filtration overflow question..

[pinoysport]

So lets say your on one centralized sump system with holes drilled in tanks for the over flow. What if the power goes out and the pump stops working? is there something you can put on on the pvc or the hose to stop the tank from draining if the pump stops?

Thanks..

[discussmith]

Of course the proper design of a sump system is that the sump volume is designed large enough to handle all the overflow of tanks should the pump stop. If one has so many tanks on a big central sump that it just can't possibly handle all the overflow the only solutions are to drill a high drain in the sump that if water reaches that level it runs into a floor drain or to a line that runs outside. Then when the pump is repaired and restarted that lost water would have to be replaced. If that's not possible the only other solution is a big float valve on a single main return line that shuts itself off when the water reaches that level, but it would have to be a large enough valve to handle the normal return flow from all the tanks when the pump is running and the sump would have to have room for a large float ball.

[roundfishross]

they also make inline check vales in pvc

[foreese]

I have three tanks on a central sump. My tanks are drilled low and have a stand pipe's high in the tanks, if the pump stops each tank will drain 1-3 gallons each to the sump. I have more than enough room to handle that.

The real concern is what happens if the overflow get clogged.

[CajunAg]

Agree with what everyone else has said, make sure your sump can handle the extra flow if the pump shuts off (relatively easy to calculate), and for extra insurance you can add a check valve. Don't rely solely on the check valve though, as organic buildup can make these stop working effectively.

[discussmith]

Check valves won't work. A check valve prevents flow in the opposite of the intended direction. If the pump stops the flow from the tanks will continue until all are drained below the lowest inlet level in the same direction. If the sump is too small to handle the volume then the sump will overflow. The only valve that will work in this case is a valve attached to a float that shuts when the level in the sump gets too high. There should already be a siphon break on the line from the pump to the tanks so it can't back siphon if the pump shuts off.

[pinoysport]

thank you everyone for the responses... I think once the sump is callibrated it will be fine and wont overflow... ... my question now is how to create the "overflow" without drilling a hole in the tank.... I know the return is easy... its the out take or overflow im thinking of how to do?

anyone have any examples of that or how to do that?

[DerekFF]

There shouldnt be any fine tuning of the sump unless its about design or looks. A sump is a sump and it needs (like everyone else said) to be big enough to handle a few gallons of extra water in case the power shuts off. It will only drain to the lowest "hole" in the tank. If you dont want to drill the tank then you need a "HOB" style overflow that uses a siphon rather than just water flow. Look up CPR overflow on google and youll see what im talking about

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[discussmith]

http://home.everestkc.net/jrobertson57268/HGB/HGB_construction.html This is a link to a style similar to what I construct for my tanks with a sump. It is not necessary to build one this way. It is designed to stop the gurgling noise of the water sucking air as it entered the down pipe. It does work as stated. I don't use a box, but rather make the whole thing from pvc pipe.

[LKSDiscus]

I have been paundering over this past week as I have been working on the plumbing for my central system for my tanks. My tanks are not drilled so I have to use vacuum way of getting water out. I came across this DIY video and I really like his set up but I'm designing it to work for the central system.

see what you think any imput or idea would also be great.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxaNI5Omt-s

[discussmith]

He has the proper theory in design but a poor implementation. The reason he has had to almost close off the return line is because the intakes (3/4" inside the 1 1/2") are too small. The sterilite drawers are a common implementation for holding different media as it is easy to access the media for cleaning or change. It is totally unnecessary to dump the return water above the tanks water level for oxygenation as that is being accomplished in the sterilite drip section of the sump. This would make the system a lot more quiet and reduce splashing on the tank edges and lid. He drilled a hole above the water line for a siphon break which is not necessary as his return is not under water, but if it was under water like it should be then the siphon break is needed to prevent back siphoning should the pump fail or lose power. If he would have used 1" overflow lines or added one more he probably would not have needed to restrict the return as much or at all. I have a Quiet One 2200 pump rated at 581 gph at no head on a 1" pvc return line. It takes three 1" intake overflows to keep up with the unrestricted pump flow volume. Good luck with your build.

[LKSDiscus]

He has the proper theory in design but a poor implementation. The reason he has had to almost close off the return line is because the intakes (3/4" inside the 1 1/2") are too small. The sterilite drawers are a common implementation for holding different media as it is easy to access the media for cleaning or change. It is totally unnecessary to dump the return water above the tanks water level for oxygenation as that is being accomplished in the sterilite drip section of the sump. This would make the system a lot more quiet and reduce splashing on the tank edges and lid. He drilled a hole above the water line for a siphon break which is not necessary as his return is not under water, but if it was under water like it should be then the siphon break is needed to prevent back siphoning should the pump fail or lose power. If he would have used 1" overflow lines or added one more he probably would not have needed to restrict the return as much or at all. I have a Quiet One 2200 pump rated at 581 gph at no head on a 1" pvc return line. It takes three 1" intake overflows to keep up with the unrestricted pump flow volume. Good luck with your build.

Thanks for the feed back, I'm thinking especially after talking with a friend that I'm may just run the sponge filtering and just do the main line for water changes vs. the central filtrations as I will be breeding different fish and grow outs that may need different requirement with water. My real concern is doing good water changes on a regular basis so that its easy to do vs. filtrations, I'm having good luck with Hydro sponges and also with some of my canisters filtration so depending on what I'm doing I think I will be using that type of filtration.

What I could use some advise on is a central system to take water out for water changes as that is what i think I would do. I'm going to do vacuuming in tanks but not every day If I don't need to.

Thanks for your advise.