Plumbing

[brewercm]

Mine is threaded 1/2 inch.

[NaCl_H2O]

The Mag7 is definately 1/2" FPT in and MPT out.

Check w/Dan, he may have a supplier for the hoses. His units sold at LFS's usually come with a hose?

[wkopplin]

Lowe's sells flexible pvc that is great to use.

[NaCl_H2O]

Blake, how "Flexible" is this PVC? What ID sizes are availble, I have never used it? Some pics I have seen using flexible PVC end up looking like a spider's web (on crack!).

[pilot_bell777]

I was wondering the same thing cause when I turned my pump off to do some work on the fuge it started back siphoning. I was thinking about getting a check vavle too, but wasn't sure that the back siphon would be strong enough to close it.

[NaCl_H2O]

I have never used a check valve, everyone tells me they will eventually stick open & cause problems. It is better to mount your returns high or add a small hole in the return near the water surface to break the siphon.

[RobertG]

I dont use either one. ( check valve or a hole) I have always just had the returns blowing across the top of the water. If I can say this right, the returns come over the overflow angle back down to the bottom of the tank. then another angle to change the direction. I then twist it up towards the top to flow across the tank. When the power is off the tank drains to this line before sucking in the air breaking the siphon.
I would really like to not do this to get the flow lower, but it works & I have no flow issues.

I cant really explain very well but you can check my gallery & see what I mean. In the top corners.
All of my return lines are braided flex hose. I found this to be the best, I used pvc first. This I learned dropped my flow considerably.


This works or is there a better way (cheaper)?
http://www.maast.org/modules.php?set_albumName=RobertG&id=DSC00664&op=m odload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_photo. php

[Dozer]

Lowe's sells some white, flexible PVC called "spa-flex". It's pretty cool. Here are a couple tips that I learned along the way, maybe they'll help someone else out too:
- There are (at least) several different kinds of PVC cement. There is even some specifically made for the flex stuff I think. That being said, I ended up not finding it after 3-4 stops, getting frustrated and just using the regular red can PVC cement- which I read on RC that many others have done too. So far it has worked out just fine.
-The spa-flex stuff might come coiled a little tight- especially if it's the end of a roll. Throw it in the oven at a low heat for a few minutes just to get it a little hot, take it out, shove a stick or something inside it and let it sit that way for a little while. As soon as it cools it's much straighter.
- After some experimenting, I found that I really like the spaflex for my initial return line(s) coming straight out of my sump, and for my drain lines (I have a hang-on-back overflow box) into my sump. However, for my entire closed loop project I personally preferred rigid PVC. Also, once I got my flexible return line to the top/back of my tank, I then preferred rigid for running the remainder of my return plumbing. It sounds confusing, but the bottom line for me was that anything running along the top back of my tank (basically all my closed loop returns and the top of my sump returns) I had a hard time with the flex stuff. Nothing wanted to stay in place and trying to figure out a way to clamp it was a pain. Hope that made some sense, let me know and I can clarify.

[clowntrigger]

On your return to the tank, you have to have some way to prevent the water from siphoning back into your sump. A small hole is all that it really takes. If there is no hole here, the water will siphon to the highest point of your returns in the tank. For example, if you are using loc-line (the flexible black "pipe" that most people use to direct the water to certain areas of your tank on your return) and the bottom of the loc-line is 3 inches under the surface of where your water normally sits, the water will drain all the way down to this level in the event of a pump failure or power outage.

One of the things we do when we set up systems is to take think pieces of plywood (or something rigid) and make a 4 sided box that will fit under your stand. In my case I have a 180 gallon tank, I made my frame roughly 6 ' by 2', just slightly smaller than your tank. I would suggest making the walls of this frame about 8 inches tall. This has to fit on the bottom of your stand. Then go to Lowes or Home Depot and buy some shower liner, this is usually about 1/8 inch think, line the 4 sided box with the shower liner. Shower liner is used by builders/remodlers before they put a shower/tub in (not the shower curtain stuff). This will give you a water tight container that you can now put your sump in. This works great in the event that your sump overflows, it will allow you to catch quite a bit of water before it hits the floor.

If anyone is intersted in this, I can try to draw a picture or send a picture of my setup.