Max GPH on 1/2" locline?

[NeveSSL]

Hi all!

I'm concerned I may have made a mistake.

Currently, my plumbing is 3/4" and 1" (although my drains will soon be 1/2" instead of 1").

My current returns are going through a SQWD and are 3/4". I think with head pressure and the SQWD there's no more than 300GPH coming through, although that may go up.

Here's my question: I had planned on doing two 1/2" locline hoses coming off of a 1/2" bulkhead fed by the existing 3/4" tubing. Is 1/2" too small?

Are the calculations on the head loss calc for the drain adequate for the return? They call for 3/4".

Thanks!

Brandon

 

[crumbletop]

I think we're missing some information. Is this a closed loop or return from sump with subsequent drain(s)? Are the drains really going to be 1/2" or did you mean 1 1/2"? I'm not sure what you mean by head loss on the drain.

 

[NeveSSL]

Sorry Jack...

Didn't mean to imply head pressure on the drains. This is the return from my sump.

I'm thinking about taking the SQWD off when I get some Koralias.

I work at school until 11 tonight and I've been here since 9... its been a long day.

Brandon

 

[crumbletop]

I hear ya on the long day...

Well, I hope you mean the drains will soon be 1 1/2". Downsizing to 1/2" would make them handle less flow which would likely be a problem.

I think a couple of 1/2" loclines would be fine coming off of a 3/4" return pipe. Why not get 3/4" loclines, though?

 

[NeveSSL]

Its a long story... but I'll tell it.

Originally I was wanting to try to "save money" by doing my own bulkheads, the "Travis" way. I read his thread on setting up a tank and felt confident I could do it using 1" PVC. Well, I hadn't anticipated 3/8" glass. So it barely works on two of my bulkheads (they leak a little bit... barely, but a little bit), but the other two are fine.

So then I realized that bulkheads weren't quite as expensive as I thought once I checked some sources other than Drs. Foster and Smith... lol. But by now I've only got 32mm holes, which means 1/2" bulkheads would fit perfectly. I thought they would be big enough, now I'm not so sure!

So anyway, thats why I got 1/2". Because the bulkheads would fit.

Brandon

 

[crumbletop]

Gotcha. One of the problems I find on RC is people often give you only partial information and you end up figuring out one of the key parts they should have told you through trial and error. Sounds like that happened to you with travis' stuff.

Anyway, 1/2" should be fine for the loclines. Keep a drain at 1" if possible.

RE the slow leak -- unless the hole has burrs sticking into the tank area or is too wide for the gasket, you shouldn't have any leaks. Make sure you have the gasket on the flange end and never rotate that end when you tighten things or the gasket will buckle slightly and leak.

 

[NeveSSL]

Well, Jack, the leaking bulkheads are yet another part of my misinformation... lol.

To finish the story, since my glass was 3/8", I had to take the larger half of the sink drain and cut it in half with an xacto and new blade... took quite a bit of patience and care... I was scared to death I was going to cut myself! Two of them worked, and the other two didn't, and I think the reason was bad plumbing. All of my drain plumbing was only supported by those bulkheads... DOH!

It was suggested to me to use 1/2" drains to help with the noise. It has since quietened up A LOT since some stuff has built up in the pipes, but is still a bit noisy. What particular reason do you have for 1" drains?

Needless to say, I've learned a lot from this tank. I learned a lot of theory from this site prior to building my tank, now I'm learning the rest of the story.


Thanks Jack! I really appreciate your help and input.

Brandon

 

[crumbletop]

:eek2: So you used a sink drain as a bulkhead? That's a new one for me. Be careful with your fingers. I almost cut one of mine off one time (with a saw). A $3 part is not worth the risk.

Re the drain. In general you'll get a quieter drain it it can easily handle the flow. 1/2" drains will have a lot more resistance and can handle a lot less flow than 1". Thus, you can more easily engineer a durso to keep the noise level down. IME, overflow noise comes from a few areas:

1) from the water spilling over into the overflow.
2) from the water + air going into the drain.
3) from the water in the pipe.
4) from the water + air entering the sump.
5) the amount of water you have running through the drain. (1000 gph will likely be noisier than 100 gph).

You can minimize 1 by having a drain enough to the spill-over point such that the water doesn't have far to fall. Durso standpipes minimize 2 by muffling the noise of the air and water flowing into the pipe. Larger diameter pipes will allow the water to flow more slowly (don't need to get a near-siphon going) that can lessen the noise within the pipes (3). For 4, there are many different strategies depending on sump design and how much noise you actually have. Lower flow can minimize 1, 2, 3, and 4.

I am not an expert on plumbing, but the above I think is about right. There may be other factors as well. If you have a lot of noise with 1" drains, that noise may be related more to the factors listed above than to pipe size.

 

[Fanof49ASU]

Giving Jack too much information at one time might be a bit overwhelming.....and he might not answer.

Just start a thread like......
"Why is my tank leaking?
Comments welcomed.

Thanks."

 

[crumbletop]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10655272#post10655272 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Fanof49ASU
Why is my tank leaking?
Comments welcomed.

Thanks.

The most common reason for a leaky tank is that it has water in it. A simple and effective solution is to remove all water from the tank. This can be done with a shop vac. Make sure you wear rubber boots.

 

[NeveSSL]

Jack... my bad again. I assume too much. :lol:

The way Travis recommends doing the bulkheads involves using a gasket made for drains that is 1 1/4", which means it fits around the edge of the threads on a 1" pipe.

I think what I'll do is try an "external" durso on it. Some people said they tried that and it worked fine. There's not enough room in my horizontal overflow for a durso.

I'm about to redo A LOT of stuff on my tank, including a smaller overflow (what in the WORLD was I thinking putting a 6" deep overflow on a 12.5" deep tank! BIG DOH! ).

Thanks for the general info on the drains. I am having to rethink everything right now so I may shoot some more specific questions your way soon.

I really appreciate it, Jack!

Brandon

 

[crumbletop]

My pleasure!

I would just use normal bulkheads. They only cost a few $. No sense in risking getting water all over your floor for a few bucks.

 

[NeveSSL]

Yeah, I've realized that now.

Lots of learning from this tank.

Thanks again Jack!

Brandon