Overflow out of horizontal PVC Pipe

[uhuru]

There was a thread where someone made a very easy overflow by mounting a long PVC pipe horizontally at the top of the tank, and cutting a slit into it which allowed it to skim the surface water. Does anyone have a link to this thread or have pictures of this type of setup? Thanks!

[stugray]

pics of mine in:

http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...readid=1251168

Stu

[uhuru]

Awesome - I like the use of holes instead of a slit, eliminates the need to wrap the pipe with some kind of gutter guard. Thanks for showing that to me. So simple and so effective

[MeuserReef]

Originally posted by stugray
pescadero,

I drilled my 75 G AGA tank in the back and mine says that the bottom pane IS tempered, so at least MINE was not tempered on the back.

I would not do the overflow box, I would do it this way again. I am very happy with it's performance.



That's a 1.5 inch heavy duty bulkhead.

I used the cheap ebay diamond hole saw and it worked beautifully.

Stu

Stu,

Clever design. I have always liked the "Coast to Coast" style overflow because of its surface skimming abilities. This is a much simpler way to accomplish this.

How is the noise from this style of overflow? I like the design and how little of a "foot print" that it has with respect to light-blockage, but again, I'm curious about the noise with a 600 gph thruput.


-Josh

[stugray]

Its really hard to say how loud it is.

This frag tank sits directly next to a giant skimmer , 80 gallon sump, and my barracuda return pump.

If I turn those off to make it quieter in the room, the flow stops through the frag tank.

In addition, the outflow from this goes horizontally over to the top of the sump only 6 inches away, so it's not quite the same setup as if it were going to a sump underneath.

However as far as I can tell, it is more quiet than my megaflows.

Stu

[pescadero]

i just realized something even though i've looked at that photo many times -- the pipe is capped at the far end, and only has a bulkhead fitting at the close end, right? for some reason I had always thought that the tank had two bulkheads and that the overflow had exits at both ends.

[MeuserReef]

Originally posted by stugray
Its really hard to say how loud it is.

This frag tank sits directly next to a giant skimmer , 80 gallon sump, and my barracuda return pump.

If I turn those off to make it quieter in the room, the flow stops through the frag tank.

In addition, the outflow from this goes horizontally over to the top of the sump only 6 inches away, so it's not quite the same setup as if it were going to a sump underneath.

However as far as I can tell, it is more quiet than my megaflows.

Stu

Thanks Stu. The Megaflow comparison helps.

Originally posted by pescadero
i just realized something even though i've looked at that photo many times -- the pipe is capped at the far end, and only has a bulkhead fitting at the close end, right? for some reason I had always thought that the tank had two bulkheads and that the overflow had exits at both ends.

I am seriously thinking of using this design for a 90 gallon display. I like the idea of having a bulkhead on either end connected to a single piece of 1 1/4" PVC that would span the length of the 48" tank.

The tank sits in my living room so noise is definetly something that Im trying to keep to a minimum.

-Josh

[pescadero]

my plan is to build a similar overflow that has bulkhead exits at each end, to decrease the risk of a disaster if one outlet should ever become obstructed. i've already got a 65g with pair of 1.5-inch holes suitable for 3/4-inch bulkheads at each end. i'll have to bring the water return in over the top.

[stugray]

It has only one bulkhead on the near end.

I cannot imagine how this could get clogged. The pipe diameter is about 1-1/4" inside diameter all the way to the sump while the largest thing that could get in thru the holes is less than 1/4". ( Not saying that it's impossible ).

Be sure to note ( from other thread ) that I only press fit the horizontal piece in case I need to turn it to fine-tune the height.

I did glue the 90 where it inserts into the bulkhead but only with silicone. If I ever need to change something I wanted to be able to pull that joint apart anyway. You could get away with just pressing the 90 into the bulkhead because it cant cause the water to leak out of the tank. But.... if that joint leaks a little, and the power goes out for long enough, the water level in the tank will drain down to the leak in the bulkhead ( extra tens of gallons in the sump ).

Stu

[uhuru]

this is so much easier than doing an overflow box, takes up less space, and appears to be far more effective - I think I'm also going to do 2 bulkheads like pescadero said.

[pescadero]

if i were drilling my 65g tank, i probably would have opted for bigger bulkheads, but i was given the tank and it came with holes for a pair of 3/4 inch bulkheads. rather than redrilling the tank to enlarge the existing holes (which i think is risky) i'll just try a 3/4 inch overflow and see what happens. i am a little worried though, about not having enough overflow to deal with the surge when the downstairs pump kicks on and sends water to the upstairs tank.

BTW, i need to shop for bulkheads. can anyone recommend a source for good quality, reasonably priced bulkheads? mail order is okay, as I need some other stuff anyway.

[MeuserReef]

Originally posted by pescadero
BTW, i need to shop for bulkheads. can anyone recommend a source for good quality, reasonably priced bulkheads? mail order is okay, as I need some other stuff anyway.

I believe Stu said he got his @ Marinedepot.com

I am lucky enough to have a LFS that has all sizes of BHs.

[Namyar]

That is a very kewl idea never thought of that

[pescadero]

i'm gonna be doing this pretty soon, so i'll take pictures in case anyone wants to see it in more detail.

[NanoReefWanabe]

drilling out the bulkheads to larger sizes is very easy with a dremel i dont think i would trust a hole saw...but dremel i would easily do it again..

[rickh]

Do you think this design is better than a toothless "California" overflow made out of two pieces of glass the length of the back or the tank??

[DeathWish302]

pescadero:

Check out USPlastics for their Hayward bulkheads. They are a little more $$$, but I've never had a problem. They are a little more bulky than most, but can take the abuse others cannot. S/H to you should be cheap, as they are in NW Ohio.

[AlexB650]

you could do it that way. what i did is just put the bulkhead all the way at the top (pretty much like his) and then i just stuck a little plastic cover that comes with fluval canister filters (don't know the name) in the end of it. looks really clean and is not really noticable.

[flyyyguy]

I made one for a friend here. super low profile an unobtrusive. a couple of bulkheads, some street 90's and some pipe.....


http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...&pagenumber=18


Ill add that I think the slot as I have it will skim the surface much better than holes......HOWEVER, this was a small tank I built this on........if you are looking for 400-1200 gpoh out of it I would go with the 1.5" bulkheads and pipe instead of 1" for sure.

[MeuserReef]

Flyyyguy... how noisy would you rate this type of overflow to be (vs the standard overflow box /durso combination)??

I want to use this design on a 90 gallon that will sit in my living room but want to make it as quiet as possible. I do have enough room to put the "T' coming out of the bulkhead on the back side of the tank so hopefully that will help quiet it down. Im only looking to have between 600-700 gph through the sump.

Thanks

[flyyyguy]

The one I made that i linked was quiet. Made less noise than the snapper in the stand running the CLS.

That being said, this was the only one I made and I have heard of of a couple people who copied it who said it was quiet, and a couple people who copied it says it sounds like fricken niagara falls....

SO.....what I would offer is that if you really want to ensure it is silent without having to mess with it for hours, drill a back up bulkhead and kind of go herbie style with it. put a gate valve on the drain line(or lines depending on if you merge them or not) and taper the flow back to perfect. This will guarantee its silence but of course in doing so will be a disaster waiting to happen........which is why you have the back up bulkhead ready to pick up the slack should the slightest thing impede the drain and mess up your timing

make sense??

[MeuserReef]

Thanks.

The only thing that makes me hesitant to try this is the fact that there is no point where the drain is fully submerged (as there is with a durso / stockman). This could be the cause of the "Niagra Falls" effect that some have mentioned.

Im thinking of having a 3 1/2' section of 1.25 pipe that will be plumbed into a bulkhead on each end.

[jcpatella]

Has anyone used this method lately in their tank builds?

[uhuru]

I will be this weekend, I'll post pics when I'm done

[jcpatella]

Sweet! I have an opportunity to buy a nice not-drilled tank, so if this works out well for you, I'll probably go ahead and buy it.