connecting tank to sump, need advice

[harryk]

Hey all,

My sump has a 1.5" drain inlet and my tank has 2 1" drain lines. In hindsight i should have had 2 1" bulkheads installed but that's another story. Now to my dilemma, If i connect the 2 drain lines to the 1.5" bulkhead will i have any back pressure issues? I was going to T it off and run some raw water into the refugium section of my sump as was my original plan but now i'm concerned about not capturing large particles in a filter sock like the one under the drain in my sump. Maybe i should drill 2 1" inlets but i'm trying to avoid potentially ruining my sump by drilling holes and cracking the acrylic. My other option would be to remove the bulkhead and just slip the 2 drainline thru the hole and not use a bulkhead since the whole is 2.5". Any advice would be great.

Thanks
Harry

 

[depitch039]

Water should not back up but you will have a significant reduction in flow from the T joint.

What about capping one of the drain lines and using a reducer fitting for the sump inlet?

The max flow will only be 600 GPH but it might be an easier solution.

HTH

Doug

 

[harryk]

Water should not back up but you will have a significant reduction in flow from the T joint.

What about capping one of the drain lines and using a reducer fitting for the sump inlet?

The max flow will only be 600 GPH but it might be an easier solution.

HTH

Doug

I cant restrict flow, my return pump will be pumping too much water. I guess i'll figure something out

 

[harryk]

anyone??

 

[DaveK]

Two 1" drain lines or fittings should be able to be connected to the single 1 1/2 drain line with out any major problems, even with the use of a T fitting.

Remember you high school math for the area of a circle? It's pi times the radius squared.

A 1" pipe has 1/2" radius, so the cross sectional area is 1/2 x 1/2 x 3.14 = .79 square inches.

A 1 1/2" pipe has a 3/4" radius, so the cross sectional area is 3/4 x 3/4 x 3.14 = 1.77 square inches.

As you can see the cross sectional area is about double. You will not have a problem.

 

[stcreef]

Also, use a 1.5" Tee, you'll get much less restriction.......

 

[harryk]

thanks

 

[JohnS_323]

Just out of curiousity, wouldn't a 1.5" Wye be better than a Tee? It seems to me that the flow is more linear with the Wye, which would minimize the reduction in the flow. Like I said, I'm just curious. I use Wye's everywhere and was just wondering if it's necessary.

 

[DaveK]

I would agree, a Y would be prefered over a T, but sometimes a Y is tough to find.

 

[Brian]

You should be able to find a WYE at any Lowe's.

 

[harryk]

thanks for all the responses, i did some research and found that the minimum size for about 1200gph is a 1.5" bulkhead. I will most likely be at that or fairly close to that with a 1750gph pump. So i think i will be enlarging the hole to accomidate a 2" bulkhead. and i will be using a wye as apposed to a T. Thanks for all the help. I will post pics in my build thread when i get going on it this weekend


harry

 

[Hawkeye]

Two 1" drain lines or fittings should be able to be connected to the single 1 1/2 drain line with out any major problems, even with the use of a T fitting.

Remember you high school math for the area of a circle? It's pi times the radius squared.

A 1" pipe has 1/2" radius, so the cross sectional area is 1/2 x 1/2 x 3.14 = .79 square inches.

A 1 1/2" pipe has a 3/4" radius, so the cross sectional area is 3/4 x 3/4 x 3.14 = 1.77 square inches.

As you can see the cross sectional area is about double. You will not have a problem.

Ooooo the horrid memories of math in high school. Being asian doesn't help the stereotype either...In about 10 years I just know my kids' hs math teacher will be frowning at my pathetic math skills.

sorry for the tangent harry!