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Cheap Carbon Filter Alternative

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  • Cheap Carbon Filter Alternative

    RECOMMENDED FOR TANKS WITH 12" DEPTH OR LESS. LARGER TANKS WILL NEED TO DOUBLE THE LENGTH OF 3/4" PIPE AND ADD ANOTHER CARTRIDGE.

    Parts:




    S - Slip
    FPT - Female Pipe Threaded
    MPT - Male Pipe Threaded

    All parts can be purchased at Home Depot to save yourself multiple trips!

    Average Total Cost:
    $29.05*

    *- Prices may vary. I paid $1.13 for a 3/4"x10ft pipe. PVC pieces shouldn't cost more than $6. Prices are based off Home Depot Store #6510. Already had sandpaper, PVC cutter, drill bits, and drill. Sandpaper $2-5, 5/8" Drill Bit $1-5, Drill $??, PVC cutter $10-30 or Razors $5 for pack of 30(?).

    Step-by-step Instructions:

    Step 1: Cut two 2" pieces off of your 3/4" pipe
    Step 2: Cut a 11 5/8" piece off the remaining 3/4" pipe (12" is fine if you don't want to be exact)
    Step 3: Sand down the outside of the 2" pieces
    Step 4: Sand down the insides of all the 90º Elbows
    Step 5: Drill lots of holes in 11 5/8" pipe (5/8" drill bit was used)
    Step 6: Apply PVC primer to both insides of one 90º elbow
    Step 7: Apply PVC primer to one inside of one 90º elbow
    Step 8: Apply PVC primer to inside of threaded 90º elbow (side that isn't threaded)
    Step 9: Apply PVC primer to outside of 2" pieces (coat the entire outside)
    Step 10: Apply PVC cement to inside of 90º elbow
    Step 11: Connect 2" piece to elbow in previous step (connect as quickly as possible)
    Step 12: Apply PVC cement to inside of the remaining 90º elbow
    Step 13: Connect 90º elbow with 2" piece in step 11 (connect as quickly as possible)
    Step 14: Apply PVC cement to other inside of 90º elbow (doesn't matter which elbow)
    Step 15: Connect 2" piece to elbow in previous step (connect as quickly as possible)
    Step 16: Apply PVC cement to inside of threaded elbow
    Step 17: Connect threaded elbow to 2" piece in step 15 (connect as quickly as possible)
    Step 18: Allow to dry and cure in sun for 1-2 days
    Step 19: Connect 11 5/8" pipe to 90º elbow (DO NOT apply PVC primer or PVC cement!!!)
    Step 20: Tear off inside ring of carbon cartridge (Manually tear off or use knife)
    Step 21: Slide carbon cartridge onto 11 5/8" pipe with O-Rings on each side
    Step 22: Connect male adapter to other end of 11 5/8" pipe (DO NOT apply PVC primer or PVC cement!!!)
    Step 23: Screw on threaded cap to male adapter (DO NOT apply PVC primer or PVC cement!!!)
    Step 24: Twist onto hose and let er rip! You're finally done! (Do not run water on full blast to allow for more contact time with carbon)

    Whole process (minus dry and cure) took less than 30 minutes. Easy and cheap alternative to expensive carbon bottles. When you think your cartridge has been completely used, Just remove the male adapter or the elbow contraption from the 3/4" pipe and simply replace the cartridge!

    Here's some pics of the finished product below along with receipt of costs for PVC (minus 1.5" elbow).

    Inside ring still attached



    Inside ring removed



























    Finished product should run like this







    Mr. Goldfish likes the water

    uploadfromtaptalk1360164869825.jpg


    A picture of a double cartridge filter. Recommended for larger tanks.

    Last edited by mistahoo; 05-01-2013, 03:07 PM.

  • #2
    Cheap and efficient. Great for those of you who can't afford a carbon bottle. You'd have to replace these filters after a while.

    Comment


    • #3
      How many gallons give u the filter ?
      Or is rated , look good man I am on that list lol
      Can't get the carbon bottle for now
      125 gal-P. Kachase,simochromis, vampire pleco,bn pleco,bulldog pleco

      55 gal- Ilangis ,clown pleco,abn pleco,rubber lip pleco

      55 gal-Canary cheek,Ikola,duboisi, and fry

      10 gal -fry tank,snails

      Comment


      • #4
        Looks good imma have to give it a try myself

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by Geral View Post
          How many gallons give u the filter ?
          Or is rated , look good man I am on that list lol
          Can't get the carbon bottle for now
          Uh... Are you asking how many gallons the thing can filter? I have no clue. If the package has a rating then I guess it's rated? It's one of those carbon filters for an in-house water filter that hooks up to a fridge.

          Comment


          • #6
            Originally posted by johnnymisty View Post
            Looks good imma have to give it a try myself
            Go for it! I thought of it when I was looking at those DIY Berkey filters. There's other things you could stuff to cover up one of the ends. Get creative. I had a lot of extra pvc fittings, elbows, pipes laying around so I decided to use that.

            Comment


            • #7
              Interesting I might have to get one of these was it cheap ?

              Comment


              • #8
                About $11 for a pack of two at HD. Should last a good while if you dry it out after each use. Not sure how long it would last exactly. You're supposed to change the one in the water filter every 6 months or 3 months if you have bad water. Since you should only be using this during water changes, and otherwise, it'll be dry. I would take a guess that one cartridge lasts about a year or less depending on water source.

                Comment


                • #9
                  Or you can just get a RV water filter. Those can last you a whole season of camping. So it should last longer for just water change. It's a tad bit more than this

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Depending on the brand, those carbon blocks are rated anywhere from 6000 to 20,000 gallons filterage. But i would recommend running a sediment filter before it since they can get clogged fast if there is no sediment filter before it.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      i use the same thing, but have mine in a housing with one tube in and one tube out... takes forever to refill my aquarium though

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Cheap Carbon Filter

                        Originally posted by Hangman View Post
                        Depending on the brand, those carbon blocks are rated anywhere from 6000 to 20,000 gallons filterage. But i would recommend running a sediment filter before it since they can get clogged fast if there is no sediment filter before it.
                        Very true about the clogging, but it's so cheap that I'd just run the thing without one

                        Sent from my spaceship using Tapatalk 2.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Cheap Carbon Filter

                          Originally posted by CRUSHER View Post
                          i use the same thing, but have mine in a housing with one tube in and one tube out... takes forever to refill my aquarium though
                          It does? Care to take a pic of what you're using? It only took me about 20min to fill a 100g. Didn't even need to use dechlorinator.

                          Sent from my spaceship using Tapatalk 2.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Cheap Carbon Filter

                            Originally posted by cu0ngsayz View Post
                            Or you can just get a RV water filter. Those can last you a whole season of camping. So it should last longer for just water change. It's a tad bit more than this

                            http://mobile.walmart.com/m/phoenix;...-Hose/14504321
                            Hmm looks fancy. How long do these camping seasons last?

                            Sent from my spaceship using Tapatalk 2.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by mistahoo View Post
                              Hmm looks fancy. How long do these camping seasons last?

                              Sent from my spaceship using Tapatalk 2.
                              Im not a camper LOL I would think 6 months and you know camping grounds have dirty water.

                              Comment

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