Plumber advice

[pszemol]

Hi, I am looking for materials to build a closed loop in a new tank.
I was thinking about purchasing black 1" PVC pipe and drill holes in it. I know it will be uncommon and expensive, so I would like to use it only where I need it - all other fittings, not submerged, would have to come from a regular Home Depot / Lowe's etc.
I have found 1" 4' long black pipe made of UV-Resistant PVC which should be good for fish but since I do not have experience in plumbing I am not sure if I can match couplings, fittings and other pieces from white house plumbing parts.

Could you please check part number 5066K15 at http://www.mcmaster.com/ and advice what matching parts should I look for in Home Depot? The diameters look strange, like the pipe was very thick walled...

Any other source of cheaper black PVC pipes/fittings ?

 

[stinkyfish]

as long as you stick w/ sch. 40 and sch. 80 pvc pipe and fittings you can mix and match. the o.d. remains the same it's the i.d. that changes. stay away from cpvc because it requires a different type of glue. buy yourself a pvc pipe cutter. they make nice clean square cuts. also be sure to file a small bevel on the end of your pipe before glueing, this will help to make leak free connections. good luck w/ your project.

 

[SDguy]

I just turned on my CL. What parts do you want submerged? The only parts I needed black were the lockline fittings on all the outlets of the perimeter return.

 

[pszemol]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6885219#post6885219 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by SDguy
I just turned on my CL. What parts do you want submerged? The only parts I needed black were the lockline fittings on all the outlets of the perimeter return.

I was thinking about the intake pipe with holes drilled in it. Also, first elbow - not sure yet if I use 90' or 45' elbow. Still undecided on the project. Just looking for source of parts and some inspiration

 

[SDguy]

Well, here's what mine looks like. I have one 1.5" intake in the back upper left of the tank. This feeds directly to a sequence hammerhead mounted vertically in the stand. The water is then pumped back up to a perimeter manifold, with 10 outlets using various lockline fittings.

Here's the manifold

Here it is with water. Note that once the canopy is on, only the black lockline nozzles will be visible. A black background on the tank will eventually hide external pipes also.

 

[pszemol]

Cool looking plumbing

How do you plan hiding pipes in the overflow box ?
Have you made this overflow box yourself ?

 

[toothman]

That is impressive.

 

[SDguy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6885557#post6885557 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pszemol
Cool looking plumbing

How do you plan hiding pipes in the overflow box ?
Have you made this overflow box yourself ?

Thanks. The tank was built with the overflow. Actually, the tank manufacturer provided a black acrylic overflow cover to hide the pipes. Once it';s all done, the only things you will see inside the tank are the outlet nozzles and the black intake strainer.

 

[teo241]

i'm sure you already thought of this, but are you going to use some sort of screen over your closed loop intake? don't want to suck a fish or snail through your impeller.

 

[SDguy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6885625#post6885625 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by teo241
i'm sure you already thought of this, but are you going to use some sort of screen over your closed loop intake? don't want to suck a fish or snail through your impeller.

Actually there is a screen on the intake, but I had to cover it because a votex was forming sucking in air. Will remove the elbow eventually. Thinking about what to put over the intake to block the vortex formation. Probably something that coral can eventually grow on/cover.

 

[stingers81]

cool lookin plumbing...what size is your intake and how much gph are you planning of having go through it?

 

[SDguy]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6885442#post6885442 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by SDguy
Well, here's what mine looks like. I have one 1.5" intake in the back upper left of the tank. This feeds directly to a sequence hammerhead mounted vertically in the stand. The water is then pumped back up to a perimeter manifold, with 10 outlets using various lockline fittings.

The hammerhead is rated at 5800gph

Sorry pszemol, didn't mean to hijack your thread. Any other questions about my system can be posted here