roidan

hahaha...seems that way isn't it. but well, to duplicate something for self experimentation or use is usually not a problem, even legally. But to duplicate something for mass resale. That is another ball game altogether And you are right about " It's the idea of sharing that makes reefing cheaper. And not taking advantage of it " If the knowledge was put to good use and makes products much cheaper and close to true DIY prices. I am sure the gurus will be willing to share. But in the face of commercialism, they do not want to be unwilling accomplices of the final product which is definitely not cheap if u compare the prices to DIY scale.

But in any case, make no mistakes. Even brands like AquaC or Barr Aquatics are in fact have their foundations in DIY. In fact you can say that most skimmers are DIYed, it is just a matter of how large the operation is. Most local DIYers are just one-man operations or whereas the skimmer companies employ workers to fabricate the skimmers. So how much each maker want to price their skimmers is really up to them and they have the absolute right to. Especially when some conduct intensive research in designing their skimmers or other equipment. Just like the local scene. Everyone can price their skimmers the way they want. Ultimately it is we end users to choose to make or break them. Some sell at the bare cost of materials and they dun even take misc expenses into account as they consider it part and parcel of their interest in DIY. Some find it happy to have a chance to help their friends to DIY. So even they have to fork out their own transport costs or time, they are willing to do it. Well, there is no absolute right or wrong in many issues. If everyone is so sanguine. Then the world probably would not spin on its axis

dandelion76: wow u are tall...you just need a short stool to see eye to eye with my skimmer...hehe well, it is easier said than done. We dun have the critical mass to support the financial viability of a patent or license unlike the US DIYers who end up selling globally what they can produce. Unless one day all the DIYers in the local DIY scene make a collaborative effort to launch an internationally marketable product. Then patents or license will be viable. But then again, such collaboration usually ends on a sour note. I have seen too many non-reef collaborations going to failure. Friends from sec to varsity days falling apart after joint ventures. It is pretty sad when you see how money changes years of relationship.

that's why there is a disparity between 2 groups of DIYers. those who DIY for the pure love of it. And even if they DIY for others (i.e. more than one piece), they charge only cost. (cost could be transport...manhours...cost of prototypes which have to be absorbed by final saleable products...or maybe only just cost of raw materials themselves.) the other group DIY for the money that can be earned from it. Or being politically correct they say they just cover abit here and there but definitely those who know how much the raw materials will know how much they are earning even taking into account other factors like i mentioned above. alfa you are right, ideologically. to share infomation freely is definitely beneficial for everyone. Just like nuclear knowledge or atomic science can benefit everyone but if the information goes into the wrong hands, the repercussions are there. which is why i mention that nowadays those who possess a whole wealth of knowledge are reluctant to share publicly what they know and only choose to spread the knowledge through trusted channels. They never know if their knowledge gained from their pure innocent love and interest for DIY gets tainted along the way and repackaged into commercialised vehicles. Well, some are into the love of the art of DIY itself. The others are into the love of money that DIY can bring as they fit just snugly into the gap between cheap and lousy products and expensive but good products. So for those who want to make money out of DIY and yet want information to be spoonfed. Please wake up and do your own research. For those who are in it for the pure love of the DIY art. Persevere. Morpheus will lead you out of the Matrix

yo untouchables.... there are supports but not mounted yet..that's why i say there are still adjustments to be done and that is why it is not deployed at my place yet. The test firing was just to see the effects of the mx100s, the quad becketts and other little gadgets shown and not shown in the pictures. the backflow....ahhh..that's a good point you raised...that is why it is useless to copy without thinking...you are right about the overflow at the cup because even if you ask some manufacturers...they recommend only doing it 1/2 the height of the skimmer if one wants to prevent backflow....to just see the picture and adapt wholesale is just seeing the tip of the iceberg. In fact if you make it so high to prevent backflow, usually you will have lots of problems in adjusting the skimmer also. But the guru had a way to overcome this while maintaining the high point...but like i said, there are still adjustments to be made. The test firing was to convince ourselves that the months in planning and designing was worth it with the results we see in the chamber there wun be any mass production of this skimmer or smaller units bro, sorry to disappoint you because firstly the guru himself does not have time or energy left to do anymore such units or smaller ones for the mass market. and secondly i myself will not be undertaking this task. Why? Because i respect the intellectual rights of the guru and his designs and to use what i learn from him and turn it into a money making vehicle is something that goes against my principles even though there are probably no patents or legal rights from ripping off designs here and there. I can rip off designs easily if i want to but i cannot rip off my conscience and make money out of other people's efforts and research. Unlike some who use DIY as a prequel to their possible background sales and advertisement, I am just showcasing a DIY end product here to show what local DIY talents can do and how good they are Rockyboy: yeah...i was thinking i probably rear a few fishes in the chamber..but then again..they probably die from hyperventilating and what's the point if i cannot see where they are amongst all the bubbles?

use threaded ones where possible like these

Anyway, i would like to suggest pressure rated pump users to use threaded ended versions for their pumps, especially the higher powered ones....the hose ended ones are less secured in comparison it is easy to overcome a hose ended barb secured by a hose clip. It is a timebomb. Once the hose comes off, good luck. More so when the ribs of the hose barb are not pronounced. Go for threaded ends. More secure. Below is the hose end barb version..i probably have to glue dead unions to it before using.

oh...a fellow reefer told me after seeing this pic, now he knows how to stop the backflow when the pump fails.... i was quite surprised as i thought this is common knowledge that this is done in many designs to prevent backflow very basic i thought, no nuclear physics or fluid dynamics involved ok..my mistake..maybe some common knowledge is still not very common anyway, the new trend in skimming will be katting, i will be katting soon... so anyone going to kat with me? er..sorry...maybe not common knowledge yet..but dun worry, just a matter of time when katting catches on

That's why I say buy from the sponsors if they have what we want. Help support the forum But basically even when a few sponsors are offering the same genre of products...quality, performance and end results may differ from one to another. Take for example cookiemunster who is technically sound in his knowledge and design. One look at his products and you will know that there are reasons why he designs it this way or that way. And he take pains to explain his design here so that we understand his product features (though at the risk of being robbed of his ideas and ingenius implimentation of ideas into design by rippers who end up selling cheaper than him). And you get an end product that is well-engineered and technically backed by his knowledge. And there are sponsors who bring in products that they themselves do not play a part in the design and fabrication of the product. The products are only as good as the source of the products. And when buying such products, reputation of the brand and track record is important as that is what you have to determine if the product will work long term for you. Brand names like Barr, Deltecs and Bubblekings sell themselves easily Perhaps one day one of the sponsors can tap on my free time and link up with me to come out with my Roidan's Repertoire of products. But I will probably have to scurry around ask this and that, this and that from DIY masters and gurus and ask them to spoonfeed me. Wanna place your orders now? the end product will be cheap and probably looks good and runs pretty good too. But I dun trust myself and my meagre skills and knowledge and you shouldn't trust me too I see the guru's knowledge and fabrication skills in person. And i feel so ashamed that what I know pales in comparison It is definitely a loss to the DIY scene when such gurus are disappointed by what they see in the scene

well...for those who ask me where to buy this....where to buy that...how to do this...how to do that...seriously some of the answers i dunno....and some of the answers even i know i am obliged not to tell. people who are serious about DIY, take effort, time, money and pain to go around searching for materials, read up and research on design or learn through experience by making prior models. Nowadays there are too many DIY Leechers or Robbers who leech around trying to plunder or expect to be spoonfed with information. It is precisely the process of searching and procuring the ideal materials that adds to the fun of DIY...to be spoonfed and start fixing everything up is just being a human factory...nothing more than that. It is precisely of such DIY-Robbers that make the gurus unwilling to share like they did in the past when the spirit of DIY was strong. Such robbers copy....and use DIY section as a means to earn money under the cloak of DIY. And the best part is that they probably undercut our sponsors who have similar products in their lineup. I am sure DIY sponsors like cookiemunster would know best how it feels to have someone copying his design and undercutting him. And worse, asking him how to get this and that...and then finally sells similar products via the forum under the guise of DIY. Yes sadly there are indeed such slimeballs around. Thus for those who are interested in getting items that our sponsors offer, please support them and understand that they have overheads like supporting the forum by being a sponsor. And if you are buying from them, you are helping our forum too If not for the guru that I know personally, I would have gotten one of our sponsors to do this skimmer too Save our sponsors!

close up of the chamber.. i think the water droplets on the outer surface of the chamber and the plastic below seems like a monster compared to the bubbles inside the chamber

Anyway, this is my advice for beckett users.... once you have decided on this *school* of skimming....there is not point trying to save electricity...because becketts derive their performance from pressure rated pumps that can push a great deal through the venturi and withstand the backpressure...if you open up the beckett injector, you will notice that it is actually a great deal of resistance that the pump has to push through.... it is like you decided on a fuel hungry ferrari but want to save fuel with the fuel economy of a toyota corolla engine. if you have decided on the ferrari...go ahead and flaunt it....and burn the petrol that the engine yearns for.... there is no point buying a fuel hungry ferrari but yet lightly tapping on the accelerator everytime you drive hoping it consumes like a toyota engine....you are just depriving both the ferrai the energy it deserves and you yourself the fun of owning one... just like if you want to save electricity with a beckett...you probably have to look elsewhere for other schools i have played with a number of pumps through the injector....can easily see the difference

seriously one is very dense with bubbles already...but of coz 2 is better....lol.... but well...surprisingly mx100 is rather quiet to my ear (maybe coz it's outdoors)....i did not run it very long to see how warm it feels in long term operating scenario...but the wind cooling the pump from the pump fan is very strong....almost like number 3 fan setting on most cars ... it was a hot afternoon...but somehow when i placed my hand to feel the wind blowing across the pump...it felt like cool wind.... I am impressed. A converted iwaki user.....time to replumb my system with the mx100 from weileong.

adjusting the big single air valve.... totally smooth....easy....and most importantly...precise the air valve on the left is upside down...lol... must turn it around the next time test fire again next test fire probably in a week's time if the guru is free

from base to top all white... cannot complain liao...maybe just run 1 mx100 to save electricity when i want...on days i need to skim fast....turn on the other mx100

seriously i abit blur which photos are taken with 1 mx100 running or 2.....because 1 mx100 already pack in quite abit of bubbles...when i unleashed the other...the bubble density just got denser...but in pics...white is white....1 mx100 already white...2 mx100s also white..hehe

The Guru.... who wants to be The Apprentice? bubbles with only 1 mx100 running did not bother to fine tune already very fine bubbles liao

oh yeah..sala about the price....the 20k one is the turboflotor 20 000..my recent aquainted pal told me..hehe ok..here goes.... test firing pics.......projected fire across the island...end up fire across the straits of malacca .....need to do some adjustments in the coming weeks did not fire long....will do a comprehensive report when it is finally deployed at my place...

results will be just like any beckett results.... just 4 times faster....4 times more foam....4 times more expensive to run thats all firing in the afternoon-late afternoon

nicky30092002: that's why i said this is the last skimmer i will ever use..... no more skimmer upgrades for me in future lvcap: some lfs have bigger skimmers than this lah....mine is between normal home size and lfs size skimmer if u noticed, if u just put the collection cup on top of the base unit...it is a skimmer by itself....i can choose to run it in its shortened height if i want to next time..... patrick123: that's why my doggie can perch on the cup without problems... bwilly: hehe...yeah lor...electical bill will be high....but...compare to other top range skimmers if i buy commercially of this height, it is still a cheaper option to use this skimmer even if take into consideration electric bill one of the closer ready-made ones i can think of in size is the aquamedic turboflotor 5000. It is 1.93m tall, only 8inch wide reaction chamber....but costs around $20k.....i wun try to debate with aquamedic fans which is better in performance....but one thing is for sure....at only 10% of the aquamedic price ($2k vs $20k)..i am sure the performance of mine is better than 10% of the aquamedic even if my quad beckett works only half as well at the aquamedic-5000....i already gained from paying only 10% of the aquamedic and yet can get 50% of aquamedic-5000's performance congrats...argentina won RAV-65: this skimmer is around $2k odd....the maker? one of the early SRC DIY gurus...way way back before DIY became commercialised....in those days DIYs were strictly for themselves or friends only...not like now when u see rows and rows of units being churned out.....no point revealing who also....those who knows, already know....those who dunno...not life-or-death importance to know also lah he came out of DIY-retirement to do this monument for me....after which he will go back to retirement again....out of friendship that he took on this project .....

around afternoon i guess..if u are out on the streets...look out for a jet of water above you in the afternoon sky.... kidding lah...will be back with photos tomorrow evening/night if everything goes as planned

with the cup... test firing weapon of mass skimmate... tomorrow