# Plumbing



## imatrout (May 12, 2005)

Here's how Iplan to re-plumb my bottom drilled 150 gallon tank. The idea is to balace keeping stuff out of the tank with prevention of a major flood. Currently everything is hooked up in-line below the tank. Lots of fittings and risk below waterline. The pictures are of my proposed layout. Any suggestions?

Thanks all!


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## SnyperP (Dec 10, 2004)

Flooding shouldn't be too much of an issue since it is a closed loop system. Everything looks pretty good. I think you should also add a draining valve. Maybe something that connects to garden hose for easier maintance.


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## imatrout (May 12, 2005)

Thanks Snyp. 
Both the Cannister and Fluid Bed filters are Ocean Clears with garden hose drains (not on diagram)


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## stcyrwm (Apr 20, 2005)

You could always have a water alarm underneath as backup so if you did have a leak you'd be more likely to notice it before it caused a problem. Plumbingwise it all looks fine.....


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## There Be Whales Here (Sep 14, 2005)

You could add a check valve; that way the water can only flow in one direction.


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## TWood (Dec 9, 2004)

If you are using a typical centrifugal pump in the place where the main plumbing diagram says "pump" then you have placed a lot of restrictions in the intake side, unless the canister is perfectly tuned to move enough water through the fluidized bed filter, which isn't likely. Canisters are usually not able to force water through much restriction, so it may not supply enough water to the pump. Centrifugal pumps can be restricted on the output side, but typically don't have any restrictions on the input side. In other words, they don't suck well, but they do blow well, depending on the pump itself. I'd hook the "pump" to one set of intake/outflows, lose the fluidized bed filter, and hook the canister to a separate intake/outflow loop.

TW


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## imatrout (May 12, 2005)

TWood said:


> If you are using a typical centrifugal pump in the place where the main plumbing diagram says "pump" then you have placed a lot of restrictions in the intake side, unless the canister is perfectly tuned to move enough water through the fluidized bed filter, which isn't likely. Canisters are usually not able to force water through much restriction, so it may not supply enough water to the pump. Centrifugal pumps can be restricted on the output side, but typically don't have any restrictions on the input side. In other words, they don't suck well, but they do blow well, depending on the pump itself. I'd hook the "pump" to one set of intake/outflows, lose the fluidized bed filter, and hook the canister to a separate intake/outflow loop.
> 
> TW


Thanks Tim,

I seem to be getting really good flow rates, I forget the model, but this is driven by a fairly big "Little Giant" pump. I just added the fluidized bed filter to add additional bio filtration to the tank. All I had was the pleated filter in the canister (and the plants) and I though that was cutting it close. I've recently changed this to a planted Discus tank and wanted the water to be very clean. The idea of separating this into two closed loops has some merit. Assuming I have enough suction already, what would be the benefit of separating these into two loops?


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## TWood (Dec 9, 2004)

It's not a matter of suction, those pumps aren't designed that way. The pump 'expects' water to always be available at the intake. It doesn't 'want' to have to suck it in there. I understand you on the fluidized bed filter. I'd route the water from the tank directly to the Little Giant, then use it to pump through the fluidized bed, and then back to the tank with outputs set up in a way that pushes the water toward the intake to the canister filter. Then I'd have the canister on its own loop. 

I say that because I have my 90 gallon set up in a similar fashion and it works great. The outflows from my Little Giant are at the top-back of the tank so it rolls the water down the front glass and toward the back bottom of the tank. I made a perforated intake pipe across the back bottom for the canister that pulls in debris. Both are on separate loops and don't depend on each other.

TW (Tom, not Tim)

EDIT: Also, the placement of valves in your diagram makes no sense. You want unions and valves on each side of each piece of equipment that you will want to take out of service whenever you want to. In particular, on each side of the pumps and filters so you can service them without getting very wet.


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## imatrout (May 12, 2005)

Funny thing just happened. I turned off my filter for 20 minutes or so and when I turned it back on it burped a cloud of detrius out of the return. That seems impossible to me as as there's lots of filtration (cleaned last weekend) between the input and the return. I wonder if I'm getting some scum buildup in my CO2 reactor? It's last in line.. Hmmmmm... Any Ideas?


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## blue (Jul 5, 2005)

Check for grunge on the return tube post reactor. Mine builds up some brown fiber stuff that "burps" when the tube cycles from dry (filter off) to wet.


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## zeek (Jan 5, 2005)

I'd separate the accessory line in a way that you could remove or turn off one or the other accessory without interfering with the other.

You may want, for example, to remove the UV sterilizer from the system. Personally I don't run mine unless I need to, and I don't want water running through it when it's not in use. I'm concerned about the bacteria buildup on the glass (like in the hoses) over time.

You might try splitting the suction line, and placing valves around each item. 


Isaac


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## matthewburk (Sep 27, 2005)

I'm curious, what are the pressure readings on your filters. I have a similar setup, but the pump is before the filters becuase the water has to be pushed through them with quite a bit of pressure. In fact I tried using a 1262 eheim hobby pump and it just would not create enough pressure to push water through my 2 filters, or even 1 of them. I ended up getting an Iwaki high pressure pump to do the job.

Also as the filters start to restrict flow it is going to kill your pump, I'm really suprised it works at all with the pump after the filters since the only pressure you should be getting is from the depth of your water.


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## matthewburk (Sep 27, 2005)

imatrout said:


> Funny thing just happened. I turned off my filter for 20 minutes or so and when I turned it back on it burped a cloud of detrius out of the return. That seems impossible to me as as there's lots of filtration (cleaned last weekend) between the input and the return. I wonder if I'm getting some scum buildup in my CO2 reactor? It's last in line.. Hmmmmm... Any Ideas?


I use an empty ocean clear 317 as my reactor and it works great, just replace the pressure gauge with a co2 line. I have been running like this for 2 or 3 months and there is gunk in there. When I turn the pump on and off there is no issue with this stuff burping out. Don't know why it doesn't, but I see no reason it should since there can be no settling of gunk when the water stops flowing(since the flow is from top to bottom in the 317). I imagine in my setup this gunk continously dislodges and get returned to the tank in very small amounts and eventually makes it back to the filter.


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## imatrout (May 12, 2005)

That sounds kind of scary to me. What do you use to attach the co2 tubing to the pressure gauge hole? It seems like the water pressure from the Ocean Clear would blow off the tubing or push water into the solenoid...


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## matthewburk (Sep 27, 2005)

just a regular brass barb with the silicone tubing. I generate about 3psi in the filter and the tubing and barb are both rated for much higher. And I use a checkvalve just in case it would push water into the solenoid, however I ran it for about a month without a checkvalve with no problems.


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## imatrout (May 12, 2005)

do you screw the check valve directly into the hole for the pressure gauge ?


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## matthewburk (Sep 27, 2005)

no, the checkvalve is on the co2 line


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