looks as if the tray is roughly 16 inches or so wide and if that’s the case the frame on either side can be screwed into the studs in the wall as they are usually 16 inches on center. That may help with the support and could lift it off your tank to take off the stress from the actual aquarium.The other note was in regards to it overflowing, if you do left it on the wall you could then secure a pan like a plastic lid of some sort at an angle over your aquarium so if it does overflow that water would simply wash back into your aquarium as opposed to all over the place. Let me know what you think hope it helps. Thanks again for the great video!
Thank you very much I’m definitely making one it looks so easy and the water is just so clear
Nice set up a couple small screws through the frame will hold it in place,and u won’t even see them.....or just put it under the tank with the pumps and draws in a small plastic tub I just built the same thing on my nano tank
If you need to access that bottom drawer, every layer of those containers easily comes apart and snaps back into place. Many crafters do so to paint them.
Muchas gracias por compartirlo! es una excelente realización de la idea.
Awesome dude! I’m going to make one but it’s going to go in a tank underneath my tank!
Just add some pvc pipes sticking above floss so if it gets clogged it will bypass. Also put them in bulkheads into tank so it cuts down on noise and your set 👍
Es un estupendo filtro muy biologico y a la vez muy estetico, probablemente igual o mejor que un canister, te felicito, estupenda dedicación a estas mascotas acuaticas.
Nice job. I'd prefer this filter underneath the tank in a sump.
hi there, you can make 2 more holes as a limiter for the over flow water to go out and direct go out to the tank, this can prevent the over flow on the 1st level since that absorb most of the big particles, hahahaha i have my guess room flooded the next morning with my aquarium 1/3 missing
Maybe i am wrong but carbon is not only really expensive , it clogs up very quickly and is essentially useless after just a few days. It is very good in an emergency situation where water has to be filtered quick for drinking. Use lava rocks or bioballs.
i still like submerges sumps, its just hard work transferring media from the box inside the aquarium when i change to air and turn of water pumps, the problem with trickle the media will dryout and lose most of the accumulated bacteria
It will only dry out if u turn the pump off lol....in an emergency bag the media in nets and place in water until pump back on
Just drill and connect one hose near the top of the bottom drawer which is going out for the overflow
This is exactly the idea I was looking for
Your aquarium is very clean... Loved the video....
Rita Fultz thanks
I gave you a Sub for honestly, stating it was not your idea. I've seen so many steal ideas and pretend they were the creators, especially those bigger channels stealing from little ones, so disgusting. Keep up the great work and hopefully it turned out well for you👍
Keepp Dreamingg thanks!
great video. very informative.
Thanks
i have what looks like the same canister filter that you have. aqua top brand. works like a charm. what you created is pretty much the exact same thing. the aqua top uses an inclosed pressure system to circulate the water. the bakki shower uses simple gravity. yours has three great advantages over the aqua top. much much easier to clean. yours oxygenates the water extremely better. and just compare the cost. thanks for the idea.
If you want the pumps to pick up dirt and debris from the bottom of the tank you should install them right above the sand.
Could set on floor....use skimmer-dump water to first drawer then pump in last drawer back up to tank.
Nice! I have the large drawer system but it sits in a sump (40 gal breeder tank).
EO Rhino nice
Gonna make a larger one of these for my turtle trough. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for this man. Very helpful and informative. God Bless :)
I'm gonna use my sister's same drawer as yours hahahah :D
Very nice set up.
Thanks
You're better off turning this into a sump system so it doesn't overflow. 👌
i came across an old sump made of acrylic, i didn't want it but it had a big box with a draw at the top with holes a massive empty chamber underneath with 2 acrylic poles across the bottom opening which held a piece of egg crate......i connected my canister filters out put hose to the top of the box (sat on top of my tank) and filled the entire chamber with alfagrog media....the water goes thru the top tray holes and sprinkles down over the alfagrog creating a shower back into the tank.......every video i seen so far has the bottom bio media trays (no holes except one) flood the media and only outlets into the tank via a inch or 2 piece of pipe, the water rises to the height of the pipe then spills down it......I'm wondering if my setup is any good because the bio media is only wet thru water running over it and not submerged
if you added one or 2 upside down bulkheads or even silicone a piece of pvc in each draw to use as an overflow.
robert smith You could just put the unit in a larger bin that captures all overflow then drill holes in the bin only.
Very impressed - simple but sooooo efficient. One basic aspect has not been covered though...can anyone see exactly how it is sitting on top of the tank? How much is hanging at the back of the tank - what is that supported by? It could even be at the side of a tank if there is inadequate room at the back. Just trying to figure what to stand the whole thing on. Thanks again
It's sitting on the trim of the tank and leaning against the back wall.
Love that set up, well done.
💓 it! Will utilize your info here for an outdoor bird bath. TY.
Get the base of trickle filter using dolphin brand, then u can diy the top trays above it or get mr aqua trays to stack above it.
Dolphin brand hq is in malaysia. Mr aqua I think is from malaysia or china. Per tray is like $4 singapore dollars. U can imagine the manufacturing cost per simple ok thick plastic tray to be like 550 cents per tray max.
We then to go for 1000 litres per hour for 2 ft tanks while higher flow rates like 1.5 to 2k litre per hour for 3 ft tanks. Ft = feet / foot. The benefit for dolphin brand is that there is a tube inlet ( on the submerged powerhead ) for an air tube to put n pump in air. While sucking water to the top of the ohf. Thus any over flow of water can be pushed out together with the air oor an additional source of air pump.
The base tray for the 2 ft overhead filter as the base are like 1.5ish ft. For 3ft tanks, the base like 2.5 ish ft overhead filter as its base.
Awesome video nice project
Brian's Reefing World thanks
wow its greatly working .but my Q? was why you use another canister filter again .
How about a fail-safe for overflow, on the bottom drawer facing the tank put a few small holes that will it would just go into the tank not all over the place.
Nice filter!
guppyNL 😉😎🖑
very well explained I'd love to do it but I couldn't have it siting there the look of it would just put the tank of
Agreed, I no longer use it.
use a plastic storage bin and put it underneath your tank like a traditional sump....maybe you can plumb it inline with you canister filter???
I love DIY! Good job
Thanks
Really like it. Thanks for sharing!
Clee Hammer no problem
Just built this. Working great!
Awesome brother great👍 work
I would at least add a bulkhead to each drawer with little standpipe in it that sticks up above the media but below the edge of the tray to serve as an emergency overflow to allow the water to get down to the next tray instead of flooding your house if the media gets too clogged up.
I also don't agree with the "cut all pump flow in half" he mentions, that's a good way to have more flow than you think which could cause a flood. Yes, flow is greatly reduced, but that depends on the head height, I wouldn't just assume all pumps are moving half as much water as they claim.
Although it seems to have worked in this case, I couldn't stand to set that up the way it is shown in the video because water can trickle along the trays and out the sides. Too risky for me.
Great concept though, I just couldn't trust it outside of a sump where flooding wouldn't matter.
i have a 20litre capacity filter, 200lph, 4 trays, with UV. £80/$100. Brand new. Honestly, i like this idea, but for the price i can get this... i cant not do it haha.
Woww wat a idea
Only change I would make is to put the trickle tower in a tote under the tank and pump the water back out of the tote like a cheap sump, would get rid of the issue of the overflow.
Then I would have to make an overflow to get the water from the tank to the filter, you can't run 2 pumps.
just get a big rubber tub at walmart, and put this inside it, put it under the tank. Then your one in tank pump will pump much more efficiently since it's going mostly down, as opposed to up. then the other pump can pump from the rubber tub up to the tank. No overflow problems, and out of sight.
but very cool none the less. nice job.
That won't work
+Dave Brosius In that arrangement, the flow rates of the pumps must match EXACTLY otherwise there will be overflow out of the tank or out of the filter. Likelihood of something going wrong is too high.
When you have a house with a bathroom bigger than the living room this is how it looks 😂
Aww thank you so much. I will do this with my powerhead.
Gonna try this for my feeder tank.
those convict's got it made in that tank! from my experience with them I found out they will damn near breed in anything! I definitely like the diy filter but not for me I don't like the look of it on top of the tank a bit of an eye sore.
good helpful video! I will pass it on to some friends!
Thanks
very nice
very easy only took me an hour to build the whole thing
i am going to put this in a biger scale for my fountain :) thanks!
Awesome video man! Thanks for sharing!!
Bret Rohlf no problem
you are a genius
LOL thanks
It would work better if you put it below the tank fed it with an overflow. Place the tower above a 10 gallon aquarium underneath and BOOM you have a full wet/dry sump for only $10 more, all your return pumps will moved into the sump and you could hide all your other equipment there too just need to add a HOB overflow. Also it solves the tower overflowing problem since you could leave the aquarium below half full.
Then I would have to drill a hole in a glass tank already filled with water, nope! lol
Never heard of an overflow?
No need, I switched to sponges anyway
An overflow goes inside the tank so you dont need to drill the tank....
There are 2 types of overflows. the ones that are drilled and the ones that are put on top and flow over the aquarium, I know what overflows are, don't try to get all genius with me.
So cool!
You don't need do much carbon and definitely don't need two drawers of filter fiber...I would add an additional level of bio media...great setup, however you could just buy a Sunsun 304 for like $75 and it has 4 trays.
Gurvinder Parmar I did have a sunsun hooked up to this tank also.
@@jdofishtank6018 yeah they are excellent filters for how cheap they are...I saw in the comment section that you took the carbon out...did you add more bio media? Lava rocks are awesome for Bio media...the only thing really better is biohome ultimate but it's very expensive.
Gurvinder Parmar I don’t remember, this video is old, I think I put in more bio media, but I use biohome ultimate media now.
Hey thanks man for giving me this great idea . Keep it up
very cool
i love you man, you are a genius !
aram akdam lol
You can make hole in the middle of each drawer and glue small pieces of pipe and this will prevent it from overflowing
ah yes like a standpipe. when the water gets high enough it overflows down to the next layer. I was thinking out the front down some tubes but this is better. maybe by sticking an inverted bulkhead fitting up through the bottom, kind of like his return bulkheads.
Followed your example except for using the bulk heads. It’s been working great for the last two months, the water is crystal clear. Only problem is now I don’t know when I’d need to change out everything in my filter lol. Do I wait until it stops cleaning my tanks water or should I play it safe and change it out every other month
becareful with your white canister filter. I got the bigger one with the uv light. it over heated and the glue in the top let go and it started spraying water and im so lucky i caught it in time.
Never had a problem with mine.
Im gonna do that thanks bro
I know filter floss is cheap, so why not use it? But for your carbon drawer, you can put it in nylon stockings, which cost, like, 80 cents at Walmart for a pair. Just make sure they don't "snag" on any rough edges from the holes you drilled.
Have you thought of having an over flow pipe that just goes straight into the tank from the top draw? You could tap it to the back as high as you can
Thank you bro....
Well good idea m8
Very insightful! Thank you :)