Bulhead ?pvc adapther problems,,,

[Malibu361]

Here is another plumbing question ..I went to Lowes today to buy 2 threaded bulkhead adapters so I can run my 1 " pipes into both bulkheads and when I went to thread the adapters onto the bulkheads they only went on about 4 or 5 threads then got jammed up real bad .I was able to get them off but is this normal for pvc to bulkheads and how much thread should I have ?I would deff. say more that 4or5 is there any type of pvc lube or something else ? Or would 4-5 be ok for the bulkheads ? It just doent seem right..Thanks Sal :banghead:

 

[meschaefer]

They should thread on pretty tight.

I assume that when you say "threaded bulkhead adapter", you are talking about a slip fitting to threaded fitting adapter. So you can thread standard PVC pipe or Flex pipe to your threaded bulkhead.

 

[Malibu361]

Yes, exactly what i mean but as I said I understand they should be tight of course but only 4-5 threads seems to be too little any opinions on that ?

 

[qy7400]

When you say 'onto' the bulkhead are you using a female adapter to the bulkhead or male into the bulkhead? Only the bulkheads nut will thread the outside but if it's inside wrap a few times around with some Teflon tape and hand tight should be good.

 

[Malibu361]

I am threading a female adapter onto a male bulkhead ....

 

[michael Jack]

when you male do you mean boy because female means girl and you can't thread those

 

[Malibu361]

Say what ?Since when won't a male thread to a female??

 

[Malibu361]

So, nobody else has had this problem?If not then what fittings are you using to thread onto your tanks bulkheads? I do not want to glue pipe into the bulheads for the tank because it is a rr tank and I want to be able to take it apart if I need to ....Actually I dont plan on moving the tank so I wonder if I should glue the 1" pipe directly to the bulkhead and a union /ball valve combo ..and if I need to take it apart in the future for any reason I guess I will just cut ..Any opinions??

 

[ecvernon]

i never had that problem. but i have a threaded 1" bulkhead and bought from home depot 1' threaded male to female slip adapters, so that i can plumb flexible pvc to. the threaded adapter goes almost all the way into the bulkhead and that is with Teflon tape wrapped around the threads... if you cannot get it all the way i think you may want to try a different bulk head adapter
i would not recommend gluing pipe into the bulk head because yo may want to plan just in case a bad thing happens(bulkhead cracks) if you can bring the bulkhead with you into the store to see what fits

 

[Malibu361]

Yeah, I did that but it looks like I will have to search around..Its just weird they thread on the first few then boom it locks up ....but if you say Home Depot has them I will have to check ... again

 

[ecvernon]

pic of my bulkheads

here is a pic of part of my plumbing hope it helps

 

[Malibu361]

Thanks for the pic...Do your bulkheads have internal threads?mine are slip inside and of course thread outside ..That is where I am running into my problem I think ..

 

[ecvernon]

mines are internal threading. that would be definitely your problem. i guess i did not under stand.....most bulkheads are measured/rated by the diameter of the inside. the outside usually represents the size of the hole needed to accommodate the bulkhead

 

[Malibu361]

I bought 2 adapters to adapt the outside of the bulkhead thread to 1" pvc I guess I will have to buy new bulkheads internal thread ....

 

[meschaefer]

I bought 2 adapters to adapt the outside of the bulkhead thread to 1" pvc I guess I will have to buy new bulkheads internal thread ....

The bulkheads need to be threaded on the inside, or else it wont work. The outside is not a standard threading.

 

[Malibu361]

I notice you have an Eheim 1260 did you pvc it or use vinyl line?any pics of how you plumbed the pump??

 

[qy7400]

Thanks for the pic...Do your bulkheads have internal threads?mine are slip inside and of course thread outside ..That is where I am running into my problem I think ..

The bulk heads are referred to by the internal connection, the outside threads are for the nut only. Sounds like you do not need to convert the bulkhead, the 1" pipe will seat perfectly without any adapters.

 

[Malibu361]

O yes it will without a problem but my thing is I really dont want to glue the PVC to it incase there is a problem I was going to put a fitting with an adapter to 1" and a union/ball valve so it can all be unscrewed if a problem arises.... Do most people glue the pvc to a rr tank and hope that no problems arise?

 

[qy7400]

Mine are all glued, I left enough space between the bulk head and union so if I did need to I could pull any part out; the down side is I would have to cut the pipe after the bulk head if the bulkhead was the issue.

Your other options are a SLIPxBARB adapter, vinyl tubing is easy to pull off or swap the bulk heads for threaded.

 

[autoponicz]

looks like the outside thread on the bulkhead has a different thread pitch....
but if you didnt know...the adapters threaded areas are tapered....so the more you tighten ,the tigher it gets..thats the NPT(national pipe thread) for standard pvc..

i would just go get another bulkhead thats slipxthread