Reef Pilot
05-23-2015, 02:31 PM
A few days ago, noticed some wetness at the back of the downstairs tank and on the floor. Where is this water coming from!!?? Turns out one my rear overflow bulkheads started to leak. How could this be, I thought? This tank has been running for 4 years now.
Because the tank and overflow is close to the wall adjacent to my sump room, the overflow bulkhead was not accessible without moving the tank. So I decided to cut out some more wall board from the sump room side to try and access it. I was finally able to get my hand in there, and to my surprise was able to turn the big bulkhead nut by hand. The leak stopped and I was able to further tighten it by a quarter turn just by hand.
I still remember installing the bulkheads years ago, and was careful not to over tighten them for fear of cracking the glass. I guess I was a little too careful. But why did it take this long for a leak to start? Does the rubber gasket on the inside compress with age? With our recent warm spell, the tank water was a little warmer, so maybe that had something to do with it?
Anyway, luckily, we were at home (wife actually spotted the problem first), and was able to fix it before any damage. But could have been a real disaster with our floors if this had gone on for days...
Then just yesterday, I pulled another real boner. I still can't believe I did this. I was setting up my DIY chiller and removed a spare solenoid water switch from my currently not in use 2nd sump. But I forgot that the line to the solenoid was still live with water connected to my ATO for my main sump. When I removed it, there was no water gush, because as it happened, I was also filling my water change barrel and there was no pressure in the line. So did not notice my mistake then.
But a few hours later after the water change barrels were full, I came down to the sump room and noticed water on the floor. Again, I thought, a leak somewhere!!?? What kind of luck is this!? Then I saw the water dribbling out of that tube, and I knew what happened... Luckily, my sump room floor is just plain cement, and was able to mop up the water easily with a few towels. And put a fan there to dry everything up.
Well, they say bad luck happens in threes,... haha? So I guess I better watch out the next few days...
Because the tank and overflow is close to the wall adjacent to my sump room, the overflow bulkhead was not accessible without moving the tank. So I decided to cut out some more wall board from the sump room side to try and access it. I was finally able to get my hand in there, and to my surprise was able to turn the big bulkhead nut by hand. The leak stopped and I was able to further tighten it by a quarter turn just by hand.
I still remember installing the bulkheads years ago, and was careful not to over tighten them for fear of cracking the glass. I guess I was a little too careful. But why did it take this long for a leak to start? Does the rubber gasket on the inside compress with age? With our recent warm spell, the tank water was a little warmer, so maybe that had something to do with it?
Anyway, luckily, we were at home (wife actually spotted the problem first), and was able to fix it before any damage. But could have been a real disaster with our floors if this had gone on for days...
Then just yesterday, I pulled another real boner. I still can't believe I did this. I was setting up my DIY chiller and removed a spare solenoid water switch from my currently not in use 2nd sump. But I forgot that the line to the solenoid was still live with water connected to my ATO for my main sump. When I removed it, there was no water gush, because as it happened, I was also filling my water change barrel and there was no pressure in the line. So did not notice my mistake then.
But a few hours later after the water change barrels were full, I came down to the sump room and noticed water on the floor. Again, I thought, a leak somewhere!!?? What kind of luck is this!? Then I saw the water dribbling out of that tube, and I knew what happened... Luckily, my sump room floor is just plain cement, and was able to mop up the water easily with a few towels. And put a fan there to dry everything up.
Well, they say bad luck happens in threes,... haha? So I guess I better watch out the next few days...