- Joined
- Jul 15, 2019
- Messages
- 154
- Reaction score
- 44
My tank has been up for several years. It's just a 55 gallon tank that, at this point, has just one lonely clown fish in it. I built it with a Bean Animal system with a 39 gallon sump. I've put in the best photo I have of what the system looks like. I used 1 1/2" PVC for the system. However, it wasn't until everything was put together I realized that the bulkheads I used were 1" inside diameter. As I said, it's been running for several years and I haven't really had much trouble with it.
Last week, after doing a water change, I noticed the system was working very slowly. I had to slow down the pump to somewhere around 45% capacity or else it would overflow into the emergency line. I started trying to adjust the valve on the full siphon line and as I was pushing to open it I tweaked the bulkhead and it sprang a leak. So I drained it below the overflow box and started taking everything apart. I've got all the drain lines and bulkheads off and am thinking about what I need to put it all back together.
My primary question is if the bulkheads only have a 1 inch inside diameter, does it matter if the rest of the system is 1 1/2"? The water can only go through as fast as the 1" opening can take. I was thinking about re-plumbing it with 1" pipe. Any ideas or suggestions?
Joe
Last week, after doing a water change, I noticed the system was working very slowly. I had to slow down the pump to somewhere around 45% capacity or else it would overflow into the emergency line. I started trying to adjust the valve on the full siphon line and as I was pushing to open it I tweaked the bulkhead and it sprang a leak. So I drained it below the overflow box and started taking everything apart. I've got all the drain lines and bulkheads off and am thinking about what I need to put it all back together.
My primary question is if the bulkheads only have a 1 inch inside diameter, does it matter if the rest of the system is 1 1/2"? The water can only go through as fast as the 1" opening can take. I was thinking about re-plumbing it with 1" pipe. Any ideas or suggestions?
Joe

