has any one had there syphon overflow break? or is that a rare thing?

teena

teena

New member
i was reading on sumps & they said one of the down falls is if the syphon tube gets air in it. it will break & water will soon over flow from your display tank on to the floor. i havent got it up yet but i have hard wood floors & if this happens alot should i go with the hang on the back refugium to be safe, its a 75 g tank. im going to try to keep soft corals
 
We have an overflow into a sump and we drilled holes in our returns in the tank and have a float valve in the sump, so if we lose power and the air breaks the vacuum the water will only fill the sump up to the float valve.
 
I have a two tube overflow, and if we lose power one always loses siphon right away. The other one takes a few hours. When I move this tank in few months it'll be drilled. Thats the best way to go.
 
is that the only way it would fill with air is if i lose power? it wont do it if its running?
 
Aqua corals is where I bought my overflow too bad Amiricle seems to have limited thier selection. I'm having trouble picturing how your setup prevents floods RL. Does the float turn off the pump when the sump level gets high or low?
 
I have never had my U-tube even have air bubbles in it, let alone totally breaking siphon. I lost power for 16+ hours last winter and never lost the siphon.

As a post above said, of you have enough flow through the u-tube the bubbles will flow right through.
 
I wish I could figure out why mine break siphon when the power is out. I have nightmares of tank flooding and pumps burning out while I'm at work.
 
Is yours an U-tube or one of the CRP models?

Maybe you've got a small hole that is covered when the pump is running but exposed when the water level drops when the pump is off.
 
I've got the U tube Amiricle one. Could the tubes being at very slightly different heights be a possible cause? I cant say if they are, but its just a thought.
 
I dont mean to hijack this thread, but hopefully the info helps. I decided to experiment alittle and try to figure it out besides the tubes needed to be cleaned anyway. I shut the valve for my return and waited, after about 1 minute one tube lost siphon, I noticed it was a little shorter than the other one. Cleaned the tubes, switched thier positions in the box, turned the valve back on primed the tubes and let it flow for a minute or two, then shut the valve back off. In about a minute the same (shorter ) one lost siphon again. So I guess they need to be the same length. The difference in length is about 1/8 inch.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6939513#post6939513 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by graveyardworm
I dont mean to hijack this thread, but hopefully the info helps. I decided to experiment alittle and try to figure it out besides the tubes needed to be cleaned anyway. I shut the valve for my return and waited, after about 1 minute one tube lost siphon, I noticed it was a little shorter than the other one. Cleaned the tubes, switched thier positions in the box, turned the valve back on primed the tubes and let it flow for a minute or two, then shut the valve back off. In about a minute the same (shorter ) one lost siphon again. So I guess they need to be the same length. The difference in length is about 1/8 inch.
Click to expand...

there is supposed to be a short end on the U-tube. so dont cut it even just yet! :D. short end shoud be in the tank side of the overflow. any way you can get me a pic of your overflow box? especially the bulkhead area? it sounds like your drain line is to low in the overflow. the problem you are having should not happen!
 
Never. There is no reason a decent, properly set up U Tube overflow should ever break siphon. Maybe if the power was off for many months and the water in the skimmer and drain boxes evaporated enough to expose the ends of the U Tube.
 
My overflow has two U tubes, and one is a hair shorter than the other on the short side ( the end in the tank side ). The shorter one is the one that loses siphon.

edit: I think because the longer one continues to pull the water level down.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6939513#post6939513 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by graveyardworm
I dont mean to hijack this thread, but hopefully the info helps. I decided to experiment alittle and try to figure it out besides the tubes needed to be cleaned anyway. I shut the valve for my return and waited, after about 1 minute one tube lost siphon, I noticed it was a little shorter than the other one. Cleaned the tubes, switched thier positions in the box, turned the valve back on primed the tubes and let it flow for a minute or two, then shut the valve back off. In about a minute the same (shorter ) one lost siphon again. So I guess they need to be the same length. The difference in length is about 1/8 inch.
Click to expand...
Some overflow boxes use a "J Tube" instead of a U Tube. They work the same. The main thing is when power is off, BOTH ends of the U/J Tune MUST be submerged. If they are not, something is not set up right. Wrong J Tube orientation, too short or missing standpipe are possibilities.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6940149#post6940149 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by graveyardworm
My overflow has two U tubes, and one is a hair shorter than the other on the short side ( the end in the tank side ). The shorter one is the one that loses siphon.
Click to expand...
When the power is off, are all the ends of both U Tubes submerged?

What GPH return pump are you using?
 
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