• DIY pump (Atman) for foam maker.

  • Robert800

Hello everyone! I present to the marine enthusiasts a modified head of the Atman 3500l/h 71W (the golden mean). For the modification, I needed a 25mm piece of 90mm pipe and a piece of acrylic sheet; everything else is from the Atman head. I have a PM-2 rotameter, and the float is off the scale, so I pressed the air intake slightly with my finger to take a photo of the float. The photo of the rotameter in operation was taken in fresh water; in seawater, the readings increase by 20-25%, so I take the air consumption from the maximum operation of the rotameter, which is 700l/h. I also modified the entire Aman series of RH, from 1100l/h to 5000l/h, and I noticed one pattern - 3500l/h is the limit; 4000l/h and 5000l/h draw in less air, no matter how you look at it. While cutting the pump, I noticed one quirk with the Chinese models: they attach a thermal relay to the stator winding, so I had to disassemble one. Later, an enkomat will appear, and I will play around with it.

Noah1632

A couple more photos, the Atman 45W 2500l/h in operation.

Nicole263

It turned out interesting. I liked that the camera is attached to the pump, and access inside is through a lid. And you can make a decent thing out of a Chinese pump, so keep it up. P.S. I went to think about the needle wheel.

Marie5348

Have you tried turning it on in fresh water? Does it create a small bubble?

Daniel8015

We talked the day before yesterday, and here's what came out; I think it's not bad for the atman. On one model of the atman with 1100 l/h, a stop was made to prevent starting in the wrong direction, like in the san-san streams; it works well. It's a pity I installed the pump on the skimmer in the store and didn't have time to take a photo. Do you want to use it in freshwater? Why?

Collin

This is what I understand, a normal report on the work done, no questions - everything is clear (unlike some, just fog). Regarding how to measure if it is off the charts - You measure the flow on a smaller pump and make a hole in the hose at the inlet so that the readings decrease by half. With this same hole, you measure the larger one and multiply by two.

Kristin

Okay, let's try drilling holes in the hose.

Jacob7201

Overall, the performance is decent. I had an AM on a hairy one that gave: 2500, 38W - 400L/h; 3500, 65W - 700-750L/h. The ratio of air to power is approximately the same. Laguna, of course, gives better results: 80W - 1800L/h, but it also costs more... How do you assess the reliability of your design????

Shane

The Laguna pump is already included in the project, and as soon as I have the funds, I will definitely get the 80W version. What do you mean by reliability? If we look at it from a technical and electrical standpoint, the first pump has been in operation for a month, and this latest one can simply be presented at the forum.

Stephanie4990

In my opinion, there are the most questions about the impeller. Also, the bonding of the acrylic with the pump housing.

Stephen

The impellers on the needles have been in use for several years, I haven't changed them yet, this one has 2.5mm tubes, I don't know, time will tell. I made an acrylic disk of 2mm and 3mm + 2mm rods in three rows - it's a heavy bastard, after a few starts it shears the key on the shaft. There's also an option to make it with carbon needles. I previously glued models with Acrifix 192, this one I glued exclusively with epoxy.

Gene1948

It's called he came and ruined everything )))).

Karen

I'm not to blame, it just happened... Not everything is so bad, even though there are problems. I see them because I face them myself. With such modifications, and even without modifications, there may still be a problem - when restarting, in case of a change in the rotor's rotation direction, the pump's performance changes. This is related to the misalignment of the rotor relative to the stator.

Jessica

to make fewer substitutions...

Elizabeth

Skimmers are also installed in freshwater systems, usually in recirculating systems; I did it once.

Amy1672

2: What causes the bubble to have the desired diameter?

Rachael

I did as you said, drilled a hole, measured with a weak pump, played around with the diameter of the hole, and the result is that it pulls in 990 l/h in fresh water, not bad. In seawater, the air consumption is 1100 l/h.

Rita

A small correction - If you want to know how much air the pump will draw specifically in your skimmer, you need to submerge the pump in water to a depth equal to the distance from the water level in the skimmer to the injector. In the picture, the pump is almost at the water's surface; if it is deeper, it will draw less air.

Kevin3579

The size of the bubble depends on the method of its production. The smaller it is, the better - there are more bubbles, and it is more resistant to contamination.

Joshua8425

I agree, the lower it is, the less it will behave like that; any pump will act this way. In my sump, the water level in the skimmer compartment is 250mm, and the photo shows the same level. There's no point in having a half-meter level in the sump. I also try to place the pumps as high as possible, especially pulling the stator winding outside to heat the water less.

Amanda

The water level in the sump is not relevant here. I was talking about the water level in the skimmer, which determines the parameters and is always higher than the level in the sump.

Lindsey3362

I won't argue with that, it's true. The main thing is that I squeezed almost everything out of this pump and I'm satisfied with it, as they say - turning something worthless into a treat.

Joseph8592

I understand that, but the question is how to achieve the desired bubble in fresh water?

Christopher4125

Here’s what the Atman 1100 l/h 15W can do. It pulls 400 l/h of air. It's perfect for mini skimmers.

Karen2578

They sell a pen that is perfect for this pump.

Mark

This will probably work, I just attached it (1100 l/h) to the Jebo foam separator, it's a bit cramped for it, so I continue to reduce the size, soon I will post a tiny pump of just 9W.

Catherine6534

Let me buy the upgrade for 1100 l/h... I'm too lazy to do it myself...

Barbara

This 1100 is already filled, I will stock up on pumps from the arowana and will inform you later. What are the deadlines? I have a penny for sale, a modified Jebo 180 for bubble king, I adapted it for the Atman 1100 l/h pump in the sump, photos later, I set it up for testing today.

Michelle

there are no deadlines... I just have a Wipro pen lying around... so I'm thinking about the future...

Jessica5016

Finally, I got my hands on the 80W Luguanka. I played with it for two days (satisfied my curiosity), tried a lot of fans, a fuzzy one, cotton swabs, carbon, acrylic, and my favorite needles from a massage comb. The old rotameter with a hole from "a" is set to measure at 30%, and it still goes off the scale, so I can't provide exact numbers.

Steven

And what is the conclusion? Which impeller is better?

Laura4892

And don't be modest! How much air do they roughly consume?

Diana8604

Without a rotameter, it won't be able to determine.... Measuring with what is available makes no sense, the difference in measurement range is too large, however, with its help, one can see which option yielded more.... NOX - tell me, which one bubbled better?????

Troy8808

I won't give a final answer as I still have ideas for the impellers and will continue experimenting. From what I have, I liked the "comb," the pump works without strain, then it's not bad with the enkomat, but the pump works hard, sometimes it's difficult to start. I liked it with 1mm carbon, but I made it sparse (I bought little carbon), with it I get the smallest bubble, but the air consumption is low, so the needles need to be densely seated.

Nicole2404

I currently have the task of making the impeller as light as possible, with a focus on the ratio of diameter to mass. At the moment, the comb is in first place (it has proven to be a good material for work, hardening in seawater after a year), it's cheap, lightweight, doesn't strain the pump, and produces a normal bubble output. There is another option, still in its early stages, being prepared, which is a line from a lawnmower, shaped like a triangle. I will update on the results later. I will also order 1mm carbon and densely place the needles to see what happens.

Jennifer

Try using carbon, it's a nice material. The diameter of the disc should not exceed 60mm. Place the needles on the disc at a distance of 1/3 from the edge, closer is not advisable. Yes, the needles should be placed much denser.

Mark9853

I modified the OTP-3000 water pump Octopus, just like always. The original injector couldn't handle the task, so I had to tune it as well. It draws 1000 liters of air per hour.

James8887

I have long dreamed of making a pump for a foam generator with a floating partition, and now my dream has come true. I present the Atman 3500 pump with a floating partition, an interesting device, but it was a waste of time; the effect is the same as with the pump in post #1. The work and time spent were twice as much, but the result is the same.

Anthony7814

Hello everyone! I present to you a little one, an 9W Atman, with a needle wheel and a carbon shaft. I can't say how much air it pulls, the rotameter is rented, visually about 50L/h. The bubble is tiny. I will soon post a mini foam maker with this pump.

Karen81

And I am glad to you with gratitude, Just a question, for what and for whom is it needed?

Susan9583

For general development, it might be useful for someone. There are foamers produced by different manufacturers that don't work properly at all, and it becomes necessary to resort to tuning.

David7773

If a decent pen is made, it will be needed by many.

Melanie

If yes - good, If no, of course, bad. Is there a measure for this?

Nicholas

If you take on this task, I am confident that everything will work out, and it will be approached from a scientific perspective! I'm thinking again about setting up the sea for myself, Nikolai, get involved!

Phillip9722

that you can connect here. If needed, you can buy, for example, Regarding the sea - congratulations. I'm also gradually saving up. I'm on vacation from the 13th, and I think I'll save up for the hardware by the New Year.

Stacy6866

Gentlemen, forgive my ignorance, but I read everywhere: a clever impeller to create many small bubbles, which is understandable, and the second question is - how much air is being drawn in, which is also clear, I got it. But the question is: why is the option of using a compressor to blow in a little air not considered? Two words - what is the nonsense (inconsistency) of such a scheme? The increase in power consumption (for the compressor) is insignificant, and it's easy to dose. Believe me, I didn't ask just for the sake of conversation; sometimes I learn from others' mistakes.

Marie5735

I am not a magician yet, just learning. In my understanding, using a compressor and a sprayer has some inconvenience: the need for frequent replacement of the sprayer for stable operation of the foam maker. Otherwise, for small aquariums, it's not bad either. At least there are many positive reviews online.

Justin

I meant not a sprayer, but the presence of a pump with a needle wheel (fuzzy...) and to blow air into the pump instead of using an injector (without a sprayer). I apologize for being in someone else's thread, but the question is quite obscure; may the topic starter forgive me, as he is a "pro" in this sector.

Lee425

I played around with compressors for a while. You can certainly use a compressor, but there are many nuances. For high-performance air heads from 1000 l/h to infinity, compressors are not suitable because they are low-capacity. For small pumps, when the voltage drops and the compressor has already pumped air while the pump hasn't started at full power, there will be air entrapment and the pump rotor will run dry.