Fixing DOCS (Dissolved organic carbon) Phoam Phraxionator

kougs

kougs
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So this is from another forum, owner is Ethan and this is his New and Improved and Cheaper Phoam Phraxionator. Most of what I'm to post is cut and paste from his postings. I will add some of my pics from my construction just for clarification. FYI, I did not use the 2” uniseal.


So, I got to thinking one day about how when the water gets down to the bottom of the original Phoam Phraxionator Tower, at 1500 gph, it ends up being less about water crashing down through the media, and more like the water sliding down the media. At this point, I believe that the Docs are likely beginning to settle back into the water column, rather than being drawn out to be a “bubble” to be removed from the system.
I talked with a few friends, asking them “where do the bubbles and phoam begin to form in your pond when you have an issue?” The answer, of course is the waterfall. If you have a waterfall, just the crashing down of the water into the water creates enough disturbance that the bubbles form, and the foam begins. Then, I thought, “why in the world do I even NEED a media for this unit?”

SO, the testing began. I built the first one, tested it, and dried it out and sent it yesterday to Flounder. I purchased some cheap supplies:
(1) 6” schedule 35 elbow
(1) 6” schedule 35 Tee (had to use a wye as there were no Tees)
(1) 6” to 4” reducer schedule 35
(1) 3’ Length of 6” schedule 35 pipe
(1) 2 feet of sdr 35 4” pvc
(2) 22.5 degree elbows
(1) 6” PVC schedule 40 CAP
(1) 3” schedule 40 PVC cap
(1) 3” to 2” reducer
(1) 2” 90 degree elbow
(1) 2” uniseal

You will need less than a foot of 3” and 2” PVC, schedule 40, and of course primer and glue. You will also need a jigsaw.

Here’s what you do:



Step one:

Drill using a 1/5” drill bit, around 25 holes in the 3” cap. This will be your spraybar. Attach to the 3” to 2” reducer using a short stump of 3” schedule 40 pipe, around 5-6” worth. Attach the two inch end of the reducer to a 4” piece of 2” schedule 40 PVC. Attach this to your 2” 90 degree elbow.


Step two: LIME GREEN


Take a 20” piece of schedule 35 pvc and drill a 3” hole in it for the two inch uniseal. This hold needs to be around 3” from one end. Make sure it is a clean hole, but know that there won’t be any pressure, as the uniseal is just to get the spraybar in place.
FFillastration.jpg


My Photo
IMG_20120414_092120.jpg


Here's a detail of step 1:
FFillastrationdetailstep1.jpg


My Photo
IMG_20120414_093351.jpg

IMG_20120414_101959.jpg

Step Three: Black

Glue the opposite end of the 20” piece of PVC into the 6” SDR 35 elbow. Make sure that the hole is at the top, not glued into the elbow, and is facing “away” from the elbow like in the example (Green vertical pipe)


Step Four: Yellowish Orange


Next, glue in a short 10” piece of 6” schedule 35 PVC into the other end of the 6” elbow.


Step Five : RED


Attach the 6x6x6 tee (6x6x4 preferable) to the elbow now. Make sure that the tower is pointing up and the T is on its back pointing up.


Step Six: BLUE


This is the hardest part of the unit. You have to cut a piece of PVC into a “moon” to fit between the Tee and the outlet. This prevents major BUBBLE LOSS. It encourages the bubbles to rise up, bringing the Docs with them.
I took a 6” Cap, drilled a tiny hole in the top of it and used a jigsaw to cut the piece out of the cap, as it happened to be the exact size I needed to do this. I glued that into the fitting of the tee, and

My Photo
IMG_20120414_093854.jpg

IMG_20120414_094143.jpg

IMG_20120414_101727.jpg


Step 7: PINK


SMOOSH the 8” piece of 6” Schedule 35 pvc into it. This makes your “Phoam Phraxionator Phrontal Phoam Phixer Phit tightly”. It fixes the foam to go upwards, and out.


Step 8: Orange


Next, attach the 6” to 4” schedule 35 reducer to the end of that pipe.


Step 9: Grey


Attach a short piece of 4” schedule 35 PVC (BROWN) into the 4” end of the reducer, maybe 6 inches worth, and attach a 22.5” 4” elbow to the end of the that pipe, facing upwards as shown in grey. Add a small 5-6” piece of 4” schedule 35 PVC to attach the next 4” 22.5 degree elbow. Shown in gray, add the next elbow, facing down, to get the water back into a completely horizontal position.


Step 10:


Add the spraybar by inserting the uniseal into the tower, shoving a one foot piece 2” PVC into it, showing around 1.5” of PVC into the tower. Attach the spray element to it with PVC Glue. Now you have a 2” input to pump around 1500-1800 GPH through the thing (there will be some back-pressure on the pump).



It works well.

FFtopview.jpg

FFfront.png

FFfront1.png


My Photo
IMG_20120414_112838.jpg
 

koiguy1969

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i like the air powered 'in pond' type ...its just cheaper to run air pumps than waterpumps. you paint or build them in black and they pretty much disappear the only part out of pond is the foam "ouitpipe".
 

koiguy1969

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i'm quite familiar with the designs like the one you posted... the air powered ones are located, as i said.. "IN THE POND!!" you dont really see them the only part that shows really is the pipe where the foam is evacuated. paint them black and the virtually disappear....
heres an air powered one...
they also can work quite well... now, i didnt watch the video, it was the first one i saw... so i cant say if this design is particularlly good. i just wanted to show an example... not to say anything bad about the 'outof" pond designs...they work and may even work better. i just like that you dont 'see' the air powered ones...set it up and just let it go 24/7.
 

kougs

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Wasn't aware of the air powered design. Still learning as I go. Thanks for the additional info koiguy. This also gives others viewing this a choice. This is good stuff.
 
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I like the idea of the air powered design, it would be easy to build something like that in my filterpump room inside one of my barrel filter tanks.
Thanks for the idea.
 

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