Tuning Eshopps Eclipse L

[W1ngz]

Can anyone share their water level in the external box for this overflow? I'm just under the top edge of the bulkhead nut flange.

I've got my new system all plumbed and moving tap water around, and it's pretty well silent - but not dead silent. There's the slightest trickling sound coming from the inside part of the overflow. Tightening my gate valve on the siphon line is pretty well at it's limit, since any more causes the secondary to start drawing air and makes pipe noise.

I suspect I undersized my return pump a little and don't have quite enough flow.

 

[RandyC]

I don't have any experience with the large, but if the design is the same as the medium, it's because of poor design of the eshopps overflow box. The emergency stand pipe they provide sits below the top of the bulkhead and makes it impossible to ever prevent air from coming through the bulkhead and making noise. I've tried cutting a larger emergency standpipe, however, the larger standpipe that will allow water to cover the top of the bulkhead is too close to the top of the external overflow box and either leads to salt creep or water leaking out of the overflow box.

I'm assuming they made the external overflow box lower than the internal (weir) overflow box because of trim, but they really should have made the external overflow box more aligned with the height of the internal overflow box and maybe notched the external box to take into account of the trim.

I haven't tried this (I should though), but maybe you could fit an elbow into the bulkhead and point the flow down to silence it.

 

[W1ngz]

Thanks, however my issue is not with water coming through the bulkhead, and the sound is not coming from the external box. My bulkheads are fully submerged. My issue is specifically on the inner.

I don't have any experience with the large, but if the design is the same as the medium, it's because of poor design of the eshopps overflow box. The emergency stand pipe they provide sits below the top of the bulkhead and makes it impossible to ever prevent air from coming through the bulkhead and making noise. I've tried cutting a larger emergency standpipe, however, the larger standpipe that will allow water to cover the top of the bulkhead is too close to the top of the external overflow box and either leads to salt creep or water leaking out of the overflow box.

I'm assuming they made the external overflow box lower than the internal (weir) overflow box because of trim, but they really should have made the external overflow box more aligned with the height of the internal overflow box and maybe notched the external box to take into account of the trim.

I haven't tried this (I should though), but maybe you could fit an elbow into the bulkhead and point the flow down to silence it.

 

[RandyC]

Thanks, however my issue is not with water coming through the bulkhead, and the sound is not coming from the external box. My bulkheads are fully submerged. My issue is specifically on the inner.

Yes, in my post I'm referring to the bulkhead that sits in the glass connecting the internal and external overflow boxes, not the ones that drain to the sump in the external overflow box. If I'm not mistaken and you look inside you're external overflow box, do you see air bubbles coming in like this through the bulkhead?



If so, then you probably have the same problem I described.

 

[W1ngz]

Those are the bulkheads I'm referring to. The holes that lead through the glass are entirely submerged, and there is no disturbance or bubbles inside the back of the overflow in any way. I am referring to the inner box, only the inner box.

 

[RandyC]

Those are the bulkheads I'm referring to. The holes that lead through the glass are entirely submerged, and there is no disturbance or bubbles inside the back of the overflow in any way. I am referring to the inner box, only the inner box.

Ok. Sorry. Wasted your time.

 

[ca1ore]

The internal box trickling sound IS a direct consequence of the external box being too low. There’s no way to get the level high enough in the latter to also raise the level in the former, thus eliminating the trickling. Just a poor design IME. You can reduce the noise by reducing flow, but this may fall below your turnover goals. This problem is not exclusive to the Eshopps models - there have been many threads on the topic. The better overflows have the external and internal boxes at the same height, with a notch in the former to clear tank trim.

 

[Entz]

I used to have a Medium and had the same issues (on both sides mentioned above). Definitely a poor design, the layout is all wrong.

One thing that helped on the tank side was to put a piece of enkamat inside. It broke up the flow and helped with the trickling noise. Not perfect and you need to keep it reasonably clean as it could technically cause the flow to be restricted and cause an overflow. Useful for keeping fish/snails out as well ( i mean seriously extend it up and put a lid on it Eshopps)

 

[W1ngz]

Ok. Sorry. Wasted your time.

Nah, better that than threads that go without a single reply

 

[W1ngz]

So no one thinks driving up flow will help raise the water level on the tank side?

 

[Entz]

IMO It can’t unless the back side also goes up (cannot fill faster than it drains otherwise your tank will overflow) and there isn’t enough room for that without it running down the secondary/emergency. If you increase the height of that pipe maybe but then there is an extremely high risk of it overflowing .

Increasing the flow may help the flow pattern though and maybe make the noise more acceptable. What it really needs is a lid

 

[RandyC]

IMO It can’t unless the back side also goes up (cannot fill faster than it drains otherwise your tank will overflow) and there isn’t enough room for that without it running down the secondary/emergency. If you increase the height of that pipe maybe but then there is an extremely high risk of it overflowing .

Increasing the flow may help the flow pattern though and maybe make the noise more acceptable. What it really needs is a lid

The medium size comes with a lid. Won't help with the salt creep or overflowing though. I tried it with a taller standpipe.

 

[Entz]

No this is on the tank side .. aka the weir /waterfall noise that is the issue

 

[RandyC]

No this is on the tank side .. aka the weir /waterfall noise that is the issue

Ahhh...gotcha.

 

[ca1ore]

So no one thinks driving up flow will help raise the water level on the tank side?

No, it will make it worse since the tank water level will be even higher than the skim box water level - that's what creates the waterfall/trickling sound. You either have to reduce flow or find some way to raise the water level inside the skim box. Putting some kind of damping material inside the skim box is OK, just be very careful that in the event it becomes clogged there is an alternate path for the water. You can try raising the secondary and emergency pipes, just be careful you don't go too high otherwise the external box may overflow onto the floor.

 

[W1ngz]

After 5 years of my 75 being dead silent, I'm sort of conditioned to expect that any water noise whatsoever means something isn't quite right, so I'll have to figure something out for the new system.
Based on Sicce's flow graph and my head height I think my turnover is a little over 5x display volume, I'll play with the flow rate and see what I can do.