Parts for Overflow, Bulkhead and Sump?

[Paul]

I've decided to go ahead and set up a sump for the 180-gal in the garage. I have a 90-gal tank (with two built-in overflows, sadly) set up under the 180 gal.

I need a bunch of parts and wasted a hour and half at Home Depot where I couldn't find what I needed, and nobody could help me find what I needed. They said their plumbing expert was out sick. Manager said the store didn't have the stuff I needed. I found that hard to believe but...

The 180 has two 2 1/8" holes drilled near the top of the tank near a corner. I'm planning to run a simple standpipe as my overflow through one hole, and a return through the other.

I will also need to seal the overflow and return holes.

How do I connect the main tank to sump and return hoses (assuming I can use hoses and not pipes) to the pipes? Do I go with a larger diameter hose than the pipe (I don't see them in very large diam3ters - only up to about a inch or inch and half I think) and slide them on, then clamp them down? Or is there a way to put them inside a pipe and seal them?

Which parts do I need, and if they aren't normally found in the plumbing section at Home Depot, which section? Or should I be going to a completely different store? I'm feeling fustrated.

-Paul

[crstjohn]

Your hole size if correct is non-standard and could require enlargement for standard fittings. The best setup I have found is to use a uniseal with flexible PVC piping (spaflex) inserted directly throught the uniseal or connected to a slip PVC fitting. Spaflex is available at home depot in certain sizes. Uniseals are available from www.aquaticeco.com. A 1 1/2" OD pipe size uniseal requires a a 2 1/2" diameter hole. It could be difficult to widen an existing hole but not impossible if you want to go that route. Another alernative would be to buy a standard bulkhead fitting and pipe from that. A 1 1/2" bulkhead requires a 1 3/8" diameter hole. Good luck.

[Dakota]

If the hole is too small, use a dremel with a grinding bit and have at it.. might tank a while, but it'll do the job.

[aquacultureCS]

You are pretty close to The Pond Source in Carlsbad...they usually have a good selection of plumbing parts beyond what Home Depot carries.

[Paul]

I've got a dremel and an oversized accessory pack. I assume I will want to make the hole 2 1/2" right?

Aquaculture, thanks for that tip. I'll check them out.

-Pauo

[crstjohn]

Buy the parts first, then size hole to fit. Buy bulkheads, uniseals, etc., as close to the hole size as possible to minimize the grinding.

[Paul]

What is the ideal hole size for my needs?

I'm a bit worried about how close these two are to each other if I'm to enlarge them. Might be better to glue on another sheet with smaller holes?

What do you think?



-Paul

[Dakota]

I'd not glue anything. But the holes are kind of close. I wouldn't shrink that space by any more than 1/4". Try enlarging them to the outside of the center.