Sump repair opinions needed

[dg2028]

This sump was set up for an external pump. I want to change it back to an internal pump. Would it be better to use a plastic pipe plug to seal the bulkhead or remove the bulkhead and use acrylic 4”x4” pieces and glue over both sides of the hole? What will be the most durable repair? Will the bulkhead be hard to remove and risk damaging the sump? What type of acrylic and glue should I buy? Where should I buy it?

 

[UncommonSense]

Face to face acrylic welds are a bit challenging to get bubble-free if you’ve never tried it before… if aesthetics are your thing, it could look a bit cleaner?

I usually just use a pipe plug in a bulkhead fitting when I don’t need a submerged bulkhead hole anymore! — or, plumb it to act as an emergency drain!

 

[twentyleagues]

If you are worried about the acrylic repair or have never done it before, just use a pipe plug. You could also put a capped pipe in the bulkhead. Leaving it the way you got it gives you options in the future. Its not hard to attach a small acrylic patch but make sure its at least as thick as the original. Weld-on 16 is a very thick acrylic "glue" it used to be available on amazon I have used it to make a similar repair in the past.

 

[UncommonSense]

It should be noted that brand new cell cast acrylic actually has a mold release coating on it from the casting process!

I didn’t know this when doing my first few test welds using scraps of acrylic; every one of those welds snapped with light force after a full curing…

You don’t want to use most solvents (aside from specialty ones) for cleaning acrylic; my best luck has been with warm soapy water, followed by a thorough tap water rinse, a quick RODI water final rinse, then sun drying… — don’t touch the areas you plan to weld with bare hands either! (Finger oils contaminating weld surface)

 

[redfishbluefish]

I had a similar situation with a glass sump with the bulkhead being threaded. I simply put a threaded plug on the inside of the bulkhead. Yours appears to be slip. I'd pick up a slip plug and using the appropriate PVC glue, glue it in on the inside of the sump.