overflow plumbing

[lockrookie]

what size of bulkhead/ overflow plumbing should i be drilling for my 180 i plan on two bulkhead should 1" bulkheads be enough or should i go bigger my return will be 3/4 and aprox 1800gph flow

[WindowMaker]

If you need to pull 1800 GPH, you should go with a couple of 1.5's this allows for failsafe if one clogs for some reason.

If you are pushing 1800gph at 3/4" line, it will be powerful enough to cut drywall. or stir the crap out of your tank. I suspect you will run nowhere near that with 3/4". what pump are you using? Most pumps 900 and up should be using 1.5" for their return line.

[Nano]

I think reef central has a thing for this explaining the max gph in comparison to the diameter of pipe you use

[WindowMaker]

I think reef central has a thing for this explaining the max gph in comparison to the diameter of pipe you use

you mean this one?

http://www.reefcentral.com/index.php/head-loss-calculator

very useful tool!

[Nano]

thats part of it yes, but I cant remember the other thing I'm thinking of, now my numbers are going to be inaccurate here, but I read something about the diameter having a max amount of gph. so say you have 1" pipe, (again Im not accurate here) with one inch pipe you could max out at 600ghp like that would be the maximum amount of water that could pass through in an hour. but again I dont think thats the accurate number.

[lockrookie]

with head loss/ 90 degree turns and t's as well im plumbing the return in an unconventional manner i will be lucky to get 1300 gph out of the pump maybe less basically im doubling what i currently running on a 90g tank. plus using the return to reduce amount of powerheads inside tank if i can get enough flow throughout the tank without adding power heads i will be a very happy camper. my biggest concern at this time is the overflow plumbing and i think i better return the parts i picked up and go bigger.. ill keep the bulkheads i bought for another project..... but ill return the shedule 40 stuff on tuesday

[WindowMaker]

have you decided what style of overflow you will be using?

[Nano]

my pump is moving about 350gph with head loss, plus 2 250gph koralia so what 900gph. in a 35g I think ive got lots of flow, in fact I might run my pump on 3/4 or 1/2 power.

1300+ powerheads I think your ok.

[lockrookie]

i dont know the name of the style of piping all i know is i used 1'1/4 on my 50 with one pipe and its super quiet. my brain is over thinking everything but im trying to purchace stuff so once i have my new front pane of glass and eurobracing i can just go once i have the plumbing on hand and the drill bits ordered for the proper size. as far as tthe return plumbing it will be split off to 4 outlets pointed in different directions and difused by live rock at different heights... i wish i could draw out what i am doingbut im notthat talented lol but if you look at my 50g build you will see what i did there and get an idea what im aiming for.

[lockrookie]

i guess its like the herbie/ durso system but i built it with abs pipe and drilled a hole ontop ofa threded cap. it works and i quiet and thats all i care about. other than making sure i have enough for the flow.

[Nano]

I did a durso as well, very quiet. Just have to find a non threaded cap. But that's panning out to be a wild goose chase.

[lockrookie]

the only downside tome using abs pipe is that i have to sylicone the pipeto the glass which willmake it vry difficult for testing purposes.. maybe i shoudl just use 1"1\2 ...dang it i think i need to drink on it maybe lol

[Lampshade]

I had a duroso and ended up changing to herbie. If you are going to be pushing 1800gph through your sump you will need a very good bubble trap to catch the micro bubbles from a duroso. With water moving through your sump that fast you'll end up seeing a lot back in the DT. I would suggest going herbie if you can with 2x1.5" returns. It's always easy to decrease the drain size with an adapter, but once your tanks running you can't really increase it.

I would also suggest going flexible hose for your return, saves on plumbing parts in the end, cuts noise down greatly, and also increases flow by a lot without having 90's in there.

[lockrookie]

I had a duroso and ended up changing to herbie. If you are going to be pushing 1800gph through your sump you will need a very good bubble trap to catch the micro bubbles from a duroso. With water moving through your sump that fast you'll end up seeing a lot back in the DT. I would suggest going herbie if you can with 2x1.5" returns. It's always easy to decrease the drain size with an adapter, but once your tanks running you can't really increase it.

I would also suggest going flexible hose for your return, saves on plumbing parts in the end, cuts noise down greatly, and also increases flow by a lot without having 90's in there.


you make a good point on sump flow ive been concentrating on flow within the tank and forgetting the sump and skimmer capabilities. i have to re think this again and maybe approach this another way. :frusty:

as far as flex tubing i cannot use this tank side but will have a chunk sump side to reduce vibration. the sump itself will be sitting on a foam pad to also reduce vibration