Water Mixing Station Plumbing

punkieg0 · Aug 12, 2020

Hi All,
I am not super handy and I am definitely not a plumber.

I would like to build my first water mixing station. My display tank is on the main floor and my mixing station will be in the basement. At this point I do not plan on being able to connect the two. I will use buckets to haul water up.

The plan right now is to use a shelving unit with 2 Brute 20 gallon trash cans on it. I have a 45 and a 20 gallon so this will give me enough water for my needs.

I plan on having a pump in each tank to keep the water circulating. I am seeing various recommendations on if the water in either tank should be heated. Any advise would be welcome here.

Beyond that- I have no idea how to build this.

The Brute cans will be side by side – I am not able to build a platform for them to be vertical. Ideally I suppose I want to be able to move water from one container to the other and have a way to pull water out of each one into 5 gallon buckets.

Anyone with some experience in this area able to point me on what supplies I need? I was planning on PVC pipe- seems like 1” is common from others?
I have looked at many different kinds/styles of water changing stations and they are much more elaborate and often pumping water to the display, which I will not be doing.

Thanks!

BZOFIQ · Aug 12, 2020

If you review this thread and still dont know what to do you dont need a mixing station

Salt Water Mixing Stations Let's See Them!!

I am currently looking to set up a RO/DI storage and salt mixing station in my house and I'm interested in the way other folks are doing it. So if you have any good photos of your systems don't be shy lets see them.:bigsmile:

www.reef2reef.com

Schreiber · Aug 12, 2020

I plan on having a pump in each tank to keep the water circulating. I am seeing various recommendations on if the water in either tank should be heated. Any advise would be welcome here.

I'm assuming the two containers will have salt water in one & RODI in the other? If so, definitely no need to heat the RODI & while heating the saltwater constantly isn't good for a few reasons, having a heater in there to heat it a bit before a water change would be nice.

The Brute cans will be side by side – I am not able to build a platform for them to be vertical. Ideally I suppose I want to be able to move water from one container to the other and have a way to pull water out of each one into 5 gallon buckets.

Ideally, you'd want the can you're pulling from to be higher than the one you're moving to. That way, gravity can do all the work. However, if you're placing them side by side, you'll need some sort of pump in the one you're pulling from.

Anyone with some experience in this area able to point me on what supplies I need? I was planning on PVC pipe- seems like 1” is common from others?

1" is probably overkill working with 20 gallons at a time, but it shouldn't hurt either. Just know all your fittings, valves, etc. will be more expensive than if you'd gone with 3/4" or even 1/2".

At a minimum, you'll need your piping between the two cans that has a valve to open/close the water channel. You'll need some sort of valve coming out of your salt water container to fill your 5 gallon buckets with as well. A standard ball valve is going to be your cheapest & best solution for both locations.

JumboShrimp · Aug 12, 2020

Sounds like a job for 1” uniseals.

ReefBeta · Aug 12, 2020

punkieg0 said:
Hi All,
I am not super handy and I am definitely not a plumber.

I would like to build my first water mixing station. My display tank is on the main floor and my mixing station will be in the basement. At this point I do not plan on being able to connect the two. I will use buckets to haul water up.

The plan right now is to use a shelving unit with 2 Brute 20 gallon trash cans on it. I have a 45 and a 20 gallon so this will give me enough water for my needs.

I plan on having a pump in each tank to keep the water circulating. I am seeing various recommendations on if the water in either tank should be heated. Any advise would be welcome here.

Beyond that- I have no idea how to build this.

The Brute cans will be side by side – I am not able to build a platform for them to be vertical. Ideally I suppose I want to be able to move water from one container to the other and have a way to pull water out of each one into 5 gallon buckets.

Anyone with some experience in this area able to point me on what supplies I need? I was planning on PVC pipe- seems like 1” is common from others?
I have looked at many different kinds/styles of water changing stations and they are much more elaborate and often pumping water to the display, which I will not be doing.

Thanks!

RODI container don't need circulation or heating. Only the saltwater one need. Usual setup is to have one pump to serve both. Both container have pipe come out from the bottom, each to a valve, then join init a T, then go into input of the pump. From the pump it goes above back to the saltwater container. When the RODI side valve is on and saltwater side valve off, the pump will pump RODI into salt container. When salt valve on RODI valve off, the pump will circulate saltwater.

To get water out from container, you can either T from the pipe at the bottom of each container to have it gravity feed, if the container is above ground enough. Or you can T from above the pump to have it push out. You will need at least 4~5 valves. Use true union ones because you will want them be easy to turn on and off for years to come.