Ideas for extending down pipes a half inch

[JoJosReef]

LOL! Good ole' Bruce Campbell

Totally agree. Like they say though, takes one to know one! (the redneck stuff... not the other :rolling-on-the-floor-laughing::rolling-on-the-floor-laughing:) I have redneck'd a LOT of stuff in my day, enough to know i would rather do it right once than wrong 3 times.

 

[Red_Beard]

 

[JoJosReef]

Update:

I got two unions to test out on the first pipe. There is some space between the ends of the unions, so I wondered if one union connecting the cut pipe would provide enough margin to fit the elbow in the stand's cutout.

After cutting the pipe and dry fitting the union ends, result:

It looks like just cutting the pipe and adding the union did the trick! I will prime and the ends and add the cement tomorrow AM!

Next question: Do I even need to cut and add a union to the emergency drain pipe? I screwed in the emergency drain without doing anything to it.

It JUST touches the primary drain elbow:

So, does anyone think I need to cut and add the union to the emergency drain? Will that contact at the elbow cause problems or horrible noise? If noisy, could I stick some felt liner to the elbow to reduce noise? I have 1mm thin felt liner I'm using for the T slots that sit flush against the tank to mount lights.

Thanks everyone!!

 

[TangerineSpeedo]

Update:

I got two unions to test out on the first pipe. There is some space between the ends of the unions, so I wondered if one union connecting the cut pipe would provide enough margin to fit the elbow in the stand's cutout.

After cutting the pipe and dry fitting the union ends, result:

It looks like just cutting the pipe and adding the union did the trick! I will prime and the ends and add the cement tomorrow AM!

Next question: Do I even need to cut and add a union to the emergency drain pipe? I screwed in the emergency drain without doing anything to it.

It JUST touches the primary drain elbow:

So, does anyone think I need to cut and add the union to the emergency drain? Will that contact at the elbow cause problems or horrible noise? If noisy, could I stick some felt liner to the elbow to reduce noise? I have 1mm thin felt liner I'm using for the T slots that sit flush against the tank to mount lights.

Thanks everyone!!

As long as it is not putting stress on the overflow it is ok.

 

[hoffmeyerz]

Looks good, simple fixes are the best!!
You may find that when the main drain is operating the weight of water in the pipe "may" bring it down to touch the emergency drain line. I wouldn't expect it to be extreme or be a problem other than maybe rattling which you already have a solution for.
Keep moving forward!!

 

[VintageReefer]

Make sure you review the pipes support bracket inside the cabinet, that may need to be moved to serve its purpose

 

[JoJosReef]

Make sure you review the pipes support bracket inside the cabinet, that may need to be moved to serve its purpose

I'm able to screw those right into the T slots I put along that perimeter. Just have to drill some new holes in that metal plate to bring it up about half an inch.

 

[JoJosReef]

Thank you everyone for all of your help on this. I ended up cutting the emergency drain tube and adding the union to that one as well, and it all fits perfectly when dry-fitting. Right now I'm going to start priming and adding the cement.

Last question. For the new unions in the center of the drain tubes, should I also be cementing them shut? Or do you think simply having them screwed in tight is sufficient safety? I suppose the same could be said about the unions just below the overflow box, but if I cement those, it would be quite difficult to remove the pipes if I needed to do some maintenance... These unions maintain their seal pretty well, right?

 

[hoffmeyerz]

Yes, they will keep their seal just fine. Don't cement them together and don't over-tighten them. It's the rubber o-ring that makes the seal and cranking it tight will flatten the o-ring too much.
Screw it together snuggly hand-tight and get water in that tank!

 

[sushiboss]

@JoJosReef i don’t even understand the problem. So the tank was raised 1/2” but the plumbing doesn’t actually connect to anything in the sump. Why can’t the pvc enter the cutout 1/2” higher? Is there not 1/2” to spare? What about making the cut out 1/2” bigger?

I think it’s slightly less than 1/2”.

I measure in the tank thread it’s razor tight.

 

[JoJosReef]

I think it’s slightly less than 1/2”.

I measure in the tank thread it’s razor tight.

And it was. I could screw in the union about 3/4 of the way but then the elbow was hitting the top of the stand and any more would cause the tubing to angle outwards, so no-go. I cut the tubes and extended them with a single union, and now it's fitting perfectly. Curing the PVC cement as we type!

 

[JoJosReef]

Hey everyone, I know I said last question, but... last question.

In typical fashion, did a serviceable job cementing the pipes to the unions, but botched up the clean-up. They ugly.

Question #1: Should I sand down the ends of these unions to remove the blue cement? I have varying grit sandpapers for polishing acrylic, so I have very fine sandpaper if needed.

Question #2: A coworker suggested rubbing some vasoline "or some lubricant safe for your aquarium" on the seal between unions. Is that a good thing to do, and if so, what would you use?

THANKS!

 

[hoffmeyerz]

That won't hurt anything, it's the o-ring that makes the seal. Don't put any lubricant, just snuggly hand right and fill it up!!

 

[JoJosReef]

That won't hurt anything, it's the o-ring that makes the seal. Don't put any lubricant, just snuggly hand right and fill it up!!

Starting to!

 

[Red_Beard]

That top one looks like the glue is kinda thick. i would clean that one up. sandpaper only if it is super fine, you don't want to mess up the mating surface. Or you could scrape it gently with a utility knife to knock off the ridge. just make sure it is perpendicular to the fitting so it scrapes and doesn't cut and make sure you don't gouge it. if you mess up that face, it is toast.
You could use some superlube(food safe), it does help a little in maintaining the rubber, but not necessary.

 

[JoJosReef]

That top one looks like the glue is kinda thick. i would clean that one up. sandpaper only if it is super fine, you don't want to mess up the mating surface. Or you could scrape it gently with a utility knife to knock off the ridge. just make sure it is perpendicular to the fitting so it scrapes and doesn't cut and make sure you don't gouge it. if you mess up that face, it is toast.
You could use some superlube(food safe), it does help a little in maintaining the rubber, but not necessary.

I've got up to 5000 grit sandpaper I could use to clean off the blue glue:

Any idea where to start and where to finish?

 

[hoffmeyerz]

Anything on those surfaces would have to be higher than the o-ring to make an impact. They two surfaces should never physically touch, if they do it's over tightened.

 

[Red_Beard]

Anything on those surfaces would have to be higher than the o-ring to make an impact. They two surfaces should never physically touch, if they do it's over tightened.

the o-ring would also need to be flexible enough to match the ridge/valley of the additional contour of the glue. In my experience, those imperfections on the mating face WILL leak over time. Mostly just this area. everything else looks fine. I would start with 240, just knock off the high spot.

 

[hoffmeyerz]

the o-ring would also need to be flexible enough to match the ridge/valley of the additional contour of the glue. In my experience, those imperfections on the mating face WILL leak over time. Mostly just this area. everything else looks fine. I would start with 240, just knock off the high spot.

Valid. I would be Leary of sanding though and putting a scratch pattern on a surface mating with the o-ring.
I get your point and concern though, scrapping down with a razor or light sand up with high enough grit to not leave a deep scratch pattern should be ok. Like @Red_Beard said, just knock off the high spots.

 

[JoJosReef]

Thanks to you both!