How do I plumb a reef ready tank?
- Thread starter Sythero
- Start date
Some good videos on youtube that can help take you step by step as well as giving you some tips and tricks to make it a relatively painless process.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcAtp38M6Ag
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LcAtp38M6Ag
I'd do a herbie style drain and just run 1 return up the back and over the top, there's a few videos on YouTube on how to do this I would recommend getting a gate valve from marine depot to control your main drain and MD has the best price on the valve that I have found, basically your gonna have 2 drains hopefully there both 1 inch get some 1 inch PVC bulkheads melvsreef has them, your main drain should be about 6 inches below the tanks water height this is going to be made from a standard 1 inch PVC pipe just measure your overall height and subtract roughly 6'' off the next piece will be a emergency you want this to be roughly a half inch below the weir/ overflow so measure and cut regular PVC again then plumb down to your sump you'll want the drains no more then 1 inch underneath your water level in your sump and you'll want your gate valve plumbed towards the bottom of your main drain then you'll adjust the gate valve so you'll just have a trickle going down the emergency, what this does is create a full siphon which is almost dead silent and is a lot less annoying then using a stand pipe people will say that there quiet but I have yet to see one that is, good luck man and I'd do this now rather then later you'll save yourself a headache in the long run
Should only need 2 on the sump could even get away with one of you had to
CStrickland
New member
You'll probably want to set up a herbie drain like this: http://gmacreef.com/herbie-overflow-reef-tank-plumbing-method-basics/ with the main drain flowing into the filter sock on the left side of your sump. The emergency drain can empty anywhere in the sump, it doesn't take much water. Then bring the water back into your tank from the return pump over the back side of the tank, there's a variety of kits and nozzles for that but the plumbing is basic.
That's your quietest, flood safest, simplest option IMO
That's your quietest, flood safest, simplest option IMO
Sythero
Member
Is it safe to bring the water in through the back? I can't drill a hole also. Will a durso pipe be good enough?
CStrickland
New member
No you don't need to drill a hole for the return. Like this, but nicer with black pipes and "loc line"
A durso is not good enough for me, but it's subjective. I think the silence and increased flow capacity make the herbie worth doing.
A durso is not good enough for me, but it's subjective. I think the silence and increased flow capacity make the herbie worth doing.
GimpyFin
Active member
You will get varying opinions on overflow plumbing. Many people do herbie or bean animals, but dursos can work just fine too. I have a regular 2 hole overflow on mine w/ a durso and I have no issues with it. It's simple and pretty much dead silent running around 500 gph through the sump. (My skimmer makes more noise than anything.) I attached a pic of the plumbing under the tank just to illustrate.
Attachments
THink of it this way: it all looks like a pile of pipe until you put the sections into two piles: downbound and upbound. The upbound comes from the return pump to the top, where it refills at the same rate (put a valve in that line to adjust this) that gravity drains the tank through the downflow box and one of those two holes. THe drain may be larger than the upflow, because you SURE don't want water coming in faster than it can leave. [The valve on the up line is useful for that too.]
The drain line simply falls by gravity down to your sump, where the released water goes through several chambers involving a skimmer (and its pump) and ends up back in the pump, where it round trips yet again.
The drain line simply falls by gravity down to your sump, where the released water goes through several chambers involving a skimmer (and its pump) and ends up back in the pump, where it round trips yet again.
You can if you have at least two holes drilled in your tank, lots of pictures and videos out there showing how to do it
Sythero
Member
Are there any negatives to using the durso? It seems like the best option for me at the time. What about a reverse durso in the sump?
GimpyFin
Active member
Noise seems to be the biggest complaint for most people, but personally, I've never had an issue with them and mine is super quiet (No reverse durso in the sump either.) Not using an overly high flow rate on the return and putting the drain pipe below the waterline in the sump helps too.
The only down side of a durso is the noise. the less flow you put through the durso the easier it is to get it to be quiet the more flow the louder as more and more air gets pulled down.
You have two holes running both as drains Herbie style and sending the returns over the rim would give you the best results IMO.
You have two holes running both as drains Herbie style and sending the returns over the rim would give you the best results IMO.
JMorris271
New member
CStrictland gave you a real good link that spells it out very well.
