Overflow help

[.OptimusPrime.]

Ok so the good news is the ball valve seems to be doing the trick. I turned down the flow and am able to get the full siphon with barely a trickle down the open channel. It's dead silent and all you hear is the hum of the return pump. Also, dialing down the return allowed the level of the DT to be where I want it.

 

The issue I see now is right in front of the overflow box there is debris on the surface and it doesn't seem to be skimming down. The two sides where the returns discharge are fine. 

 

Can I assume this to be normal and will disappear once I add my powerheads that will push the water accordingly? or is there something I'm missing?

Edited January 5, 2017 by .OptimusPrime.

[AlanM]

Is the level in the box even with your tank water level? It needs to fall at least a little.

[.OptimusPrime.]

no, the water level in the outer box is lower than the tank water level

[Rob A]

If the surface of the water in the display tank is higher than the strainer opening to the overflow box then no, the surface will not skim. I have to watch that on mine. I want the water level to be a little higher than it is but if I make it too high then the debris won't skim because my water level ends up being higher than the strainer opening. It works best when the water level is just a little bit below the strainer opening and also then falls into the box (maybe 1/2 inch of drop) to create a tumbling motion. Even with the tumbling motion, if it's not enough of a disturbance the siphon still might not get the stuff that's floating on the surface of the overflow box area. Someone suggested I remove my main siphon pipe and that seemed to make the surface debris disappear better.

[Rob A]

In this picture I made the overflow tube position is mostly just for reference, the water heights are the relevant parts. This is based on the experience I have had with my system.

 

 

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[AlanM]

That's a nice graphic.  I'd probably bring the top of the weir up a bit to show where the fall occurs.  

[Rob A]

Thanks, yeah, it's hard to show in 2d. Mine is a strainer so the bottom 2/3 of the strainer is actually under water even though there is fall into the box.

[Rob A]

This is a view from the front of the tank looking at the strainer. When it's operating properly the water is covering about 3/4 to 7/8 of the strainer. I just leave a little gap at the top so that the surface junk can get through the strainer and into the overflow box.

 

 

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