# DIY Vacuum Gravel



## MrWynO14 (Jun 6, 2009)

I want to make a vacuum gravel out of a 2 liter bottle and a hose, but I can't seem to get this sticky residue off that holds the label on to the bottle. Is this stuff toxic to fish? Does any body know how to get this stuff off?


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## 1077 (Apr 16, 2008)

MrWynO14 said:


> I want to make a vacuum gravel out of a 2 liter bottle and a hose, but I can't seem to get this sticky residue off that holds the label on to the bottle. Is this stuff toxic to fish? Does any body know how to get this stuff off?


 Try boiling the bottle and then use razor blade. I think your syphon will work better with smaller diameter bottle. Two litres is a bit large and may not produce desired suction.


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## MrWynO14 (Jun 6, 2009)

Yea, I was going to try a 12 ounce plastic bottle also, pretty much whatever fits the 2 liter sized cap. I'm going to be using this on a big tank so we'll see what works best. I would think boiling would be a bit to hot for the plastic but I'll try anyways. If it fails I'm only out of a 2 liter bottle ;-) If I can get this stuff off and it all works well, which it should, I'll go ahead and post some pics and basically a how to on this gravel vac.

What do you guys think about rubbing alcohol? I've used it to get sticky labels off before, but not for aquarium equipment. I tryed vinegar, it didn't work too well. I'll let you know if the boiling water worked.


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## zof (Apr 23, 2010)

I dont think rubbing alcohol should hurt anything as when it evaporates it should leave nothing behind, might want to wash it really good after using it. Plus we are talking about something that will be in your tank what? 10 minutes every week? If that? If you want to be extra safe just soak it for a week, but I still think the alcohol will not leave anything behind.


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## bearwithfish (Sep 29, 2009)

alcohol will evaporate 100% after use and will not harm your tank as long as you wait a day after you use it to be sure its all set... i have used this on many items in my tanks to remove labels etc.. and had no issues at all


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Agreed, rubbing alcohol should be ok. Let us know how this works out!


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## MrWynO14 (Jun 6, 2009)

OK, here's what you need to make this:

2 liter bottle and cap (preferably a water bottle, smaller size will work)
an old hose (or airline tubing for smaller tanks)
knife
rubbing alcohol
pen or pencil
2 napkins
silicone (optional)

Here's how I did it.

1. I rinsed the 2 liter bottle and cap really really good with water.
2. I cut the bottom off the two liter bottle, and took the label off. (pictured)
3. I used a knife to scrape most of the sticky stuff off the bottle.
4. I took the napkin and put some rubbing alcohol on it and rubbed at the sticky strip.
5. I took the other napkin and rubbed it dry, it took some elbow grease but once it heated up from the friction it started to come off.

I repeated steps 4 and 5 until i got this sticky strip off the bottle. Probably took about 15 or 20 minutes.

6. Then I took my cap and put the hose to it and traced around the hose with a pen. (pictured)
7. I traced the line with my knife really carefully and lightly until it started to make a groove, then I applyed more pressure. Kept at it for about 15 mins and finally got it to come off with a pretty good cut. (pictured)
8. I put the hose into the cut hole on the cap, and screwed it on. (pictured)

9. (optional) Put silicone around the bottle cap and hose to seal it up for air tight gravel suction.

Pretty simple and pretty effective. I didn't even put any silicone around the cap and it works like a charm as you can see in the picture. I took one of it sucking up the grime, and another pic of it after it had already sucked it all up so you could see the difference. I haven't tried a smaller bottle yet but I take it that it would have more suction on a smaller volume of gravel. I could also see air line tubing being used for the hose for smaller tanks, and I've seen water bottles that were less than 12 ounces. Hope this helps save a good 20 bucks! :-D


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## bearwithfish (Sep 29, 2009)

nicely done  !!!!!!!


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Nice work! It looks like you're really getting some nice suction there, too.


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## zof (Apr 23, 2010)

Nice!, now if you could get a way too keep fish away from said gravel vacuum... mine are way to curious for their own good.

Also might want to melt the bottom of the cut bottle so you don't have any sharp edges in case a fish does get to close.


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## kimpossible (Jun 23, 2010)

Sometimes using plain chapstick will remove sticky stuff. Rub it on then use a paper towel to scrub it off.


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