How would you plumb this?

jvision · #1 05-07-2008, 11:00 PM

I'm wanting to set up my 90 gal in the next couple days. It has 2 x 1.5" drains in the bottom and 2 x .75" returns up top.

My 1st idea was to turn the 2 drains into a Herbie system, and return thru the top... but I was thinking that I'd only need 1 of the returns.
Now I'm thinking of doing a Herbie out of one of the top holes, and returning thru the other, and making the 1.5" holes a closed loop.
I've got extra glass to make an overflow box, and I have gobs of 1.5 and 3/4" piping, but what fittings will I need to make this all work? How do I set up the closed loop on the inside (think I can figure out how to do everything under the tank)?

Thanks, all!

untamed · #2 05-07-2008, 11:15 PM

If it were me...I would build the overflow box around the two bottom 1.5" holes. You need some way to skim from the surface, and the overflow box will do the trick.

You'll need both those drains to make the Herbie. (Well..that's the best way to do it) Put a gate valve under one, and put a standpipe on the other with a height just below the surface of the overflow box. Plumb the drain pipes so that they exit BELOW the water surface in the sump.

You'll have a pretty deep overflow box, so plan for quite a significant flow-back into the sump when the power goes out.

Use the top holes for the returns. If the flow isn't too large, you could put a SQWD in the returns to cycle the flow between the left return and the right return. Or, you could put those Hydor rotating nozzles on them. If you go with the SQWD idea...I can attest that they work pretty well, but plumb to make them easy to replace because they only last a year or two.

dsaundry · #3 05-07-2008, 11:21 PM

Agree, sounds good....As stated before make sure you account for the power failure issue.....

jvision · #4 05-08-2008, 04:55 PM

Has anyone done a Herbie w/o an overflow? I just think an overflow in the middle of the tank would take up so much space.

BC564 · #5 05-08-2008, 05:17 PM

If you dont want to drain the whole overflow....(power out condition)...then make one of your drains 6 " or whatever you want from the bottom....and the other one longer as previously stated......higher up .....

Put your valve on the lower one and Tee your longer one just below that valve as a emergency drain in case of blockage....

jvision · #6 05-08-2008, 05:26 PM

What I started thinking was have the main drain of the Herbie (side w. ball valve) about 2" from the top of the tank, and the back-up about 1" or less higher. Thoughts?

untamed · #7 05-08-2008, 09:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jvision

Has anyone done a Herbie w/o an overflow? I just think an overflow in the middle of the tank would take up so much space.

No...you can't really get the benefits of a Herbie without an overflow box. The exact thing that makes the Herbie silent is that it is not pulling any air into the drain. This also means that you aren't going to pull anything off of the surface. The surface of your display tank would form scum.

To remove the surface scum, you need to have the water fall into something. If it falls directly into a drain, that's noisy and no longer a Herbie.

I suppose you could adjust the primary Herbie drain such that the emergency drain was just coming into play. This would remove some of the surface water, but I doubt it would be very effective and you would always be adjusting the Herbie valve to get it just right.

Decorate the overflow with rock.

Lance · #8 05-08-2008, 10:45 PM

Like Untamed says: without an overflow the gunk builds up on the surface incredibly fast, depending on your bio-load. I ran my tank for 2 months with no overflow before I got my sump set up. At that time I only had a few fish and corals, and I had to bail the surface every day.