Building a DURSO with slipxslip bulkhead

[king bubba]

Not sure what you are referring to when you ask about the "coupling". In a std Durso, it is always best to have the Durso a slightly larger diameter than the bulkhead it is to feed thru IME. In a vertical (Stockman) my experience is that either the same size or slightly larger will work but the latter will give a little better performance. I have never had any success using a smaller "el" into a larger "T" section. Finally, if your total run to the sump or whatever is much over a foot or so in length use 45 degree elbows instead of 90's for quietness and be ready to add a reducer bushing at end of the run. 1" pipe = 3/4 " bushing. Better control and stability and usually a little quieter because of added backpressure. Stockman used several small holes in his pipe to keep critters out but he was more concerned with clogging. IME a pair of holes opposite each other and a diameter at least half that of the pipe itself eliminated any chance of clogging. IMO critters shouldn't be able to get that far in the first place. Hope I am helping and not confusing.

 

[mikegray]

yes u just made my stockman 1 hour ago. its 1 1/4" Pvc and i have a coupling over it that is 2" and as far as holes go in the pvc im going to have squaurs cut out. on each side. (2) leaving about .5" in between then on both sides so most of it is cut out. and ill have the hieght be watever just not to the bottom of the coupling cause i think it will defeat the purpose.

 

[mikegray]

i figured out stockman. mine is 1 1/4" PVC with a 2" coupling. and i have 2 rectangles cut underneath them. 1x2.25" each so it leaves .5" of PVC on both sides.
squid did i do a good job? hehe

 

[acrylic51]

Sorry must have goofed...I meant to say rl180reef.com and then click on stockman pipes and a box will drop down and you'll see modifications and click on that.....But I see you already found it

 

[acrylic51]

Looks good

 

[king bubba]

MikeGray Looks good. Better than store bought and a whole lot cheaper. You may need some fine tuning but there's plenty of help with that sort of thing as well. You don't have to tolerate noise or cycling/gurgling. Nice job.

 

[mikegray]

one thing im not too sure about is how far up does the cut outs need to be from the bottom of the coupling. cause i kno if its too low there wont be prolly a sucking sound cause or it just makes sense. so i just pushed the coupling down so the top is just above the top of the cut outs. but i didnt glue that part so i can always move it down.
EDIT* - and also one of them seems to be loose in my bulkhead. bulkhead is 1" and the bottom if 1". and it wiggles and just drops in there and leans its so loose. what can i wrap around it or do to make it snug and fit tight and straight up. other side is fine but this one is weird.

 

[king bubba]

MikeGray. first part. The whole purpose of the "coupling" or hole cover is to provide a sound shield to the hole drainage activity. Placing it just above the top of your holes is perfect. second part. If you have a loose fit in your bulkead make sure there is no burr or bad spot holding your pipe out and then assemble with aquarium silicone. It will set up hard enough to give a decent fit and will still be easily removable. In the event your tank water level is not quite where you want, it is adjustable by trying different lengths of pipe using a slip couple with no glue. Usually around $.35 at finer neighborhood plumbing supply houses. Good reason to never get rid of short pieces of pipe! Waiting to hear (no pun intended) how this thing works for you.

 

[acrylic51]

I'm assuming your using a slip bulkhead, so you could just wrap the bottom of the pipe with some teflon tape and should snug it up in the bulkhead....HTH

 

[mikegray]

yea i wont have water in it for a lil while longer. but ill let u kno as soon as i get my tank running. i have 2 last things to buy. typhoon lll RODI unit
and im waiting to spend my money on my MH and VHO lights. but ill get u pics and info how everything works ASAP.

 

[king bubba]

Cool. Be waiting to see 'em.

 

[acrylic51]

Are you buying a retro kit for the lighting or are you going to do a DIY with the lighting and VHO's?

 

[mikegray]

im getting PFO retrofit for VHOS
and im getting 2 dual pfo retro fit 250.