Watch out for old check valves....scary!

Purple Reef · #1 08/25/2002, 07:31 PM

Well my water outlets come in from the bottom of the tank into the rock work, about 4" from the bottom. I turned off the water pump for feeding and normally the pump stops and the water wants to kick back in to the sump throw the 2 water out lets but the 3/4 PVC check valve in the pipe work stops it. Well its been 2 years since that check valve was installed and apparently on this day it got STOCK. I turned the pump off and kept watching TV about a minute later I hear water hitting the ground. The water started going into the water out lets past the stock check valve ,into the sump and on to my floors!! I only lost about 3-4 gallons before I hear it and turned the water pump back on, but what a mess and what a scare. If this had happed during a 5 minute power outage, during the day when I'm at work, I would have come home hours later to an EMPTY tank with maybe 4" of water on the bottom. The mess would have been really bad, but the loss of EVERYTHING would have been worst......

Change any check valve ones a year, I forgot about mine and that could have been very serous.

Old Yeller Tang · #2 08/25/2002, 09:02 PM

One of the first things I learned about check valves, "They will always fail sometime or another."

Macimage · #3 08/25/2002, 10:24 PM

I am removing both of my check valves in the next few weeks. I installed them in January when I set up the tank. By July they both had failed and water returns through the check valves into my sump. I really don't want to take my pumps off-line and clean these things every few months. Luckily, my sump can hold all the back syphon and the display tank only empties the top 6", which is the lowest point of one of my returns. Right now the only thing these stupid check valves are doing is slowing down my water flow from my two Ampmasters!

Joyce

bowfront · #4 08/25/2002, 10:43 PM

To anyone else listening please don't design systems that are solely reliant on check valves to keep from overflow spills. Always have a big enough sump to contain your overflow water during power outages w/o any check valves. As mentioned all check valves will invariably malfunction and according to Murphy's Law this will happen when you least expect/want it to.

Gary Majchrzak · #5 08/25/2002, 10:50 PM

Make sure all water returns are at the tank's surface!
Y-check valves will always jam at the WRONG moment- don't trust them for a second!!!!
I cannot stress this fact enough!
Even if your sump is large enough to contain all the drained viewing tank water- your creatures will be left high and dry- usually baking under a hot lighting setup!

tentacle · #6 08/26/2002, 12:19 AM

Re-emphasizing these 2 crucial points:

Quote:

Originally posted by bowfront
Always have a big enough sump to contain your overflow water during power outages w/o any check valves.

Quote:

Originally posted by Gary Majchrzak
Make sure all water returns are at the tank's surface!

And if you want the return(s) extending down below the surface, all you need to do is drill a hole in the pipe just below the water level, which breaks the siphon when the pump loses power. Check valves are not needed.

FishinGriffin · #7 08/26/2002, 12:29 AM

Now ill be sure to check my check valves.

Kenzy · #8 08/26/2002, 12:34 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by FishinGriffin
Now ill be sure to check my check valves.

You would be better off to chuck your check valves!

Purple Reef · #9 08/31/2002, 05:23 PM

I started the posting and I'm the only one that cannot do anything regarding the use of a check valve because of my set up....

Hope fully the pic. will let you guys see the set up and notice the water out lets are on the bottom, on either side of the over flow box. (Wrong design in my part...) So the best I can do is check the sucker every time I feed and turn off the water pump (3 times a week ) and replace the check valve one a year.........

Amazing how many things one learns for "next time".......