HELP! Sump/Return not working!

[GuOD]

Hi everyone,

I just hooked up my sump for the first time and I think I'm going to have some problems.

The water seems to rush down in bunches, with lots of bubbles, and makes a very loud gurgling noise. I don't know anything about how this stuff works but could it be caused by my siphon NOT being straight downward? Unfortunately, as it's setup now, I need to run my siphon around a corner and into the tank which results in a down and then back up tube. All pics are below!

I really want to make sure my setup is safe and will not break siphon when running for awhile.

Thanks everyone!!

Just a pic of the sump:

pics of standpipes

pic of pipe

 

[Icefire]

What return pomp are you using? your drain look way too small, it's 3/4" ?

 

[asm481]

You need an air hole on the very top of your drain standpipe. Start with 1/8 and might need larger. Also try and get some of the loop out of your drain and end in your sump just below the water line with a tee

 

[klm2500hd]

its the down then up that is causing the fluctuation and noise.

water pressure in the drain has to build up enough to overcome the resistance. once that happens the water rushes out, and the process starts over again.

 

[Roy G. Biv]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11988126#post11988126 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by asm481
You need an air hole on the very top of your drain standpipe. Start with 1/8 and might need larger. Also try and get some of the loop out of your drain and end in your sump just below the water line with a tee

Drill that hole in the stand pipe.
Also where you bend slightly upward at the top of the sump, that area traps air. When the air bubble gets trapped, water builds up and forces that bubble down into the sump, creating gurgling. If you cant get that upward bend out easily, I'd install a "T" there. The T will act as a vent hole. Just glue some PVC tall enough so that water doesnt shoot out like a blow hole.

 

[GuOD]

Thanks for the input everyone.

I think the drain is about 3/4"... I'm not exactly sure. I'm using 1" ID tubing I believe. It's a predrilled perfecto tank... so whatever size those are.

There is already a hole in the top of the standpipe with a little piece of plastic sticking out...

I'm going to try and maneuver some boxes underneath the tubing to see if I can get it to not bend upwards but I have a feeling it won't work since the sump is just a bit too tall.



When you guys say to add a T with a long pvc (so it's not a blowhole), how long are we talking? If I understand, the T would be installed right where it connects to the water, with 1 arm sticking up into the air?

 

[mokeyz]

Also, if you put a reverse durso on the return in the sump you may eliminate all of your noise and bubble problems. It worked like a charm for me. Here is the link to the design and instructions.

http://stockmanreef.com/reverse_durso.htm

 

[GuOD]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11988832#post11988832 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mokeyz
Also, if you put a reverse durso on the return in the sump you may eliminate all of your noise and bubble problems. It worked like a charm for me. Here is the link to the design and instructions.

http://stockmanreef.com/reverse_durso.htm

Thanks a lot!! that's really helpful and explains what I need to do! Whether or not I'm capable of doing it is a whole other question!

Can I ask why there needs to be a T at the bottom to create backpressure?

When you say to use a bigger pipe, do you mean for the T and stuff? If I'm using a bigger pipe how do I connect it? Do I need some kind of adapter?

 

[mfinn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11988191#post11988191 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by klm2500hd
its the down then up that is causing the fluctuation and noise.

water pressure in the drain has to build up enough to overcome the resistance. once that happens the water rushes out, and the process starts over again.

You should deal with this issue first, then worry about the air holes, tees and durso's.

 

[GuOD]

I've just made an attempt to prevent the down and then up (though it's very hard) by manually holding the tube in place.

I am still getting the same effect without having a dip in the tube down to the sump.

Does the length of the tube down to the sump make a difference? It's quite long and goes all the way to the bottom. Would cutting it shorter a few inches into the water help the situation?

 

[GuOD]

bump! I only have about 30 mins left to work on the tank, could anyone chime in on cutting the pipe thats going to the sump shorter? Will it have any effect?

Removing the down and up definitely did not have any effect.


I'm also having a problem with the pump shooting water out of the elbow like crazy and creating microbubbles. Is my eheim 1260 too strong for a return?

 

[Icefire]

Your return pump is way too strong as I said!

a 3/4 drain can handle 250-300GPH max!, you have around 500 (630@ 0').

You are lucky it didn't flood. use a ball valve or change the pump.

 

[asm481]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11994074#post11994074 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Icefire
Your return pump is way too strong as I said!

a 3/4 drain can handle 250-300GPH max!, you have around 500 (630@ 0').

You are lucky it didn't flood. use a ball valve or change the pump.

I do think that is 1 inch flex he has there.