DIY Protein Skimmer Swabbie / Neck Cleaner

[MaccaPopEye]

In case anyone hasn't seen this awesome video by Fish Of Hex on YouTube I thought I would share the link:


He walks through how to make a very cheap DIY skimmer neck cleaner!

After seeing his video I decided to make my own and 3D print a housing for the motor to hopefully keep it away from salt creep.

It's only been on the tank since this morning so I'll keep this thread updated with how it goes long term and any changes I make to the design

If anyone has a 3D printer and wants to print this out I have uploaded the STL files here:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3041567

The skimmer lid is designed to fit a Deltec SC1350, but if you don't want to make it fit your skimmer you can just drill a hole in the top of your skimmer lid.

Here is a quick video of it working (it's a lot quieter in person):

 

[Mr.Hyde]

How much do those 3D printers cost?

 

[MaccaPopEye]

How much do those 3D printers cost?

I have an Anet A8 which can be found as low as $150USD on sale but they aren't the safest printer out of the box and need $20-30+ worth of upgrades to be safe.

The new creality ender 3 is often sold for $200USD and I've been seeing quite good reviews about it and it looks like a much better printer.

But be warned both of those are "kit" printers that will need assembly and may take some time and effort to iron out the kinks etc. I think the creality cr-10 are one of the cheaper printers that require minimal to no assembly and cost closer to $500 (I think).

It's been quite fun learning how to build and use a kit printer though, it's a hobby all on its own

 

[crs751]

Don’t suppose you would be interested in printing one for those of us that don’t have access to a printer.

 

[crs751]

Got all the parts need to build this neck cleaner and assembled it this weekend. It works great. I don't have access to a 3-D printer so I asked someone else to print it for me. I'm not certain of the rules on this forum relative to referencing other businesses. So if you want contact info for this 3-D printing business send me a PM. Thanks to MaccaPopEye for putting the file out there for others to use.

 

[MaccaPopEye]

Got all the parts need to build this neck cleaner and assembled it this weekend. It works great. I don't have access to a 3-D printer so I asked someone else to print it for me. I'm not certain of the rules on this forum relative to referencing other businesses. So if you want contact info for this 3-D printing business send me a PM. Thanks to MaccaPopEye for putting the file out there for others to use.

Awesome mate, It looks great

I did mean to reply to your earlier comment. I have too much of a backlog of things I need to print and then family members all have their requests too! So I wouldn't have time to print for anyone else atm, and that's before you even think about the cost of shipping from Australia

But good to see you found a solution and it looks like the design has been edited a bit too, it looks good! My initial concern was that a thin frame would be under to much tortion and would snap, but I think after having mine going for a little while it will be on with a thin frame

 

[crs751]

LOL I didn’t realize you were in Australia. Yeah that would be a shipping issue for sure. I think it will hold up just fine. Especially if you program it to come on several times a day to clean the neck.

 

[Caddie]

Quick question. What did you use as your seal around the shaft to stop the skimate bubbling through towards the motor?

 

[Flexin]

To the op, when you say it will need upgrades to be safe, what makes it unsafe and what are the upgrades.

 

[MaccaPopEye]

Quick question. What did you use as your seal around the shaft to stop the skimate bubbling through towards the motor?

I haven't used anything, just made sure the hole in the lid only just fit the motor shaft through it. BUT I wouldn't be surprised if that bites me in the a** later on. I did think of getting a small rubber cap and sticking it to the top and just having a much smaller hole for the motor shaft so it makes a seal, but figured I wouldn't bother yet.

When this one does / when I upgrade my skimmer (whichever comes first ) I will look at doing it with a seal. Another improvement I would make is to make the motor housing more easily removable as it makes the skimmer lid really hard to clean while not getting the motor wet (I had a ATO malfunction that raised the water level and make my skimmer go nuts so I had to clean it ).

 

[MaccaPopEye]

To the op, when you say it will need upgrades to be safe, what makes it unsafe and what are the upgrades.

As in the Anet 3D printer?

The main ones are they use 10A connectors for the heat bed which can pull up to 13A (connectors can melt and start a fire), the connectors are also usually poorly soldered on (can cause a fire due to the high current the heat bed needs), the heat bed plug doesn't come with any strain relief so it can wiggle and spark (and then catch fire), they use a 20A power supply which is poor quality and quite under powered (and when pushed to its limits can catch fire) and the firmware doesn't include any thermal runaway protection (which can cause the printer to catch fire). Hence why a lot of people say they are a fire hazard

Here is a more detailed write up I did:
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/get-any-part-you-need-right-here.321961/page-3#post-4612909

IMO with some upgrades they can be perfectly safe, still very affordable and overall a great entry printer (as building it really helps you learn how they work and how to fix them). But with the ender 3 now out for almost the same price I would choose an ender 3 over an A8 if I had the option.

 

[Caddie]

I haven't used anything, just made sure the hole in the lid only just fit the motor shaft through it. BUT I wouldn't be surprised if that bites me in the a** later on. I did think of getting a small rubber cap and sticking it to the top and just having a much smaller hole for the motor shaft so it makes a seal, but figured I wouldn't bother yet.

When this one does / when I upgrade my skimmer (whichever comes first ) I will look at doing it with a seal. Another improvement I would make is to make the motor housing more easily removable as it makes the skimmer lid really hard to clean while not getting the motor wet (I had a ATO malfunction that raised the water level and make my skimmer go nuts so I had to clean it ).

Now you have given me specs of a motor I am going to order one, then i'll start coming up with some designs for the housing. If I can come up with some easy removal methods I will let you know

 

[MaccaPopEye]

Now you have given me specs of a motor I am going to order one, then i'll start coming up with some designs for the housing. If I can come up with some easy removal methods I will let you know

Good luck I can think of a few quick removal methods, I just can't be bothered to design it until I actually need to make another one for my next skimmer, but I'm keen to see what you come up with so make sure you post pics!

 

[Flexin]

Thanks @MaccaPopEye !!

 

[MaccaPopEye]

Thanks @MaccaPopEye !!

No worries. They can be a very cheap printer and are not bad bang for buck (although there are probably better cheap options out there now). If you already have an Anet or do decide to buy one make sure to do a fair bit of research and do the safety upgrades ASAP before anything else Otherwise this could be you