I have a wedge Oceanic 54, with a factory-installed reef-ready downflow box at the apex. I had a bulkhead fail, and start leaking onto the livingroom carpet and into the basement. It's a slow leak---bulkhead failures usually are, but they have ways of becoming bigger and bigger ones fairly fast.
a) it's Monday. You can get bulkheads from a good lfs...but they tend to be closed on Monday. You ought to be able to get them from a good plumbing supply. Mine, best in the region, said, "A what?" when asked for a 3/4 inch inner-diameter/1 inch outer diameter bulkhead or gasket. Thank goodness the local *hose* warehouse had one...and knew instantly what I wanted.
b) factory installed bulkheads can be skimpy on plastic. IE, just TRY to get a good Channel-lock grip on a screwed retaining ring 1/4 thick. We could not get it loose. There is a marvelous little saw that consists of an oblong ring with a blade, and the handle can be moved all around the ring to let you work at almost any angle. We sawed the side off that cursed retaining-ring on the bulkhead bottom and then could extract the old bulkhead from the hole.
c) installing a bulkhead requires an immaculate surface, or you can't trust the seal. Try to get that in a 4 year old sump with crud all over. But we did: two cinderblocks made a way to stand high and work inside that corner downflow.
d) tighten as far as a strong guy's finger-tightening goes. The LAST thing you want to do is crack that glass bottom.
That's about it. But let me tell you, respect bulkheads and treat them gently. Replacing one is a 4 hour job in cramped spaces. If you accidentally break the glass, you're in it for a new tank.
Thanks to the double-walled downflow box of an Oceanic, however, we could completely drain the downflow while the tank is nearly at full water level, and we could work back there with no disturbance to the inhabitants. That double wall is worth a lot. It's an S cuve of a water route that will not let the tank drain down more than the top of the (shorter) inner wall. Nice.
This was not how we planned to spend our day. But
a) it's Monday. You can get bulkheads from a good lfs...but they tend to be closed on Monday. You ought to be able to get them from a good plumbing supply. Mine, best in the region, said, "A what?" when asked for a 3/4 inch inner-diameter/1 inch outer diameter bulkhead or gasket. Thank goodness the local *hose* warehouse had one...and knew instantly what I wanted.
b) factory installed bulkheads can be skimpy on plastic. IE, just TRY to get a good Channel-lock grip on a screwed retaining ring 1/4 thick. We could not get it loose. There is a marvelous little saw that consists of an oblong ring with a blade, and the handle can be moved all around the ring to let you work at almost any angle. We sawed the side off that cursed retaining-ring on the bulkhead bottom and then could extract the old bulkhead from the hole.
c) installing a bulkhead requires an immaculate surface, or you can't trust the seal. Try to get that in a 4 year old sump with crud all over. But we did: two cinderblocks made a way to stand high and work inside that corner downflow.
d) tighten as far as a strong guy's finger-tightening goes. The LAST thing you want to do is crack that glass bottom.
That's about it. But let me tell you, respect bulkheads and treat them gently. Replacing one is a 4 hour job in cramped spaces. If you accidentally break the glass, you're in it for a new tank.
Thanks to the double-walled downflow box of an Oceanic, however, we could completely drain the downflow while the tank is nearly at full water level, and we could work back there with no disturbance to the inhabitants. That double wall is worth a lot. It's an S cuve of a water route that will not let the tank drain down more than the top of the (shorter) inner wall. Nice.
This was not how we planned to spend our day. But
