Ball valve ??

[theappe3]

It is necessary to have a ball valve installed on my intake for the wet/dry?? Or when the pump stops running will the water drain and just stop draining?

BTW, not new to the hobby, just new to the whole overflow thing.

 

[donald]

you need a ball valve on the return after the pump so you can match your in and out flow. If you have a regular overflow,(with a u tube and 2 boxes) then no, The water will drain untill it gets below the opening for the over flow and then it will stop. You do how ever want a check valve on the return side to stop the water from siphoning back into the wet/dry. A lot of people say don,t trust them but if you are using locklines on your return then all you have to do is position one of the returns just below the waterline and that way if your check valve fails then when the water level drops it will break the siphon. I have mine no lower than the bottom of the opening on the overflow.(the botom of the little teeth). Hope this helps

 

[theappe3]

i have a tank with the built in overflow (drilled tank) its set up with durso standpipe.
SO what you are saying is that I need to have the ballvalve set up on return side of it? what happens if i dont?

 

[scsinet]

It is not necessary to have a valve on your drain (from tank) line(s), but it's a nice to have. The valve will always be totally open or totally closed. The valve is nice to have as you can close it completely to close off drain water from the tank for maintenance, such as removing the sump.
It is necessary to have a ball valve on the return (to tank) line(s), so that you can control your pumps flow rate into the tank and also cut it off for pump maintenance.

 

[frankthetank]

Exactly. I installed a ball valve on my fuge and started it this weekend.
While the return pump is closely rated to my overflow box... I needed to close it slightly to get it to match up with the drain.
I do have a question though...
Is it bad to use stainless steel clamps inside the sump? I had some that I used on the return lines but I needed a clamp for the return pump in the sump. So I used a stainless steel clamp. It's not bad for the water is it?

 

[scsinet]

Saltwater will degrade stainless steel, just not quickly. Of course, what corrodes will end up in your water, which of course is bad.
Personally, I use tie-wraps to secure hoses when it's below the waterline. Plastic host clamps are the best choice. You can get them online from 2docs, Marine Depot, etc.