Plumbing through wall?

[aabjones888]

So I'm in the process of an addition to my house and am planning a tank upgrade also. I'm running pipe from living room through a 5' dead space to an adjacent fish room. My question is how big of a drain pipe do I need and how big of a return pipe? My tanks going to be somewhere around a 150gallon. And do I need two drains?

 

[glb]

So I'm in the process of an addition to my house and am planning a tank upgrade also. I'm running pipe from living room through a 5' dead space to an adjacent fish room. My question is how big of a drain pipe do I need and how big of a return pipe? My tanks going to be somewhere around a 150gallon. And do I need two drains?

I would look into overflows/returns for your size tank and see what size plumbing they use as a start. Good luck!

 

[Brew12]

I would look into overflows/returns for your size tank and see what size plumbing they use as a start. Good luck!

Personally, I would run a single 1 1/2" return and 3 x 1 1/2" drains. You obviously don't need that much for a 150g but it will keep you from having to redo the inwall plumbing if you upgrade to something bigger. The 3 drains will allow you to use a Bean Animal drain if you want.

 

[Radman73]

Personally, I would run a single 1 1/2" return and 3 x 1 1/2" drains. You obviously don't need that much for a 150g but it will keep you from having to redo the inwall plumbing if you upgrade to something bigger. The 3 drains will allow you to use a Bean Animal drain if you want.

+1. At the very least, 2 drains are needed in case one clogs.

If there are any cables or other pipes that run through those walls take pictures while drywall is off so you can refer to where they are when you go drilling through. Pay close attention to the height of the pipes as you ideally don't want water to have to flow up at all, though it will still work as long as the highest point of the run is still a decent bit lower than the top of the drain. It would severely hamper flow though.

 

[aabjones888]

Thanks for the replies. I didn't know if there was a standard size on inputs and returns for that size tank. I definitely want 2 drains, one for emergency and one standard. The drain will definitely be sloped down. I'll use the 1.5 for the return than but still stuck on the returns. I'm use to the smaller pumps that sit in the sump and just gotta pump like 5 feet to get back to the tank. I'm guessing I'll have to have an external pump?!? Another question is if I use 1.5 will that cut down on my flow?

 

[Brew12]

Thanks for the replies. I didn't know if there was a standard size on inputs and returns for that size tank. I definitely want 2 drains, one for emergency and one standard. The drain will definitely be sloped down. I'll use the 1.5 for the return than but still stuck on the returns. I'm use to the smaller pumps that sit in the sump and just gotta pump like 5 feet to get back to the tank. I'm guessing I'll have to have an external pump?!? Another question is if I use 1.5 will that cut down on my flow?

You will be fine with an internal pump. Horizontal distance doesn't matter nearly as much as vertical distance.

Put the 1.5" in the wall but reduce it to 1" or 3/4" at the pump and the tank. That way upgrading later is easier. No, the large pipe will not reduce flow. If anything it will improve it.

 

[aabjones888]

Thanks that helps out a lot!