how tight should a bulk head be?

S

sharkE

New member
i finally got the tank up on the stand and im not getting ready to tighten the bulk heads in the rear... some are at the bottom of the tank so i think that this question is pretty important... i was thinking that by using the channel locks and tightening them too much might eventually cause the O rings to fail so... how tight should they be?

should i just do a solid hand tightening or should i add more presure with the channels?

thanks for any info provided!
cris
 
Ive always just done a VERY solid hand tightening and have never had problems. I know some who tighten it slightly with a wrench.
 
endless summer is the best movie btw!

thanks for the info... thats what i kinna thought as well but when setting up a 300 gal you can never be to sure
 
i just went with a very solid hand tightening the first time... and after i had to drain all the water remove all my live rock and use 2x4's to lift my tank up off stand i used channel locks.

either way make sure to first fill your over flow with some fresh water and do a leak test... I wish i would have.
 
use silicone as well

use silicone as well

I have heard of a number of people using silicone to make the seal better. I believe it is easily removed later as well.
 
I use silicone for bulkheads. I have not had one leak yet. the silicone works way better for me. Cracking a couple thin wall tanks by overtightening the o rings was what made me change my method.
 
If youre having trouble I would get a new seals for it or a new bulkhead all together. I know I would be stressing on it constantly if I went with using it.
 
from the research over the net i have done over the past 4 hours i have learned that a solid hand tight is what a bulkhead was designed for. one site said that if a bulkhead was supposed to be sealed with silicon there would be a specific tube of silicon that would be designated for use with salt/fresh water tanks.

i decided to go ahead and do the hand tight with a minor (very minor) turn with the channel locks. im in the process of doing my leak test. so far so good :)
 
bah i need a new bulkhead pain in the *** because i have to cut my pvc plumbing to get it out. I am looking for a top of the line bulkhead anyone know where i can find this. I will spare no expense :)
 
Silicon can cause the washer to squeeze out instead of compressing.

But whatever works for you.

SteveU
 
silicone a bulkhead??

Doesn't that defeat the primary purpose of why it is, what it is? The o-ring is meant to have a nice flat surface to get just enough squish out of it to seal all gaps. 10 tanks, and 40 bulkheads later, I can say that you don't need silicone lube, or sealent. Just hand-tight with maybe a slight turn with channel locks.
Fresh-water test, and you should be good to go!

IMHO.... don't try and fix it, if it ain't broke :hammer:
 
Enjoy said:
silicone a bulkhead??

Doesn't that defeat the primary purpose of why it is, what it is? The o-ring is meant to have a nice flat surface to get just enough squish out of it to seal all gaps. 10 tanks, and 40 bulkheads later, I can say that you don't need silicone lube, or sealent. Just hand-tight with maybe a slight turn with channel locks.
Fresh-water test, and you should be good to go!

IMHO.... don't try and fix it, if it ain't broke :hammer:
Click to expand...

Youre probably right; but I had one leak (probably a worn gasket), and had aquarium silicone laying around. Since that worked, Ive always just been inclined to rub a thin (very thin) layer of silicone around the gasket itself. If no silicone, Id probably recommend a new gasket/seal everytime you reinstall that bulkhead.
 
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