Something to think about

[Acro]

Hello All,

This is a diy thread but feel it would be best put here. The other day I was surfing RC and came across this thread.http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=8ab18918a52e43344e84d6c59c644a4f&threadid=169680&highlight=mutagen Now this was IMO one of the nicest sps systems I've seen through photo's. It's photographed in Reef Secrets by Nilsen & Fossa. Also in a upcoming book by Mike Paletta. Unfortunately this tank is no longer do to the mishap mentioned in the thread. I beleive Eric Borneman has also had this happen in the past. Murphy's Law is alive and well in this hobby and i only want to pass on a possible safety system for these FW float top off system many run. If you go to your local home repair center and buy the following. One sprinkler soliniod. Mine is 3/4 and I reduced it to 3/8th for the ro nylon line. You'll also need a ac adapter and a timer. So what I did was run the soliniod inline from my house main to the ro then to my tank via a float valve. I hooked up the ac adapter to the timer and only leave the timer set to be 15 to 30 min longer then top up is needed. This way if something every leaked one would only get the amount of FW the timer was over set for. Not the 24/7 you'd get with out. You sump will flucuate with this method do to FW only being added at a set time. I like this approach as it gives one a safety if the float fails you still have the soliniod and vis versa.
http://members.shaw.ca/jcross3/soliniod.JPG

[Aquattro]

Jamie, thanks fo rthe post. Hopefully it can save someone from a similar disaster.
Tracy had an awesome tank....makes you sick to hear stuff like that!!

[bongy]

Hi Jamie,

This is something I was concerned with when I am setting up a Kent flow valve for my tank. My solution is to put a drip valve before the float valve so even if the float valve was stuck open, the FW will still be limited. For example, I know my tank won't evaporate more than 1 drops per second, therefore, I set the drip valve to that flow before connecting that to the float valve. The idea is similar to yours but it is a bit cheaper as the valve only costs couple of bucks.

Thanks for bringing this issue out to our attention.

Bongy

[Acro]

Bongy, Sounds like a good idea as well. How much pressure is your water in producing? Also what valve are you using? The drip valves I've used don't seem to work well with too much pressure.(leaks) I don't know if I'd trust one that is hooked up to and endless supply of water. Just thinking out loud. With the soliniod in the picture it wouldn't matter pretty much anything could go wrong past the soliniod and water would only be on for the set time like 1hr not 24/7. Now someone with a 10 gpd ro unit and something fails thats only 10 per day added were ever the problem was. Either to the floor or the tank. Now some one with a 100gpd ro unit your talking alot more water. Plus consided the fact that something always happens when your not home. Like gone camping for the weekend or holidays for a week. Thats some serious water issues to come home to. Like the thread says "Something to think about" For those with no back up sleep tight :eek:

[bongy]

Hi Jamie,

My valve is the "John Guest" valve that you find in home depot. It connects to the tube using 'compression fitting?' Forgot the term; it's the same connector for ice maker's filter, etc. I think the normal irrigation valve will probably not be a good idea under pressure. I am not sure the pressure of my water intake.

Bongy

[Acro]

Ah yes that sounds better :smile: