One of the most common containers being made for a simple HHO generator is a tube made from PVC pipe. PVC is found at hardware stores all over North America. It is relatively inexpensive and easy to work with. More complicate containers would be made from stainless steel or regular steel that has been internally coated after construction. For the home enthusiast or tinkerer, these types of containers may be more than they want to take on. Just to get involved in hydrogen generators, you can build a cheap PVC housing with just a few tools.
What You Need for one housing and a bubbler - recirculate tank:

1. PVC pipe - 3″ ,or 4″
2. End caps of same size as pipe
3. 1/2″ threaded fittings with 3/8″ tubing outlet
4. 1/2″ thread tap
5. Drill and bits
6. Wood hand saw or other tool to cut pipe
7. Plastic glue, marine epoxy or other waterproof sealant
8. PVC glue
9. 3/8″ Plastic tubing or rubber fuel line tubing

The first step is to drill holes for your inlet and outlet, then use the thread tap to thread them for your fittings. If you have never done this, you need to make a hole smaller than the tap or you will be getting a new end cap! On our coiled anodes,we use a torch to heat the ends of our electrical connection tabs until they are hot enough to melt holes in the plastic, then push them through the cap. If you are using bolts or wires or some other electrical connection, you will have to drill holes for those too. We don’t recommend ANY internal connections unless you really know what you are doing. Watch our Hydrogen Generator Safety video for more info.

Once you have used the PVC glue to attach the bottom end cap, it is time to fit your anodes and top end cap together, which will depend on what style of generator anodes you have decided to use. You will need to seal with glue any spots that don’t have a tight fit.

The threaded fittings need teflon tape or thread sealant to keep them from leaking. It is best not to glue these since you might want to remove them later.

Many people put a sight glass on the side to check water level, and this is done by tapping and threading a couple more holes on the side of your housing. Threaded fittings top and bottom point towards each other, with a piece of clear tubing between.

Making a bubbler tank is very similar. This one should have a fitting on it for gas/ water in from the generator, a return line, and a gas out line. The in and return lines need to be located near  the bottom of the bubbler, below the fluid level. The gas out line should be at the highest point of the unit.

Next post we will have pictures of a complete setup.

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