sweatervest13
Active Member
So first question I have to ask is:
Why do tank problems always have to happen right before I go to bed???
So I got home yesterday and noticed that my tank sounded different. The drain line to the sump sounded louder then normal. I looked all around the tank and could not find anything wrong. In the fish room everything in the sump looked alright. I go about my evening (doing a bunch of work on my Quarantine tank) for a couple of hours. Around 11:00 pm I went down to feed the fish, and still noticed the sound.
I was behind the tank cleaning the glass, in a position to see one of the return lines. It did not seem to be pushing out water like it normally does. So, around to the front to check the other return line. Same thing.
So, by this time I realize that something is wrong with the return pump. I have been cleaning the sump with a fish only wet/dry shopvac for the last couple of WC's, and that must have kicked up a bunch of gunk that clogged the filter sponge for the return pump. I have most of the system hard plumbed with PVC, but I use Spa flex PVC for a two foot section on the return pump. It was a bit of a pain to take the pump offline to clean, but that what needed to be done.
Luckily I had planned on doing a WC, but was going to just take water out of the DT and put new water in (not blow off the rocks and siphon out detritus and other gunk), and take that clean water and do a WC on the 10g QT. So I had water mixed and ready to rock.
I had to ditch the idea of a WC on the QT, and instead, cleaned out the return pump chamber of the sump with the shopvac.
Nothing like standing out in your back yard spraying a filter sponge with the hose at midnight. Man, I bet my neighbors think that I am a strange ranger.
Long story short. If you think something may be wrong with your tank. Check EVERYTHING until you find it!! And always have water on hand to do a water change.
Why do tank problems always have to happen right before I go to bed???
So I got home yesterday and noticed that my tank sounded different. The drain line to the sump sounded louder then normal. I looked all around the tank and could not find anything wrong. In the fish room everything in the sump looked alright. I go about my evening (doing a bunch of work on my Quarantine tank) for a couple of hours. Around 11:00 pm I went down to feed the fish, and still noticed the sound.
I was behind the tank cleaning the glass, in a position to see one of the return lines. It did not seem to be pushing out water like it normally does. So, around to the front to check the other return line. Same thing.
So, by this time I realize that something is wrong with the return pump. I have been cleaning the sump with a fish only wet/dry shopvac for the last couple of WC's, and that must have kicked up a bunch of gunk that clogged the filter sponge for the return pump. I have most of the system hard plumbed with PVC, but I use Spa flex PVC for a two foot section on the return pump. It was a bit of a pain to take the pump offline to clean, but that what needed to be done.
Luckily I had planned on doing a WC, but was going to just take water out of the DT and put new water in (not blow off the rocks and siphon out detritus and other gunk), and take that clean water and do a WC on the 10g QT. So I had water mixed and ready to rock.
I had to ditch the idea of a WC on the QT, and instead, cleaned out the return pump chamber of the sump with the shopvac.
Nothing like standing out in your back yard spraying a filter sponge with the hose at midnight. Man, I bet my neighbors think that I am a strange ranger.
Long story short. If you think something may be wrong with your tank. Check EVERYTHING until you find it!! And always have water on hand to do a water change.
