Photo Gallery :: DIY spraybar for Rena XP1

[Chrisbarnett]

finally posting it. Made this a couple weeks ago, it works very well.
Lots of large pictures.
Ingredients(Materials lol):
1/2" schedule 40 PVC pipe
(6) 1/2" 90 degree elbows
(1) 1/2" Cap
(1) 1/2" SlipxThreaded Connector
(1) 1/2" barbed fitting for tubing to slip onto
-Teflon tape for the threads
-PVC Primer and Cement
-(Optional) PVC pipe cutters. These make life so much easier than using a hacksaw or something.
-Drill with 1/8" drill bit.. Dremel works too.
-Tape measure

I wish I had taken more pics, but the process is pretty basic.

The first steps, measured the piece to go down the back of my tank, it's about 15" long. Primed and glued all of it together, and teflon taped and screwed in the hose barb.

Next I measured and drilled all the holes. I drilled 1/8" holes every inch. Start with that and if it creates too much backpressure, drill more holes or bore them out with the next size bit. I marked the line, then made an X and drilled in the center of the X.


Primed and glued the left side all together.


Here's where I skimped on pics. Here is the finished spraybar before painting. I have glued in the bar, holes are pointing pretty much straight out, with a tiny 20-30 degree downward angle. And capped right end has been glued on.


I then roughed up the surface and used Rustoleum Pastic spraypaint. Gloss Black. I have no pics of this..
After I allowed the paint to dry for about 2 days I put it in the tank and primed the filter. Started it up and success!


Now heres a bunch of other pics of it on the tank
The part that goes down the back of the tank

Looks nice and clean from the top...

In the water. Super hard to see if you're not at the perfect angle.


Also ziptied the intake to the end of the spraybar so that it stays straight in the water column.


Whatcha think?

[steve]

Looks great. I'm curious about the paint and how well it holds up in wet environment. I used Rust-Oleum on the metal top frame of my tank, but couldn't stop it from rusting up.

[taurusgirl]

nice

[Chrisbarnett]

The paint holds up very well in a wet environment in my experience. This was my first time trying this particular paint, but for my 404's outflow I used rustoleum american accents and it is doing a very good job of holding up.

[Azfar]

Wow~! Great job~!

[MoreBloodWine]

I like the idea of using spray bars but depending on the filter cant they affect your GPH ?

I'd imagine with enough holes you could get the same GPH as if you didnt have a spraw bar but the question is reason for concern.

[untsmurf]

That looks amazing, Chris. I love how you can hardly see it because of it's color. Rena's should come in black.

How well is this working at keeping your tank clean? I've wondered about putting spray bars in my tank but didn't know how efficient they would be for a larger tank. Is yours keeping the junk from accumulating in your tank??

[pickerbp22]

thats so awesome. and i thought i was creative! lol

[Chrisbarnett]

I like the idea of using spray bars but depending on the filter cant they affect your GPH ?

I'd imagine with enough holes you could get the same GPH as if you didnt have a spraw bar but the question is reason for concern.

It's all dependent on how many holes you drill. Starting off with 1/8" holes every inch, and if you listen to your filter and hear it working harder than normal, drill some more holes until it sounds normal. I got lucky and didn't have to drill any extra holes. The long length of the bar allowed for no backpressure buildup.

That looks amazing, Chris. I love how you can hardly see it because of it's color. Rena's should come in black.

How well is this working at keeping your tank clean? I've wondered about putting spray bars in my tank but didn't know how efficient they would be for a larger tank. Is yours keeping the junk from accumulating in your tank??

Well if you're talking for your turtle tank, I would only use jet nozzles. On my hard plumbed 404 outflow, it's a 1/2" elbow low to the sand blasting water across my sand bed. Any poop is instantly blown across my tank.

This definitely keeps the water crystal clear and the protein slick off the water, but it's not doing anything for keeping the substrate clean. That's okay with me because I plan on slightly overstocking this tank, I will be doing weekly gravel vacs and water changes.