pvc over flow help please

prostreetranger

prostreetranger

New Member
hey guys i have been looking on here and on youtube and i found a lot of people that have made pvc over flow but i have had no luck with what i have made this is the link that i have based mine off of http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKadMXBPfl0.i made mine out of 1" pvc and from what i have seen on here that should be around 1200gph and i have a 925gph and 8feet high pump but i can not get the overflow to keep up with the pump also i have 130g tank so any help i will really appreciate.
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
Yeah I made the same one. The problem with it was that I couldn't maintain the syphon for very long unless I was running an aqua lifter pump with it. One of the flaws with the design that I would change is not use Tee's on the top where the air lines are connected. Problem is that too much air builds up in there. Instead just use regular elbows and insert the air lines directly ontop of the bend. If the set up is not completely air tight it won't stay draining very good for very long. You might also want to install a valve on the bottom drain line that you can turn off when you're trying to pull all of the air out of the pipes in order to get the syphon going. It made a huge difference. But long story short...I really don't trust any of the diy pvc overflows that much to use them continuously.
 
prostreetranger

prostreetranger

New Member
well when i built mine i forgot to put the tee's at the top for the check valve my problem manly is that it will drain but not strong at all
 
A

adam57

Guest
Simple solution is for more volume a bigger pipe size is needed. try going up to 1 1/4". It should create more GPM. 1" pvc is only going to give you about 30 GPM of volume with good presure and probubly less with only a siphon.
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
How are you priming it? 1" pvc is only going to give you 10GPM safely. 600GPH. It should handle the flow just fine but all of the air needs to be removed from the drain lines in order for it to work.
 
prostreetranger

prostreetranger

New Member
i really dont want to drill the tank tho it is a 130g and i bought it for $50 so i really dont feel like having to go out and buy a new one if it breaks.
 
F

fishhugger

Guest
Drilling it is incredibly easy. I did it recently and was very nervous at first, but closed my eyes and pressed the 'buy it' button for a diamond core bit, and forced myself to do it.
If you decide to drill, do a lot of reading on how your going to plumb it so you know exactly where to drill and how many holes you want so you dont end up having to plug one up and doing it again.
Also call the manufacturer of the tank to make sure it is not tempered glass.
 
prostreetranger

prostreetranger

New Member
that is the thing i didnt buy the tank new i got it at a fish store that was going out of business so i have no idea if it is or isn't ..
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
There should be a sticker on the bottom to tell you what panels are tempered. If there is tempered glass on it at all then odds are it's only the bottom pane. If there is no sticker then it's all plate glass (safe to drill). It is fairly easy to drill. Bigger tanks are easier (not as fragile).
 
prostreetranger

prostreetranger

New Member
well i do know that one of the side panels of glass has i chip in it,so from every time i have had a tempered glass if i hit the edges to hard it shaters so i think with that chip that it tells me that it is not tempered glass.
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by prostreetranger http:///forum/thread/383818/pvc-over-flow-help-please#post_3360021
well i do know that one of the side panels of glass has i chip in it,so from every time i have had a tempered glass if i hit the edges to hard it shaters so i think with that chip that it tells me that it is not tempered glass.
Excactly, if you hit tempered glass on the edges it's going to spiderweb like crazy and you would have known it. Honestly I went round and round on this issue when it came to drilling my 120G. Because the tank did have a sticker on the bottom but half of it was tore off and I couldn't read the whole thing. It turned out fine so it was just the bottom that was tempered.
 
prostreetranger

prostreetranger

New Member
ok thanks for all the info and help guys .can some one help me on what size pvc pipe to use for the over flow that i will drill in the take. i have a 922gph pond pump that i will be using for the return .
 
beaslbob

beaslbob

Well-Known Member
I had a similiar problem with a pvc overflow. In my case to vertical pipe next to the final drain was sealed. When I drilled a hole to vent it the overflow ran faster and smoother.
If your vertical pipe next to the drain is sealed, take the cap off (or cut the pvc). then run that pipe above the top of the tank and (initially) just leave it open to the air. See of that solves the speed problem
my .02
 
prostreetranger

prostreetranger

New Member
well i think it will look better in my tank and work better if i just drill the glass and install the bulkhead and drain just dont really kno what size drain i will need.
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by beaslbob http:///forum/thread/383818/pvc-over-flow-help-please#post_3360314
I had a similiar problem with a pvc overflow. In my case to vertical pipe next to the final drain was sealed. When I drilled a hole to vent it the overflow ran faster and smoother.
If your vertical pipe next to the drain is sealed, take the cap off (or cut the pvc). then run that pipe above the top of the tank and (initially) just leave it open to the air. See of that solves the speed problem
my .02
Yeah, that's what I did is drilled holes in each of the verticle pipes right before the drain and that helps alot with the flow. But my problem was that air bubbles would enter and then build up in the top of the overflow pipes where the air line tubes were installed. I had to run an aqua lifter pump on it to keep it safe or else it would slow down drastically.
To the original poster: You will not be sorry if you go with a drilled tank. I drilled my 120G for two 1.5" drains. I would recommend the same for you, although you could get away with two 1" drains if you'd like which would give you approx. 1200gph drainage capacity.

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top