1'' bulkhead ?

[Andyv2004]

Hi guys, I am kinda stuck with my 90 gallon upgade. My delima is the tank has a 1'' bulkhead with a 3/4 return bulkhead, they are both barbed. Do i need to modify or add another drain? I dont want to run into problems later on or have noise issue or even worse a flooded floor. I am quessing ther original drilled hole has to be inlarged to fit a bigger bulkhead. The tank is an AGA i think. I bought it from a fellow member how is a good guy. Any help would be greatly appreciated, Thanks:scratchch:scratchch:scratchch:scratchch:scratchch:scratchch P.S. my current tank is a 63 gallon fowlr and i really want to get a reef tank going. It will be my first time ever taking care of these beautiful creatures.:link:

 

[qy7400]

Never had a problem with the factory AGA setups, the 1" will do fine. Save yourself a lot of headaches and only put 500GPH through the sump, the slow flow will give your heater, skimmer and reactors more time to clean the water, slower flow also means less micro bubbles, noise and lower electric bills.

 

[JOHANNA]

That will be fine. The water will only drain as fast as you can pump it back into the main display. So a small return will be fine. I agree that you should use a small pump for the return and have some powerheads for water movement.

 

[Mikei70]

I have a 45 gal tank with a 10 gal sump. I have the same size bulkheads as you. To make my tank flood proof, when I built the sump, I made the section that holds the return pump very small-- I don't think it holds more than a couple of gallons. This way, if for some reason the return is completely blocked, the water in the pump section isn't enough to overflow the tank, which I keep at about an inch and a half below the very top. Likewise, if the power goes off and the water backflows into the sump, the sump has enough space left over to hold the excess water until the siphon breaks. You could also use a one-way valve to keep this from happening, but I don't trust vales to work indefinitely.

There is literally no way to cause a flood with my set up, unless I over filled my sump.

 

[Andyv2004]

1260 pump

Thanks guys, I just have one more question. I am going to be running a ehiem 1260 that is rated 634 gpd or so from my return, can I tee off and run a carbon/ gfo reactor from bulk reef supply and should I use vinyl or rigid PVC ? Thank you guys for all the great advise.

 

[Mikei70]

Thanks guys, I just have one more question. I am going to be running a ehiem 1260 that is rated 634 gpd or so from my return, can I tee off and run a carbon/ gfo reactor from bulk reef supply and should I use vinyl or rigid PVC ? Thank you guys for all the great advise.

I wouldn't tee off personally-- why deal with the extra plumbing and also lose out on some of that flow? The pump to run a reactor would cost around $15.

 

[Andyv2004]

Am I going to have fail down the pump to slow the flow?

 

[Andyv2004]

Sorry meant to say dail down the pump

 

[Mikei70]

Am I going to have fail down the pump to slow the flow?

You might depending on the pump and what you're going to put in the reactor. Most reactors use 1/2" tubes, so you can throw on one of these if you want: http://www.aquadirect.com/store/product.php?productid=17776&cat=0&page=168

BTW, these are included with the TLF reactors.

Here: http://www.aquadirect.com/store/product.php?productid=17145&cat=0&page=2

And Here: http://www.aquadirect.com/store/product.php?productid=28790&cat=0&page=2

 

[JonnyJ]

Andy, i run a 1260 with a 1 inch drain on my setup and i have the return dialed down with a valve. My head pressure is about 3 feet [ i have a shallow tank]

How high is your head pressure going to be? you should be able too T off the return too run your phosban. Those eheims are great pumps. Why run another pump when you could just use your return.

Just like others have said your overflow will only drain as fast as your return is.

Set up some valves and test it out.

 

[Mikei70]

Why run another pump when you could just use your return.

It's easier to replace media and clean the reactor and so forth when it has it's own little pump. It also leaves less chance of leaks and it's easier to keep it dialed in to the proper flow.

Just my opinion, though.

 

[JOHANNA]

I have a T in return line with a ball valve on the line directing water to my reactors. I run Carbon and Biopellets. The ball valve allows me to regulate the water flow into the reactors. I used rigid 3/4 pvc but you could use flex. I reduced it down to 1/2 with a barbed sprinkler fitting from home depot and used the clear 1/2 tubing they sell also. Works great and I did not have to use any additonal pumps for the reactors. Just make sure that you use clamps on all flexible hose conections. You dont want a hose to let loose and flood your house. The pump you have chosen will work great. If you are worried about dialing it down put a ball valve after the T in the return line. IMO I think that redirecting some of the flow to a reactor will dial it down enough.

 

[JonnyJ]

It's easier to replace media and clean the reactor and so forth when it has it's own little pump. It also leaves less chance of leaks and it's easier to keep it dialed in to the proper flow.

Just my opinion, though.

Definitely a valid explanation..I personally just like the idea of less electricity usage,less cords/ less noise/vibration and the fact you dont have to buy another pump. but you are right it can definitely make things easier if you do not plumb it correctly.

 

[Andyv2004]

Thank you guys. This is a really great club and so far all my experience have been really good. It seems that everyone goes out of their way to help out. So once again thank you for all the great advise, sincerely Andy.

 

[Mikei70]

Definitely a valid explanation..I personally just like the idea of less electricity usage,less cords/ less noise/vibration and the fact you dont have to buy another pump. but you are right it can definitely make things easier if you do not plumb it correctly.

Also valid reasoning.

I guess it just comes down to personal preference-- both methods would work fine.