Sump Plumbing Conundrum

[elwallacejr]

Greetings Wamas!

 

I recently purchased a Planet Aquariums 48x24x21 Crystaline rimless tank and stand.  I opted for their Tideline overflow (basically a ghost/external overflow) which has a bean animal configuration.  So far, I love the tank size ~100g.  I did also opt to buy Trigger Systems new Premium Sump line that has a build in rollermat because after 3 years of filter socks, I'm done.  The conundrum I have is that I would normally glue in a street/mpt going to a union nippled to a gate valve for my main drain line.  I've always been comfortable just slipping the emergency line directly into the second bulkhead without glue.  In this new sump there are 3 drain bulkheads on the sump, 2 VERY close together that feed the roller mat chamber with about 8 inch drop pipes to get below the water level of the sump and then a bulkhead for the TRUE emergency overflow into the skimmer section.

 

 I've always looked to have a sealed line from the primary drain in the overflow to below the sump water level to ensure a perfect siphon.  But with the two main drain lines being so close together, there's no space for a union and I hate the idea of glueing a pipe straight into the sump.

 

 So that was a long entry but my question is this: has anybody taken the main drain line (full siphon line) and had the bottom side of the gate valve have a pipe that was just fitted into the sumps bulkhead without glueing?  I'm thinking this could cause bubbles in the full siphon line and make a lot of noise but then again maybe not.

 

Any and all feedback is appreciated.

 

Thanks,

Ernie

Edited December 19, 2019 by elwallacejr

[menglish]

If the water from the main drain will go through you roller mat then bubbles would not be an issue. If not, if there are any bubbles, I am thinking they would dissipate through the sump before they make it to your return chamber.

If you are worried about noise coming from that line, then make it long enough to go below the line in that chamber.  That should take care of it

[tom39]

A picture would be helpful but if I understand what you are trying to convey, you are looking to not glue the pipe that enters into the bulkhead fitting (outside of the sump) that is affixed to the sump.

I've attached a pic of my sump plumbing for reference of what I have done. The orange line (center) is the full siphon, the yellow (front) is the backup and the red (back) is the emergency line. Where the plumbing enters the sump at the bulkhead fitting, is that the joint that you don't want to cement?
IMO, as long as the pipe is after the valve you should not have an issue with sucking air or making noise. My guess is that you will end up having ongoing salt creep at the joint that is not glued.
In my setup, if you look at the picture, I placed the unions further up the line from the bulkhead due to close spacing of the holes. This way the pipe can still be removed by loosening the upstream union and then unscrewing the bulkhead nut on the otherside of the bulkhead. Once undone, it allows me to then lift and remove the whole section of plumbing from the valve to the sump.


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[VA Reefdog]

Tom-- your color coded plumbing is awesome. 

 

[tom39]

Tom-- your color coded plumbing is awesome. 
 

Thanks for the compliment.

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[treesprite]

6 hours ago, VA Reefdog said:

Tom-- your color coded plumbing is awesome. 

 

+1

I just write on pipes with a sharpie.

[elwallacejr]

 

On 12/19/2019 at 1:49 PM, tom39 said:

IMO, as long as the pipe is after the valve you should not have an issue with sucking air or making noise.

 

@tom39

 

Thanks!  You answered the question perfectly.  And your plumbing choices really gave me some great ideas!

 

@menglish

 

Thanks for your input as well!  Good things always happen on WAMAS!