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Is a siphon returning water to the sump inherently bad?


stankyd

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I see posts all over the place saying that a siphon is very dangerous. My situation is that with a Durso pipe so much air is being sent into the sump I have uncontrollable micro-bubbles. After much tinkering I replaced the cap on Durso with one with no hole and it now siphons on purpose. The water drains very quickly and quietly and with zero air entering the sump. When I turn off the pump the water level drains and as long as it doesn't overflow the sump (not even close) before the siphon breaks. Upon turning the pump back on, the tank level rises and the siphon is automatically reestablished.

 

Is there anything in apparently dangerous about this set up?

Edited by stankyd
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Well, if the pipe is really at a full siphon then that's the most water the drain is ever going to handle.  And if your system return rate and drain rate happen to be balanced right now, that means that any slight reduction in your siphon rate will overflow your tank.  Your siphon rate can be reduced by backpressure on the pipe outlet, or internal fouling with sponges and such, or a fish body or snail partly blocking the drain inlet pipe.

 

My guess is you're not truly at a full siphon because the cap you replaced is not airtight.  Do you have a secondary drain in case the durso isn't able to handle all the flow?

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No, don't have a second drain. Regarding the risk of overflow, wouldn't that scenario be true of a vented Durso as well?

No, when a vented Durso is submerged by rising water, the vent hole is plugged (by water) and the flow increases as it starts a full-siphon. Durso's and Stockman drains, when they submerge like this, begin to make a flushing sound - like a toilet - as the water level around the pipe oscillates between high and low levels.

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  • 2 months later...

My suggestion would be to Google search Herbie full siphon overflow. IMO, trying to run a full siphon without a backup is a bit risky unless the water volume that is contained within your return section is less than what would overflow your main display.

 

Try this link:

http://gmacreef.com/herbie-overflow-reef-tank-plumbing-method-basics/

 

HIH,

Tom G

 

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

Edited by tom39
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What you described is similar to the herbie method without the backup. Even if your sump can handle the excess water, you'll want a backup drain in case something clogs your main.

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