Plumbing/Overflow Advice

intarsiabox · #1 07-14-2009, 12:26 PM

A 1" pipe will slip into the bottom of a 1" bulkhead. Just use primer and PVC glue. If your bulkhead happens to be threaded internally on both ends then you will need an adaptor for it.

banditpowdercoat · #2 07-14-2009, 01:33 PM

I am running a c2c overflow and love it. Running about 700-800GPH with 1 1" drain spit to 2 bulkheads. I run Herbie style, with 3 1" bulkheads in my overflow. the 2 on the ends are T'd together to a common 1" drain into the sump, the middle 3rd one is the emergency overflow. Handles the flow nicely. And the surface skimming is awesome with the c2c. just a thin film flows over the wier.

Here's a back pic of the plumbing. you can see the overflow on the side of the tank. Its a full length, 7" wide piece siliconed at an angle for the overflow.

mike31154 · #3 07-14-2009, 03:25 PM

Curious as to why you took the back panel out of the aquarium? You mean you cut the silicone and removed an entire pane of glass?

SmallFry · #4 07-14-2009, 03:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mike31154

Curious as to why you took the back panel out of the aquarium? You mean you cut the silicone and removed an entire pane of glass?

Yes, that's right - the back panel was comprehensively smashed. No idea what happened to it, but given how tough the glass that remained was, it must've been one hell of a bang..

I guess I could've just stuck another piece on the inside of the old one, but I thought I might as well replace it. Just had a bit of a shock at the price of 8mm glass though, and the fact that it'll take 3 weeks to order in...

whatcaneyedo · #5 07-14-2009, 04:44 PM

+3 for a Herbie overflow

Another thing that helps is to use plenty of unions throughout your plumbings construction. That way if you ever have to take it apart to modify it or any other reason you dont have to cut it up with a hack saw...

Banditpowdercoat could we see a picture of the other side of your overflow too? It looks like something that I might copy for my next tank or if I get my present one drill a second time.

banditpowdercoat · #6 07-14-2009, 06:55 PM

I'm not home right now, but heres a pic of when I was siliconing the wier in place. The tank is on its back in this pic.

Here you can see it on the back. This was first fill, leak testing

SmallFry · #7 07-15-2009, 03:35 AM

Thanks for all the help everyone, I'm going to make the coast to coast on the inside like banditpowdercoat, because although it would be less obtrusive on the outside, to do that I would have to take a long thin section out of the back panel which is somewhat outside my comfort zone at the moment!

I notice that the Herbie style drain seems to be popular, I think I'll do something like that with a third emergency emergency drain because I'm paranoid (and the turbo snails seem to take delight in ending up in the weirdest/most impossible places). I figure that if I use 1.5" tube instead of 1" I should be able to cope with pretty much anything that's likely to happen. I hope!

I guess now I've got what I'm building sorted I'll have to do some head scratching and work out exactly how to build it..

Still not looking forward to drilling holes in the glass though!