Abstract:
A siphon for siphoning water from an aquarium into a bucket includes a siphon tube having a first end for insertion into the tank and a second end for insertion into the bucket. A first pair of magnets is provided for releasably attaching the siphon tube to the tank and a second pair of magnets is provided for releasably attaching the siphon tube to the bucket. The siphon further includes a magnetic float valve for closing the second end of the siphon tube when the water in the bucket reaches a predetermined level.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application is based on and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/080,738, entitled “IMPROVED FISH TANK SIPHON,” the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates generally to aquariums and, more particularly, to new and improved siphons for aquariums. 
         [0003]    An important step in maintenance of aquariums is regular vacuuming of the gravel or substrate using water siphon. This removes debris and droppings from the substrate without disturbing the aquarium&#39;s water conditions. 
         [0004]    When using current siphons many things can go wrong. The user must be very careful when performing the operation and it is typically a very messy process. The amount of water removed needs to be monitored, the hose can come out of the bucket, the bucket can overflow, you must constantly hold the hose inside the aquarium so it doesn&#39;t fall out of the aquarium while supporting the hose so it doesn&#39;t kink. The hose drips as it moves in and out of the aquarium and interruptions during the process cause stopping and restarting of the entire process 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    It is a general object of the present invention to provide an improved siphon which greatly simplifies the siphoning procedure and avoids the drawbacks of prior siphons by automatically stopping the siphoning process when the correct amount of water has been removed from the aquarium. 
         [0006]    These and other objects of the invention are achieved by a siphon for siphoning water from an aquarium into a bucket, which includes a siphon tube having a first end for insertion into the tank and a second end for insertion into the bucket. The siphon tube is releasably attached to the tank and releasably attached to the bucket. Means are provided for closing the second of the siphon tube when the water in the bucket reaches a predetermined level. 
         [0007]    Other aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the invention which refers to the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0008]      FIG. 1  is an elevation view of a siphon illustrating certain features of the present invention used to siphon the contents of an aquarium. 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  is an enlarged view of a portion of  FIG. 1  illustrating an alternative embodiment thereof. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0010]    Referring now to the drawings and, in particular, referring to  FIG. 1 , there is shown an embodiment of a siphon  10  illustrating certain features of the present invention used to siphon the contents of an aquarium  12  into a bucket  14 . 
         [0011]    The siphon hose  16  is secured to the aquarium  12  using two magnets  18 , 20  to hold the hose at the top of the aquarium so it can&#39;t be pulled out of the aquarium if you let it go for a moment. This securing is very helpful in that it allows one hand to be in the aquarium to move corals and other decorations that the sediment collects under while the hose stays put. Also, if interrupted you do not need to stop the entire procedure and restart it. The securing magnetic mounts are placed on the hose so that there is just enough hose in the aquarium to reach the entire aquarium bottom. It also relieves the pressure that might have kinked the hose at the top of the aquarium. Previously, the hose was always being pulled down by the weight of the hose and water in it and one had to fight this pressure constantly to move the hose. With the hose now secured by the mounting magnets, the process is now greatly simplified. Also, the process is not nearly as messy. Previously, the hose was wet and dripped when it was pulled in and out of the aquarium as it was moved while vacuuming different areas. 
         [0012]    The top securing magnets  18 ,  20  also eliminate another problem as the hose  16  tended to kink at the top of the aquarium  12 . The weight of the hose  16  pulling down and the force of moving the hose  16  in the aquarium  12  caused the hose to restrict the flow where it bends at the top of the aquarium. The magnet mount  18 ,  20  eliminates this by providing a strain free radius over the top of the aquarium  12 . 
         [0013]    Another pair of mounting magnets  22 ,  24  secures the end of the hose  16  inside the bucket  14  collecting the dirty water. This end had a tendency to be pulled out of the bucket  14  as the hose was constantly being moved during the process using previous siphons. It is not only secured with this system, but it is secured at the exact level set so just the right amount of water is removed. For example, if you have a ten gallon aquarium and need to do a 20% water change, the magnet mount secures the end of the hose at that desired 2 gallon level. 
         [0014]    This system has a magnetic float valve  28  designed to stop the flow when the correct amount of dirty water is removed. As the water level in the bucket  26  rises to the desired level, the float  30  in the valve body floats up and contains a magnet or metal disk  31  in the top of the float. When this magnet  31  floats up close to the end of the hose  16 , the flow is automatically stopped. The end of the hose  16  also has a magnet or metal ring  33  at its end and when the water level brings the two into proximity, they grab each other and stop the flow after the correct level of water is reached automatically, as preset by the height in the bucket where it was secured. 
         [0015]    This valve  28  is also great if the phone rings or any other interruption comes up. If you need to pause the process, you can simply let go of the siphon tube  16  as it is secured in the aquarium, then manually cause the valve  28  to lock by raising the float  30  stopping the flow. When you are ready to resume, just pull the float  30  back down, then resume the process. The valve  28  also enables you to start the process without the need to suck on the end of the hose to start the siphon. This can be done by placing the hose  16  in the water, closing the valve  28 , and then removing some of the hose from the water. The water in the hose can then automatically start the siphon when the valve  28  is opened. This can be done using either end of the hose. The end of the hose with the valve can also be submerged a bit and sealed to hold a bit of water to start the process when the valve is opened. 
         [0016]      FIG. 2  shows more details of the mounting of the magnets. Note that in  FIG. 1  one of the magnets  18  of the top pair  18 ,  20  is mounted on the aquarium while the other  20  is mounted on the hose  16 , and one of the magnets  22  of the bottom pair  22 ,  24  is mounted on the bucket  14  while the other  24  is mounted on the hose  16 . In  FIG. 2 , both magnets of each pair are mounted on the hose. 
         [0017]    In  FIG. 1 , the magnets  20 ,  24  are secured to the siphon tube  16  by the use of Velcro frames  32  and Velcro straps  34 . The magnets  18 ,  22  are held in place by the magnetic attraction of magnets  20 ,  24 , respectively. Similarly, in  FIG. 2 , the upper pair of magnets  20 ,  22  is held in place by a combination of magnetic attraction, Velcro frames  32  and Velcro straps  34 . Although not shown in  FIG. 2 , the lower pair of magnets is similarly attached to the siphon tube  16 . 
         [0018]    The term “aquarium” as used herein means any tank, bowl, or other water-filled enclosure in which aquatic animals and/or plants are kept. 
         [0019]    This system can be added to an existing siphon by simply adding the two magnetic mounts and the valve. 
         [0020]    Although the present invention has been described in relation to particular embodiments thereof, many other variations and modifications and other uses will become apparent to those skilled in the art. It is preferred, therefore, that the present invention be limited not by the specific disclosure herein, but only by the appended claims.