Thanks Chris- This hobby is way too expensive as is, besides, it's a good excuse to by more tools for the shop.
Wedfr- That is certainly possible, but it would take a lot of effort to determine if it made a difference, and even then, it would only prove that it did/didn't work in one particular instance, in one design. A real test would have multiple designs, all with/without the swirl. Like I said, I'm not convinced either way.
Pantinor- The air intake must be in the chamber with the Beckett, as the air is being drawn though the holes in the side of the Beckett and mixed with the water. My original design of the Monster Skimmer had the air being drawn in though the lid of the column, and the Beckett was not "sealed". It turns out that it is not nearly as efficient that way, so I modified the design to have a sealed Beckett like most other designs out there. Much better performance IMHO.
I just updated my
Monster Beckett thread with a new picture.
Zeph