Reef Plumbing for Dummies

[Gaffes]

My FOWLR is slowly metamorphizing into a reef tank, and I am at the point where I should probably get it drilled or get a new reef ready tank. I am leaning strongly towards having it drilled since it is the perfect size (80g) and shape and the glass is not tempered. Can anyone give me an estimate on what drilling costs? Do they usually do housecalls?

The problem is that i don't know squat about reef plumbing, and am getting overwhelmed by the ammount of information here and at wetwebmedia. I am not even sure what a bulkhead is yet.

Can anyone give me or point me to some basic reef plumbing 101 info? I want to make sure I do everything perfectly since I am probably breaking the tank down to have it drilled and I live in an apartment above the landlord so cannot have **any** leaks.

What I have gathered so far is that holes are drilled in the tank and the water drains by gravity into a sump, or smaller tank below the display. There is a submersible pump in the sump that pumps the water back into the tank. If I have the holes drilled high on the tank, and I use a large enough sump, there should be no chance of a flood even if the return pump loses power, since all of the water that will drain will fit into the sump. But if the drains become clogged, the main display tank might overflow from the return water. Is this all correct?

Also, a couple more questions. Should I drill near the bottom or top of the tank? To me, the top seems better, since there is less chance of a flood. Is this correct? And secondly, what exactly is an overflow? Are those the acryllic walls with serrated upper edges to ensure that the water drains from the top of the tank?

Sorry for all of the questions. I think I finally understand alot about reefkeeping, but plumbing has me really confused.

Also, since I am breaking down the tank, here comes my DSB!!

 

[ChrisRD]

Can anyone give me an estimate on what drilling costs? Do they usually do housecalls?

I think that will be pretty tough to answer because it can vary widely. I'd say $20 per hole is a reasonable price. I'd imagine a housecall would be considerably more...

Can anyone give me or point me to some basic reef plumbing 101 info?

http://www.inlandreef.com/diy.html
Scroll down to the "Plumbing" section...

What I have gathered so far is that holes are drilled in the tank and the water drains by gravity into a sump, or smaller tank below the display. There is a submersible pump in the sump that pumps the water back into the tank. If I have the holes drilled high on the tank, and I use a large enough sump, there should be no chance of a flood even if the return pump loses power, since all of the water that will drain will fit into the sump. But if the drains become clogged, the main display tank might overflow from the return water. Is this all correct?

Sounds like you've got the idea. As to the last issue, it is possible to setup the system such that you can't overflow it even with a clogged tank drain. The return pump would still eventually run dry (and possibly burn-up) but at least you wouldn't have the flood. :wink: Some pumps have a thermal shutoff to prevent a dry-run from killing them.

Also, a couple more questions. Should I drill near the bottom or top of the tank? To me, the top seems better, since there is less chance of a flood. Is this correct? And secondly, what exactly is an overflow? Are those the acryllic walls with serrated upper edges to ensure that the water drains from the top of the tank?

Either way will work, and yes the overflow is the acrylic box/walls. With an overflow box installed I don't think there is really any greater flood risk from drilling either way.

 

[madrefkepr]

Can anyone give me an estimate on what drilling costs?

Last tank I had drilled cost me $12 a hole

Do they usually do housecalls?

Unlikely



What I have gathered so far is that holes are drilled in the tank and the water drains by gravity into a sump, or smaller tank below the display. There is a submersible pump in the sump that pumps the water back into the tank. If I have the holes drilled high on the tank, and I use a large enough sump, there should be no chance of a flood even if the return pump loses power, since all of the water that will drain will fit into the sump. But if the drains become clogged, the main display tank might overflow from the return water. Is this all correct?

Yes


Should I drill near the bottom or top of the tank?

If the bottom is not tempered, drill the bottom and use an overflow - requires less space behind the tank.


And secondly, what exactly is an overflow? Are those the acryllic walls with serrated upper edges to ensure that the water drains from the top of the tank?

Yes

Sorry for all of the questions. I think I finally understand alot about reefkeeping, but plumbing has me really confused.

No Problem

Also, since I am breaking down the tank, here comes my DSB!!

Excellent idea!

 

[Gaffes]

it is possible to setup the system such that you can't overflow it even with a clogged tank drain.

Can you explain how this is done? By using a float switch?

Thanks for all of the answers and the link. I just needed some reassurance on my understanding of the situation so far. I would hate to screw up on drilling the tank since it is non-reversible.

I also found another great link: http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/plumbing_faq.php

 

[ChrisRD]

Can you explain how this is done?

What I did on my current setup is put a divider in the end of the sump where the pump sits - basically forming a chamber. Also, I set the overflow box on my tank to keep the waterline just barely hidden behind the bottom of the trim. This way I have about 1-1/2" from the normal waterline in the tank to overflowing (basically the height of the trim).

Now, if the tank drain were to clog completely (unlikely, but never say never :wink: ) the return pump would pump the sump down until the water in the sump reaches the level of that last divider - then it just empties out the pump chamber. The total amount of water available to the pump is not enough to overtop the main tank.