Equipment Review and Discussion :: What is this?

[chrisinva]

I doubt it's a swedish made %^&* enlarger LOL

I found a 20 gallon tank full of accessories and filter for $12.75 at a thrift store

[jenaero]

Well you could use it for that..lol..

It's a gravel syphon. Can be used for draining water

[chrisinva]

How do I use one? For draining water i mean LOL

[Daniel3507]

i think you just put the end of it in a bucket or out a window as long as its lower than the tank and just, well for lack of a better term, pump the other end back and forth in the tank till it starts sucking up water.

[mikee]

Chris va -- You create a syphon with the hose and use the large end to stick in the bottom and it sucks the debris up that is down there. Make sure you have the hose in a bucket or you will get it all over the floor. m.

[ScrewZoo]

Put the large part in the water, and suck the small end.. Then put the small end in a bucket to drain.

[Fuzzy Hamster]

Looks like a poor man's version of a Python without all the proper attachments, particularily the part that goes on the faucet in your sink and allows you to drain or add water.

Lee makes a Python clone that uses blue parts instead of green, so it could be from that.

[Chrisbarnett]

yeah its a gravel vacuum.

And do not suck on the hose, its not that kind of siphon. You just move it up and down to start.

i don't consider it a poor mans version of a python. I do not have a python, and just bought another gravel cleaner the other day. I drain out the door/window when I vacuum the tank, then fill the tank back up in about less than a minute or two from the hose. Works fine for me, and we don't have the fastest fill from the faucet anyway. So for me, filling directly from hose works better and is faster.

[ScrewZoo]

I had one u suck on, then i used it to get gas, and i don't want to expose those chemicals to my turts.

[SpenceMasta]

DO NOT SUCK ON IT

to create the flow of water fill the siphon up completely including the larger end, cap the small end with your finger and the larger end with your hand, make sure the entire tube is filled with water, a tiny pocket of air wont stop the pressure, but too much air will. submerge the larger end into the water and then release the smaller end pointing downwards wherever you want the water to go, water will then flow through the submerged gravel cleaner and through the tube because of the water pressure created

more expensive models have a pump, but its just creating the same situation by filling the tube with water

[pajamatree]

If you suck on it, chances are you'll probably get a nice mouthful of turtle water.

[untsmurf]

I agree with Chris.

It doesn't work the same as the python. The python uses water pressure from your sink to fill/empty your tank.

This is a gravel vacuum. It uses pressure in a different way to pull the waste out from between gravel rocks.

I've used both and for smaller tanks, the gravel vacuum works best, but for larger ones you have to fill up with a python and a turkey baster or net to clean it out.

[maddpnoi]

I used to suck on mine before I got a ball pump for it.

Just make sure you keep your eye on the tube, so when you see water, you can take the tube out of your mouth and quickly put it in the bucket (or whatever you're draining the water to.)

It's just common sense. Works better with a longer hose though. And you know... clean the hose REALLY well.

[SpenceMasta]

I used to suck on mine before I got a ball pump for it.

Just make sure you keep your eye on the tube, so when you see water, you can take the tube out of your mouth and quickly put it in the bucket (or whatever you're draining the water to.)

It's just common sense. Works better with a longer hose though. And you know... clean the hose REALLY well.

you can avoid any sucking by filling up the entire tube with water manually, capping both ends till you place each end in its respective place and let the water flow

[ChocoTurtle]

If you suck on it, chances are you'll probably get a nice mouthful of turtle water.

lol