I Screwed Up!!

[buzzword]

OK I screwed up. I got my 120 in and plumbed yesterday. I only ran it for about 6-7 hrs. Saw no leakes. Now after putting sand and LR in it I have spotted a small leak. It is under the tank at the bulkhead where the inflow pipe comes from my pump, at the black PVC fitting . Small leak about one drop every ten minutes or so. What should I do? Run the tank overnight like that after trying to find a wrench big enough to give it a slight turn? Or shut it down and just put the powerheads and heater in there untill I get it fixed? Would the LR be ok with just the heater and powerheads? Any help soon would be appreciated. thanks.

 

[plumbjohn]

I don't have any experience with drilled tanks, but as I am a plumber first try tightening with a pipe wrench. If that doesn't fix then drain tank water into a plastic container big enough to hold all water then tighten up or replace bulkhead. Check that the gaskets are cut or crimped. Then fill tank back up to just cover live rock and recheck for leaks. Hope this works for ya

 

[buzzword]

Hey thanks, trying to find a pipe wrench now at 10pm, lol. When I shut it down the sump/refug fills and there is no leak. So if I can't find a wrench I am just going to put the powerheads and heater back in it for the night. LR should be ok if I do that right?

 

[poisony2k]

your live rock will be ok as long as it doesnt dry out and even if the surface drys out the core wont' but you wan't to keep it as wet and close to tep as posible so you won't get any or much die back. but everything sould come back anyway

 

[who dey]

did you use the blue water proof seal gook stuff on threads the threads of your fittings? if not, buy it and use it on every fitting

 

[buzzword]

Yeah it was sealed by the LFS guys that plumbed it. It actually looks like it is welling up at the connection to the bottom of the inflow pipe and bulkead adapter. Think if I can get a pipe wrench and snug it up it will seal it. Thanks for the help all.

 

[who dey]

good luck, a friend of mine had the same leak(1 drip about every 10 min) he put a cup under it. the water evaporated before it could accumulate, easy way out, don't recommend it, but good luck anyway!!

 

[1911_guy]

this is just my .02 so take it for what it's worth.
i would NOT tighten anything with the pressure from the water still inside. if it was my tank i would empty the tank, tighten line, then refill and see what happens.
there is a chance that the line or tank could rupture if it is tightened with pressure still on (from water).
hope you get it fixed without hurting your LR.

 

[sammiefish]

while a little turn of the pipe wrench might just fix it ... you mentioned that the LFS guy plumbed it in for you ... I might strongly recommend that you ask him to fix it... you turn that fitting and you take on all liability... but then again...

 

[buzzword]

Sammiefish, that is what is happening. The LFS guy came by this morning and is going to get new parts to redo the bulkhead. I just need to drain the bulkhead. He is going to redo the pipe and fittings. He was cool and said right off that he would fix it today. I'll post again when it is done or if I run into any more problems. Thank you all for responding.

 

[buzzword]

Well after a couple of tryes at not rebuilding the bulkhead, that failed we finally rebuilt it and redid the outflow pipe. Going to let the sealant sit overnight and fire it up in the AM. Hope it works. Tank already cycling with 100# LR and 4 cocktail shrimp, amonia 1.0. We'll see how it goes in the morning, may have to get new plumbing for bulkhead if this doesn't work.

 

[robchuck]

That seems like a fair resolution to the problem.
A few words of warning though about trying to tighten a bulkhead on a full tank: don't do it! There is a chance that the gasket inside the tank could slip and make the leak even worse. Plus, a leak that drips every 10 minutes or so would probably even seal itself once enough salt creep built up.

 

[buzzword]

Well we drained the bulkhead from the overflow first so hopefully not a problem. The LFS guy has been great and if this doesn't work he is comming back in the AM to put in a new bulkhead. Hope it works and I can get on with watching my shrimp rot and the 6 hermits that I got as hitchhikers. Thanks for the info.

 

[buzzword]

OK, everything is now sealed, like Who Dey said and now after a couple of hours NO LEAK!! So now I'm gonna aquascape and watch my shrimp rot for a few weeks. Thanks to all of you who gave me some input.
Greg