Plumbing help needed

[chipmunkofdoom2]

It sounds like you're overthinking this a bit. When a bulkhead is called a 1" bulkhead, that means that it will accept standard 1" PVC plumbing, no more, no less. That doesn't mean the bulkhead's diameter is only 1", or that the threaded side has a diameter of 1". It just means that the bulkhead will accept 1" PVC plumbing. Since you already have holes in your tank, you need to determine the bulkhead size using the hole size.

First, measure the hole in your tank. Then, go to a site like Bulk Reef Supply and check out their bulkheads. They have diagrams that tell you how wide the bulkhead is on the threaded side. Your first post mentions you have 1.25" holes. If you look at the sizing chart, the 3/4" bulkhead has threads that are 1.33" wide, for example. These obviously won't fit in your 1.25" holes. If you look at the 1/2" bulkhead, the threads are only 1.06" wide. You'll also notice that the top of the bulkhead, what will sit inside the tank and form the seal with the glass, is 1.72" wide. This is wide enough that it won't fall through the tank. These are the bulkheads that will fit the holes currently in your tank.

That's about as complicated as it gets. Find your hole size, figure out which bulkheads fit in the hole, and the bulkhead will fit PVC to match its rating (1/2" bulkheads accept 1/2" PVC, 3/4" bulkheads accept 3/4" PVC, and so on). If you want to run larger diameter PVC, you will need to cut larger holes. Find the size bulkhead that corresponds to the PVC size you want (we'll use 1" bulkheads as an example). The 1" bulkhead has threads that are 1.65" wide. So, you'd need a hole at least that large to accommodate a 1" bulkhead (I'd personally shoot for a 1.75" hole for some wiggle room).

 

[Fishnerd7]

I'm definitely tracking what you are saying. Where I'm getting stuck is how small these holes are. I think I'm in disbelief that a 100 gallon tank was drilled to have 1/2 inch drain and returns. This is my first big tank. The holes just seem so small. The undertaking to drill larger holes makes me nervous. When looking under my tank as well there is two braces from the stand that are super close to the holes which may impede making larger holes. May have to modify the stand if I attempt bigger holes. So you think 1 inch is adequate for a 100 gallon? I did speak to another member who is running 3/4 inch on a 180 gallon. I was hoping for a lot of flow and use the DC pump and two returns for varying flow with NO powerheads. Thanks for your time and help. Sorry to sound like I was nuking this. Just in denial I may have to upgrade and take on a bigger project.

 

[chipmunkofdoom2]

1/2" does seem small, I'm with you there. If it was my 100 gallon tank, I would have gone with two holes with a much larger diameter, but that's just me.

This post on Reef Central suggests that 1/2" PVC on a drain can accommodate 140GPH of flow. If you have two holes in each corner for a total of 4 bulkheads, that's 140GPH x 4 = 560GPH. At the very most, you'd be able to get 5x turnover through your sump per hour. I personally would want the ability to have more, but you possibly could get by with 500GPH total.

If it was my tank, I would enlarge a few of the holes, or perhaps drill another larger one. But I'll freely admit I haven't worked with a tank this large before. Someone with more experience with large tanks and multiple bulkheads/drains should chime in.

EDIT: Just another thought.. have you got out the tape measure and actually measured the holes to confirm they are 1.25" wide? Maybe the previous owner thought the holes were only 1.25" wide, but they're actually larger. If you could fit at least 3/4 bulkheads, that would be a major increase in flow, and that would likely be more than enough.

 

[Fishnerd7]

During the measuring process I'm using a tape measure on a round hole which I accounted for maybe an 1/8 inch since end of tape is not flush. Mistake number one... I bought 1 11/4 inch electrical conduit bulkheads thinking I'd make my own. Those threads fit just fine. After reconsidering the conduit DIY idea I reverted back to look at the bulkheads and figured I'd measure the outside of the threads. It looks like they are 1 5/8 inch. Fingers crossed and knocking on wood I'm going to buy one 3/4 inch bulkhead with that thread diameter on Thursday to try out. When you talk about 500 GPH is this called turnover? I'm reading the more the better which I assume means better flow for coral growth down the road. Within reason of course too. I'm aware I have to balance it so I'm not creating hurricane conditions directly on the coral.

 

[prsnlty]

I'm definitely tracking what you are saying. Where I'm getting stuck is how small these holes are. I think I'm in disbelief that a 100 gallon tank was drilled to have 1/2 inch drain and returns. This is my first big tank. The holes just seem so small. The undertaking to drill larger holes makes me nervous. When looking under my tank as well there is two braces from the stand that are super close to the holes which may impede making larger holes. May have to modify the stand if I attempt bigger holes. So you think 1 inch is adequate for a 100 gallon? I did speak to another member who is running 3/4 inch on a 180 gallon. I was hoping for a lot of flow and use the DC pump and two returns for varying flow with NO powerheads. Thanks for your time and help. Sorry to sound like I was nuking this. Just in denial I may have to upgrade and take on a bigger project.

We had 4 3/4" when we purchased the tank. It was used and apparently they used all those holes as loop system bulkheads. We closed three of them off and are using one for the far end return since this is a peninsula and we drilled new holes for the overflows to accommodate one inch pipes. We also have two more returns at 3/4 inch. We're running a dc12000 return pump with a manifold for 4 reactors and 1 uv. We have roughly 7-8x turnover and that's good considering the water is spending more time in the reactors and running through the UV and skimmer. The more time in the sump the cleaner of the water returning on the other end. You can make up for your flow with powerheads in the DT if you feel it's not enough but you do need no less than five times the turnover

 

[Fishnerd7]

A lot of experienced jargon there Jackie. I'm intimidated to ask about a few of what you just said without first researching on my own so I don't sound stupid. The 5 times turnover validates what chipmunkofdoom (above) was saying. Awesome. I think I'm finally making ground here to progress. I know my next big purchase is the DC pump. As any typical newbie I'm looking at Ecoteck M1 for the flow control etc. You mentioned 12000dc pump. Any suggestions or recommendations if I end up with 3/4 inch piping. To recap..this would be 100gallons, dual corner overflow and dual returns all 3/4 inch. Thanks Jackie.

 

[prsnlty]

A lot of experienced jargon there Jackie. I'm intimidated to ask about a few of what you just said without first researching on my own so I don't sound stupid. The 5 times turnover validates what chipmunkofdoom (above) was saying. Awesome. I think I'm finally making ground here to progress. I know my next big purchase is the DC pump. As any typical newbie I'm looking at Ecoteck M1 for the flow control etc. You mentioned 12000dc pump. Any suggestions or recommendations if I end up with 3/4 inch piping. To recap..this would be 100gallons, dual corner overflow and dual returns all 3/4 inch. Thanks Jackie.

Lol. (We were all new once )

You could get a dc12000 but make sure it is controllable so you can dial it up or down to find the sweet spot that will match your overflows draining capacity. Once you start up your system you're going to need to watch it and make sure that the water level inside the DT isn't Rising faster than it can drain. If it is then you dial it down and then watch it for an hour to make sure it's not rising again and that it staying level. I hope that makes sense.

 

[prsnlty]

I'm using a Jebao dct12000 submersible (In sump) return pump. Totally silent, cool - no complaints. I have 4 tanks and 3 of the Jebao model pumps in use.

 

[Fishnerd7]

Begging for your patience here but taking advantage of your knowledge. DT? When i finally get this thing filled with water I'm dialing it in with gate valves on the drains and returns right? I'm assuming separate valves for the drains and one valve to control both returns for consistent even flow? By doing this I'm managing the flow through the sump and aquarium watching I don't over flow one or either right? Did I sound smart...modify my knowledge if I'm tracking or need adjustments. ha ha.

 

[prsnlty]

DT= display tank

Yes or no... depends on the pumps you use as far as water control goes. The pump I use has a controller that comes with it. With that controller I can control how much flow. I can also turn it off for feed mode. You will want gate or ball valves throughout your system anyway in case you need to shut something down or change something out.

 

[prsnlty]

But yes you are correct otherwise

 

[JoshH]

This is taking over thinking to a whole new level lol. The chart I posted shows you the bulkhead sizes and there hole sizes to go along with them If you have a hole in glass that is 1 1/4" in diameter. looking at the chart and finding the correct 1 1/4" hole size you can see only a 1/2" bulkhead fitting will fit in that hole. This difference in size is to accommodate the thickness of the wall and thread of the bulkhead. therefor only 1/2" pipe is all you can use for the bulkhead portion, plain and simple. If you desire a larger size pipe you have a couple options, either in drilling the holes larger or using adapters. drilling larger holes would obviously be ideal as personally I feel 1/2" is a little small especially for the drains. A little side tip, if you want the best exact way to measure the diameter of the hole, pull your tape out and start measuring the hole at the 10" mark on one side, this gets the tape flush with the surface on both sides of the hole.

 

[prsnlty]

He remeasured and says it's 1 5/8 and ordered a 3/4 bulkhead to be sure it fits.

 

[JoshH]

ah didn't see all that lol Well that all makes more sense anyway 1/2" plumbing on a 100 gal seemed a little small to me too

 

[Fishnerd7]

Josh. Appreciate it. I may have been wrong on the 1/2 inch. I'm on assignment away from tank right now but before I left I measured bulkheads from the conduit fittings I had and they are bigger than my measurements I took under tank. I might be looking at 3/4 inch. I'll know more tomorrow once I get outta here. This bit of downtime gives me direction later so I know what I'm looking at. Some of this is difficult because I only see pictures of these things I've never seen before or had my hands on. I have one LFS near me but they are so small they don't have bulkheads and their tanks are so modified and difficult to see what they use.
Appreciate the knowledge. I'll keep you all posted on the fittings. Thanks for following. In a few days I've gained more through this site than youtube. Thanks for the mentoring here folks.

 

[prsnlty]

Josh. Appreciate it. I may have been wrong on the 1/2 inch. I'm on assignment away from tank right now but before I left I measured bulkheads from the conduit fittings I had and they are bigger than my measurements I took under tank. I might be looking at 3/4 inch. I'll know more tomorrow once I get outta here. This bit of downtime gives me direction later so I know what I'm looking at. Some of this is difficult because I only see pictures of these things I've never seen before or had my hands on. I have one LFS near me but they are so small they don't have bulkheads and their tanks are so modified and difficult to see what they use.
Appreciate the knowledge. I'll keep you all posted on the fittings. Thanks for following. In a few days I've gained more through this site than youtube. Thanks for the mentoring here folks.

Anytime, that's what we're all about never be afraid to ask what you might perceive as a dumb question cuz I guarantee it's been asked many times before. We were all newbies once too [emoji12] I've been doing this for nearly 23 years I'm still learn something new everyday!

 

[JoshH]

I'm sorry I stopped reading after you said you were having difficulty measuring the hole size and went from there, that was my mistake. 3/4" bulkheads whether they are schedule 40 or 80 will fit that hole so you're definitely set there. And we have all been there, especially me, looking at something on the Internet is very different than holding it in your hands, found that out the hard way when looking for gate valves for my set up. We all do enjoy helping out and I hope your project is smooth sailing from here on out. Definitely keep us posted, do you have a build thread yet???

 

[DaveMorris]

I would stay away from electrical conduit fittings. They are not designed to be used as a bulkhead in a fish tank. Stick with real bulkhead fittings acquired from someone selling them as such. Also, you mentioned tuning in your returns and drains using valves. You need to get some real advice with this idea. I would never put a valve on the return. Either use a controllable pump or design the drain system to handle the flow that you pump puts out unrestricted. A lot of pumps will not like being throttled back with a valve. On the drains, you only use a valve when you are doing a drain system such as a Herbie style or Bean Animal style drain. Both of those still utilize at least one drain line that is always fully open.

 

[prsnlty]

I would stay away from electrical conduit fittings. They are not designed to be used as a bulkhead in a fish tank. Stick with real bulkhead fittings acquired from someone selling them as such. Also, you mentioned tuning in your returns and drains using valves. You need to get some real advice with this idea. I would never put a valve on the return. Either use a controllable pump or design the drain system to handle the flow that you pump puts out unrestricted. A lot of pumps will not like being throttled back with a valve. On the drains, you only use a valve when you are doing a drain system such as a Herbie style or Bean Animal style drain. Both of those still utilize at least one drain line that is always fully open.

+1 I have ball valves on the manifold to close it off when media in the reactors need to be changed and to adjust the flow to them. I also have ball valves on my drains in case of emergency and I have to shut them off. And since I have 3 returns I have ball valves on each one of them to adjust which one gets more or less flow than another. In this situation you could also use gate valves. But you do not want to slow your return pump itself. Plus several unions to disconnect my pipes in case I have to pull my sump.

 

[Fishnerd7]

Ok..this is huge. I'm glad I said this out loud. I'm re-drawing my configuration. I watched a new video of guy who converted his dual overflows into a herbie and he was dialing in all his valves to get the right flow through his lines. How do you control the flow through the sump so you don't get too much drain and overflow? Now here is another patient moment...I've never had a DC pump in my hands either so when you say control I might not be aware of how much control we are talking about and how fast I can control this. I'm picturing me lighting this off for the first time and it's like flushing a clogged toilet only instead of using a plunger to get the flow down I'm adjusting these valves. How do you manage this? Again I searched many videos for this with no luck.