Thoughts on beananimal overflow

[zygote2k]

My newest build has 1.5" drains and an external semi coast-to-coast overflow with simple strainers emptying into a valved drain box. Still very silent and ZERO salt creep/splash.

As someone mentioned before, there are so many ways to correctly skin the cat......

[fishgate]

You should also look at herbie overflow too. It only requires 2 holes instead of 3.

 

This is a design flaw. Bean corrects that flaw. If your primary drain stops in a Herbie, your risk of flood is very high. With Bean, there is no chance of a flood even with a total blockage of your primary full siphon drain.

[hypertech]

That's not a flaw with a herbie its a flaw in how its setup.  Either the drains are too small or the pump is too big.

 

It really shouldn't cause a flood either.  Assume your drains are the same size.  Under normal operation, a restricted drain is handling the full return flow.  If that drain get plugged, you have an unrestricted drain available.  Since all the water could flow down a restricted drain, it should be able to get down the unrestricted drain.

 

This is easy to test - just put your hand over the drain output on the main drain for a herbie or close the valve all the way.  If its setup right, the water will just flow through the other drain and there will be no flood.

[s2nhle]

That's not a flaw with a herbie its a flaw in how its setup.  Either the drains are too small or the pump is too big.

 

It really shouldn't cause a flood either.  Assume your drains are the same size.  Under normal operation, a restricted drain is handling the full return flow.  If that drain get plugged, you have an unrestricted drain available.  Since all the water could flow down a restricted drain, it should be able to get down the unrestricted drain.

 

This is easy to test - just put your hand over the drain output on the main drain for a herbie or close the valve all the way.  If its setup right, the water will just flow through the other drain and there will be no flood.

+1 hypertech is corrected. There is main drain and emergency drain. The recommended emergency drain is larger or at least equal to the main drain. So if the main drain is blocked, the emergency drain will have no problem with the amount of the extra water flow thru it.

[AlanM]

Think it's possible to run a herbie in a single large bulkhead hole?  

 

I'm wondering if one could do a herbie style by putting a 3/4" PVC inside a 2" PVC pipe.  Install the 2" PVC riser in the overflow box and through the bulkhead going out the bottom.  I'd bring it out through the wall of the PVC a few inches down from where you wanted the water level set in the overflow box and would put a gate valve on the sump end of the narrow inner pipe where they'd split back in to two at the sump.  8)

[fishgate]

I disagree. It is almost impossible to tune a Herbie without extra water tricking down the open channel/emergency drain. This small amount of water means with a blockage of the main drain, you will not have enough drain capacity to keep up with the pump in the event of full siphon blockage. The Herbie design also does not allow the emergency drain to go full siphon when called upon guaranteeing a flood if the main drain clogged. Full siphon flows a LOT more than non full-siphon. This can be corrected but in the original design it is just a stand-pipe and will not go full siphon.

 

You can read all about the Bean design and why it is infinitely better than Herbie on the Bean page. Bean was invented to correct Herbie design flaws. IMO all new setups should go Bean.

[fishgate]

This is easy to test - just put your hand over the drain output on the main drain for a herbie or close the valve all the way.  If its setup right, the water will just flow through the other drain and there will be no flood.

 

Have you ever done this?

[L8 2 RISE]

I have... It works.  A Herbie is very safe, even if it isn't as safe as a bean.

[L8 2 RISE]

I'm trying to figure out what you're shooting for Alan, I think it would work, but how would you bring the 3/4 in out from the 2 in pipe in the overflow box?  Or are you saying the space between the 3/4 inch pipe would be the emergency and the space between the 2 inch and the 3/4 inch would be the normal pipe?  

 

I can't really visualize how to bring the 3/4 inch pipe out from inside the 2 inch pipe?  As long as the emergency drain can handle more water flow than the normal siphon drain, you will be fine!

[hypertech]

Have you ever done this?

 

Absolutely - it handles it just fine.  And a tiny trickle in the emergency is no big deal.  I've had my fair share of floods and this is one area that I've tested and tried and am perfectly happy I've got a sound approach.  I test every failure scenario I can think of after plumbing something new.

 

I've been running a herbie for many many years and it works just fine and is very safe.  A bean animal isn't even an option for me since my tank is a factory ready reef.  It has two holes in the overflow and that's just not a problem.  Even if I were drilling it with a custom overflow, I probably still wouldn't do three holes.  More holes is more risk for a crack between the holes.  I'd take two holes separated further apart over fitting in three holes just about any day.

Edited October 5, 2015 by hypertech

[s2nhle]

Absolutely - it handles it just fine.  And a tiny trickle in the emergency is no big deal.  I've had my fair share of floods and this is one area that I've tested and tried and am perfectly happy I've got a sound approach.  I test every failure scenario I can think of after plumbing something new.

 

I've been running a herbie for many many years and it works just fine and is very safe.  A bean animal isn't even an option for me since my tank is a factory ready reef.  It has two holes in the overflow and that's just not a problem.  Even if I were drilling it with a custom overflow, I probably still wouldn't do three holes.  More holes is more risk for a crack between the holes.  I'd take two holes separated further apart over fitting in three holes just about any day.

+1. Same here. I have run it on my DT tank for several years now. So far I do not have any problem with it.

Edited October 8, 2015 by s2nhle