Anyone using a DIY pipe overflow?

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by nanomano

To my knowledge it there is a power outage it will drain to a point and stop, like any overflow, and in terms of getting clogged, I think it could happen, but could be easily cleaned with a brush. if I wasnt going drilled this is the one I would use personally

That elbow at the end with the open end up (not shown in my pic) will kick in if the overflow slots get plugged. And yes, with a power outage it can only drain down to the level of your lowest slots. And it can't drain below that T at the back either.

Like I said, I tested it extensively, and could not think of a scenario where it could fail. Just make sure everything outside of the water is properly glued and airtight.

Of course the absolute best is a drilled tank, but if for some reason you can't drill it, or don't want to, this definitely works.

[daniella3d]

I don't understand this design. Do you have an exemple in pics?

So I guess the only disaster scenario is if air gets inside and it lose syphon? then it wont work and the water coming from the sump is going to overflow the tank. I guess putting the pump high enough so not as much water can be sucked if it overflow is a good practice

Looks great anyway. on a 15 gallons nano I don't want to drill or put anything in the tank beside the pump and that overflow pipe. It really look good with only these.

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

That elbow at the end with the open end up (not shown in my pic) will kick in if the overflow slots get plugged.

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by daniella3d

I don't understand this design. Do you have an exemple in pics?

So I guess the only disaster scenario is if air gets inside and it lose syphon? then it wont work and the water coming from the sump is going to overflow the tank. I guess putting the pump high enough so not as much water can be sucked if it overflow is a good practice

Looks great anyway. on a 15 gallons nano I don't want to drill or put anything in the tank beside the pump and that overflow pipe. It really look good with only these.

OK, I took another pic, this time with the elbow in place of the cap at the end of the slotted overflow tube. You can cut the top of the elbow to get the 2nd level emergency height to whatever you want.

It doesn't matter where you place your return pump. It is the overflow design itself that regulates the water level in your tank. In my case I actually was using a canister filter, and just stuck the input hose into my sump, with the airline plumbed into the intake side. This way I could switch the input to either my tank and use it as a QT, or to the sump and use the tank as a refugium. Many ways to do it. As long as the siphon airline is connected to the intake side of the return pump, you can't go wrong.

[mike31154]

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

OK, I took another pic, this time with the elbow in place of the cap at the end of the slotted overflow tube. You can cut the top of the elbow to get the 2nd level emergency height to whatever you want.

It doesn't matter where you place your return pump. It is the overflow design itself that regulates the water level in your tank. In my case I actually was using a canister filter, and just stuck the input hose into my sump, with the airline plumbed into the intake side. This way I could switch the input to either my tank and use it as a QT, or to the sump and use the tank as a refugium. Many ways to do it. As long as the siphon airline is connected to the intake side of the return pump, you can't go wrong.

I like this design with the slotted tube & elbow as emergency. Was thinking it could even be modified by having two emergency drains. The elbow at the end of the slotted tube looks good, but what if you were to replace the 90 that the slotted tube is plumbed to with a Tee? That way the open end of the Tee would be your emergency. Might be better in case the slotted tube gets plugged internally. In that scenario, your elbow at the end of the slotted tube wouldn't help. Anyhow, you could do both & have double protection.

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by mike31154

I like this design with the slotted tube & elbow as emergency. Was thinking it could even be modified by having two emergency drains. The elbow at the end of the slotted tube looks good, but what if you were to replace the 90 that the slotted tube is plumbed to with a Tee? That way the open end of the Tee would be your emergency. Might be better in case the slotted tube gets plugged internally. In that scenario, your elbow at the end of the slotted tube wouldn't help. Anyhow, you could do both & have double protection.

Yes, Mike, a T at the beginning of the slotted tube is even better and I would just put the cap back on the end. You really need only one emergency, as it is big enough to handle any flow that could go through the slots. I would just have a little screen cap or something over it to prevent fish from jumping in.

The beauty, too, of this design, is that the tank side plumbing does not need to be glued, and you can keep making adjustments to fit the tank until you are satisfied with the design.

When I was actually using this overflow as a refugium, I only had the slots (no emergency elbow) and macro algae, chaeto, caulerpa, etc, would collect there, but it never came close to plugging. The slots allow a lot of flow, and as the water rises, more slot area becomes available on the pipe. But I did keep an eye on it, and was planning to add that elbow on the end if necessary.

[mike31154]

While we're on the subject of modifying designs, for adjusting overflow tube height you could add a 'slip union' to the tubing. Here's a picture of my skimmer with one of these unions incorporated into the return line. It's just above the ball valve used to regulate water column height in the skimmer. Using one of these unions will enable adjustment in the neighbourhood of 3 inches on the overflow. Sufficient for most applications.

[Reef Pilot]

Yeah, if you wanted to get real fancy, a slip union would help. But like I said, the inside tank plumbing isn't glued, so some room for adjustment up and down anyway. I still have a good portion of a 20' PVC pipe left over, so no big deal cutting new pieces.

I see you like DIY stuff, too. Good job...

I am setting up another 140g tank downstairs, and trying to figure out all plumbing in my sump room. My current 100g DT is upstairs. I will share the same sump initially, but then will set up another sump into this already tight room. Never ends...

[daniella3d]

My worries were more in case the main pipe would get clogged, lets say if a fish manage to get inside. I guess this is very unlikely anyway. In that case that the main pipe would be clogged inside, no emergency elbow would help. This is why the design with 2 overflow is a bit safer I tought.

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

Yes, Mike, a T at the beginning of the slotted tube is even better and I would just put the cap back on the end. You really need only one emergency, as it is big enough to handle any flow that could go through the slots. I would just have a little screen cap or something over it to prevent fish from jumping in.

The beauty, too, of this design, is that the tank side plumbing does not need to be glued, and you can keep making adjustments to fit the tank until you are satisfied with the design.

When I was actually using this overflow as a refugium, I only had the slots (no emergency elbow) and macro algae, chaeto, caulerpa, etc, would collect there, but it never came close to plugging. The slots allow a lot of flow, and as the water rises, more slot area becomes available on the pipe. But I did keep an eye on it, and was planning to add that elbow on the end if necessary.

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by daniella3d

My worries were more in case the main pipe would get clogged, lets say if a fish manage to get inside. I guess this is very unlikely anyway. In that case that the main pipe would be clogged inside, no emergency elbow would help. This is why the design with 2 overflow is a bit safer I tought.

That's why I went with the slotted pipe. No fish could get through that. And even your emergency opening can be covered with a slotted cap or something so that a fish can't jump in.

But your design there would work, too, with the 2 pipes. I just think it is a little overkill.

[intarsiabox]

Originally Posted by daniella3d

My worries were more in case the main pipe would get clogged, lets say if a fish manage to get inside. I guess this is very unlikely anyway. In that case that the main pipe would be clogged inside, no emergency elbow would help. This is why the design with 2 overflow is a bit safer I tought.

In my previous tank I had 2 fish that seemed to just love going for a ride down the overflow pipe and into the sump. At least twice a week I had to net them out of the sump. I used and still use 1 1/2" drain lines with no valves on them so almost any fish I keep will pass through without getting stuck. The pipe is a little larger than needed and you can hear the water going down the pipe a little but the only noisy part is the sound of the air bubbles breaking at the surface of my sump. I found a neat little design that gets rid of most of the air in the pipe before the water discharges into the sump and now it is pretty darn quiet.