[Help] worried about over flow, durso standpipe system

[Aurori]

Hi there!
I just set up my 50gallon tank using a durso standpipe system. I have not been able to sleep since i'm so stressed out about it over flowing. I even went as far as to buy a ups battery back up for the return pump in case power goes out. My biggest fear is if the power goes out long enough that the battery pack runs out and the return pump stops working.
everything works fine and there is enough space for the water in the over flow box to drain into the sump. it is after all that is empty is the issue. the return pump siphons back the water from outside the over flow box into the sump if the power is out to long, and that is when everything starts overflowing.
If you look at the crude image i drew i'm talking about the green pipe (the return nozzle). I have the nozzle facing upwards as high as it can but it still is below the main water level, so it will still siphon water into the sump. I read about drilling holes in the return pipe to brake the siphon but im not sure where i would drill or if that would work.
Is there anyway that i can make sure that water doesn't siphon from the return nozzle into the sump if power was to go out?
Thank you for your help.

 

[cjm5283]

That is exactly what you need to do. Where ever you drill a hole in the (green) return line is where the water will drain to. I recommend about an inch down from the top on the line inside your over flow box. The hole does not have to be large. 1/8" should be fine. No exact size or science behind it. Just a hole large enough to break the siphon. Found this out the same way you did when I tested my loss of power scenario. Luckly I was standing there and found out what happened before water started to over flow my sump.

 

[PanicBuyer]

I had the same problem when I first started out. I fixed the issue by adding an additional segment of loc-line to my return nozzle. Doing so gave it enough length to sit just below the waters surface. Now when I lose power the siphon is broken almost immediately because the nozzle sits so close to the surface.

This stuff: http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/loc-line-modular-hose-segments-1.html


The other way to fix the issue is to drill a hole as mentioned above. The only problem with doing that is that the hole should be as high in the return line as possible. that way the siphon is broken as soon as possible. I found this method to be annoyingly noisy. My hole was above the water surface. When the return pump was running a small stream of water would shoot out of the hole and splash on the surface. It was loud enough for me to hear over everything else running. I opted for the solution I gave above. It is much quieter.

 

[Aurori]

since im a bit scared to drill anything i'm going to buy the segment loc-line for the return nozzle first to see how that goes but ill drill it if it isnt working the way i want! thank you again for the suggestions.

 

[JoelA7]

Suggest you get the vertical part of the return to the surface so when power goes out the return nozzle from your locline is exposed and there's your siphon break. Much safer.