The submarine 's body may be constructed from drainage pipes and the hatch from a recycled skylight , but according to its 18-year-old inventor , this single-person U-boat can plunge to a depth of 30 feet and has already completed three successful dives . The Nautilus took high school inventor Justin Beckerman just six months and $ 2,000 to put together -- all while keeping on top of his homework . `` He has been building things since he was two years old , '' says his mother , Jess Beckerman . `` If we tried to help him we would just get in the way and mess things up . '' The submarine has ballast tanks to maintain its depth and equilibrium ; air vents that bring oxygen down from the surface ; a functioning PA and a range of emergency systems including back-up batteries , a siren , strobe lights , a breathing apparatus and a pump to fight leaks . The vessel can remain submerged for up to two hours and travels beneath the waves at one and a half miles per hour . Beckerman says he is going to use it to `` explore the lake , see fish and hopefully find a bit of history , like the cannons from my neighbors ' historic house '' that , he says , were dumped in the lake during renovations in the 1960s . When he was younger , Beckerman began by making things out of balloons and string , but as the years went by his inventions grew in scale and complexity . At the age of 12 , instead of complaining about having to help with the housework , he developed a remote-controlled car that could mop and vacuum . Beckerman 's website is a testament to his enormous productivity . It is a menagerie of home-constructed machines including boats , planes , architectural constructions , and prize-winning robots . The materials he uses in his creations are often technological cast-offs from family and friends , or garbage scavenged from electronics recycling facilities . The Nautilus has regulators and pressure gauges from an old restaurant soda fountain that Beckerman found behind a shopping center . The two main batteries are from a child 's ride-on toy , and its PA speakers are made from an old car stereo . Beckerman says he decided to build the submarine because `` I wanted to see if I could do it . It combined so many different aspects of things that I had worked on in the past . '' The Nautilus has the most ambitious wiring system Beckerman has installed since he constructed his tree fort -- a veritable forest castle that puts all other tree forts to shame . Armed with more modern conveniences than many proper homes , the fort has a TV , wall-mounted speakers , desktop computer , air conditioning , shelving , and fluorescent lights . `` It has everything a house should have , '' says Beckerman , `` except a refrigerator and a bathroom . '' The Nautilus is not Beckerman 's first submarine . In fact , it is his fourth . The previous iteration could dive to five feet , but had a less sturdy frame constructed from plastic containers and duct tape . It was propelled by two motor scooter engines , connected to metal blades and two 12v batteries . The new design improves on previous models in almost every way . `` I had an idea of how I wanted to sit . I realized that lying down would make the sub more streamlined -- so the drainage pipes seemed a natural fit , '' he said . But sacrifices to the original design had to be made along the way . `` The ballast tanks were originally going to be air tanks , but they were just too expensive . If I could have learned how to weld I would have made the whole thing out of metal . But that might be for the next one . '' Asked if there are any particular challenges which are specific to being a young inventor , Beckerman responds plainly : `` No . Other than the budget issues and all of my schoolwork and other obligations that get in the way . '' If he had more time and money Beckerman says he would like to continue to add to the submarine . `` I would love to add a robotic claw to the front . I would like to make the sub into a more useful thing with a basket the claw could put stuff into to pick up garbage and clean the bottom of the lake . ''
Mendham High School student Justin Beckerman builds one-man submarine . The 17-year-old built the contraption in his science class and posted a video of himself on YouTube showing off how he made it work. Inventive teen has also built airplanes , boats , robots , and architectural constructions .