Siphon break

[oldreefer76]

ok everyone suggested I drill a 1/8" hole in my return piping, so if we lose power it won't back siphon the tank into my sump, well I drilled the hole and it squirts water every where ........did I drill it in the wrong place?


The other thing is everyone told me my overflow could not drain more than my return could handle, partially true, the problem is my overflow was almost running dry and making tons of noise ......guess I need to put a ball valve on the overflow to even things out

The plus side though I think I am going to love the PM-Bullet1 the few minutes it was running I was very impressed with it

 

[crazyseany]

you have to make sure the holes are below the water line. you will get a little back syphon but not the full 3 inches that the return is underwater.
sean

 

[oldreefer76]

Doh had a Homer moment......I drilled in the wrong place

 

[mattyice]

well im glad to hear you are liking the PM bullet 1 skimmer

 

[oldreefer76]

I am sure I will love it even more when I correct my stupid mistakes , like not putting a ball or gate valve on a 900 gph overflow with 250 gph return

 

[itZme]

You really do not want to balance out the flow with a valve or you will eventually end up with water overflowing onto the floor when the drain is restricted a little by a snail, algae etc...

Unless you have a second drain that will work in case of emergency you really should not slow the drain's flow.

What kind of overflow box and standpipe are you using (Durso, Stockman) ? The standpipe should regulate where the water level stays in the overflow and will keep it from sucking a bunch of air and flushing like a toilet.

If you could post a pic or two it would be lots easier to help you get it ironed out.

 

[scottfarcuz]

I've never ran a HOB overflow, but Ive seen a few posts with complaints about them being that you need to be somewhat close to the flow rating (model depending) or they build up air over time which eventually slows them until they overflow the tank if not caught. That or restart after power outage issues always made me shy away from trying one.

I know some models are made to run aqualifter pumps at the top of the U tube to clear air, and restart them after an outage. Might be worth looking into?

You could try a bigger return. For a 55g I would just drill a drain into the back of the tank. Its cheaper, less worry, and it will run fine at that kind of flow.

 

[tmz]

As noted, I agree with standpipe instead of ball valve.
I run several hang on overflows. I strongly prefer predrilled internal overflows. With any overflow you rely on a siphon and water goes up hill. You need a relatively brisk flow to keep the siphon unblocked.
There are two basic types of external overflow boxes. The u tube type which have a removable tube about the diameter of large garden hose and the contiuous siphon type ( the siphon is built into the box structure often with a small hole on type to allow air to escape or for a vacuum pump to be attached.
I do not know it is called a continuous siphon overflow because it is anything but particularly with slower flow. I had several of these running and fixed them all after several floods bly placing them in a round container by the roas. Th u tube type is much more reliable but you still need brisk flow and you must keep the tube free from obstruction, Also if the tube cracks it will break siphon.

 

[oldreefer76]

It is a stock CPR overflow with the aqualifter pump and I was unable to balance it out without restricting it's output I could only keep about 1.5" of water in the box itself

I have it all shut down currently so a standpipe is a possibility, guess I will have to research them

I would have drilled the tank, but it was already up and running when I decided to upgrade

 

[tmz]

I don't think you will be happy with it in the long run. It needs more flow and even then the risk of flood due to siphon break is pretty high. Even a small buildup of coraline ,etc on the inside will restrict it and cause a break. I wish I could be more positive but I've had them fail repeatedly as have others .

 

[Cove Beach]

I've been there with the CPR. If you have the oppertunity to drill the tank, do it. My CPR unit is collecting dust as we speak. I wouldn't even think of selling it to someone. Due to aqua lifter failures my tank nearly overflowed 3 times. Mine is the 1200 gal model and i had ball valves on it like you were thinking of doing to match the return pumps ability. That part worked ok but the failure of the lifter pump is the dangerous part. I ended up with a Lifereef unit which is much more reliable, plus no electricity needed to make it work. I work in Elyria, if you want some help with your situation let me know.

 

[oldreefer76]

I guess I will start looking for a used lifereef in the near future as $$$ are real tight currently, until then though I may use a rio600 with the venturi instead of the aqualufter for the siphon