Dean's Muck Bucket Pond

[LuckyM]

Hey everyone!

I tried my hand at making the muck bucket mini pond that Dean demonstrated (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMsju5QctxQ).  When I was done and hooked up a Tetra Whisper 10, I heard it bubbling but had no water coming up.  I am assuming that I don't have enough air to lift the water.  Is there a way to figure out how big of an air pump I need?

I appreciate the help!

[Ken Burke]

I don’t know about a calculator for that, but make sure you have enough water in the tub.  The higher you need lift the water over the waterline, the more air you’ll need.

 

pictures might help.

 

[LuckyM]

Here is a picture and diagram. I need to make a new top piece for the lift because I messed it up trying to tweak the height. All measurements are in inches.

Edited February 24, 2022 by LuckyM
Measurement clarification

[MarkM]

How full is the tub? An exaggerated example of what Ken was saying:

Water is at the yellow line you would need much lower airflow (less lift) than if you were trying to get to work with water at the red horizontal line. Ie, if you can, try filling the bucket more.

 

Another thing to check Is the airline sealing that hole tight where it exits the PVC?  

[LuckyM]

I had the water almost touching the end of the pipe. The end of the pipe is about 1.5 inches for the top of the bucket. I had the water the same or higher than the yellow line you show.  I think I had a good seal on the hole at the top, but when I fix it I will double check that.

Edited February 24, 2022 by LuckyM

[modified lung]

Smaller diameter pipe might work. I can lift water almost 6" with 1/4" diameter tube using an old half broken ACO USB air pump. The same pump lifts a max of 1" with 1/2" diameter tube.

Your pump is more powerful so reducing down to 1/2" above the union might work.

Edited February 24, 2022 by modified lung

[Ken Burke]

Another thing to check is the fit where the airline tube penetrates the pvc.  If it is not snug, you can lose  lift from there too…..