Durso Modification?

[weaglereefer]

So I finally got a reef ready tank. It came with an adjustable height Durso setup in the overflow. I'm planning to keep the adjustable pipe, but will have to remake the top portion of the stand pipe. I was wondering how turbulent the water in the overflow is. I'd like to place the heater and maybe a few probes in the overflow but I'm worried if the flow at the bottom of the overflow chamber isn't enough then it could mess things up.

I was considering extending the overflow intake tube to 4-5" above the bottom to ensure the water has to flow to the bottom of the chamber before it travels to the sump. I searched for a bit and didn't find anyone doing this or any reasons not to.

I borrowed this picture real quick to show a standard pipe, and the red would be the extended tube attached to the intake and end above the bottom of the chamber.

Any thoughts?

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[pochaxoo]

Hmmmm I think your water level will be about half way down the overflow and be really loud. It is a matter of the water level and the pressure from the height of the water. I will start up and the water will rise to the top until the siphon is started, then the level will go down after the siphon has started. I would think it would be worth trying even without the mod you are proposing. I don't get the impression that I have a bunch of dead water in the bottom of my overflow and if heat rises you might get the desired effect.

Good luck

 

[weaglereefer]

I thought the whole point of the Durso is that it's not a siphon which is what causes the noise. The hole in the top allows air in and prevents the siphon from forming. I thought water entered the pipe and the water level height was determined by the flow with the height varying 1" or so depending on the height of water inside the horizontal section of the Durso. This is what led me to think this idea may work, as the height is not dependent on the location of the intake, only the height of the "U" in the pipe.

Guess there's one way to find out.

 

[realfish]

Yes, that should work. The Durso is more of an overflow than a siphone. When the water level reaches the bottom of the "T" it returns to the sump. The airhole at the to vents it to keep it from being a siphon type return.

Not sure you need to go to this trouble though. The water is pretty stable. I'd just rebuild it rather than trying to modify. For a few bucks you have a fresh clean standpipe.

 

[one dumm hikk]

With it the way you have the red drawn, the surface skim in the overflow box will never get to the sump. The film will simply build up in the overflow box until it causes problems. How you quieten them down is personal preference but you need the water drawn from the surface into the drain or you will have issues with it down the road.

 

[weaglereefer]

Well I'm not trying to modify anything. The adjustable piece has 1 1/4" ends. I'm getting a 1 1/4" T, elbow, and cap, and I have plenty of 1 1/4" pipe sitting around here so it's really more along the lines of trying to improve the design, and it won't add any costs to me.

I currently have my heater in between one of my baffles in my sump, but if moving it to the overflow box works, I'd rather it was there so in the event that the pump clogs or fails, it can still provide some heat by keeping the water in the overflow box heated and thus heating the tank enough to keep from crashing. I'm more concerned about the amount of water passing over the heater in the overflow box. If the water has to travel to the bottom of the overflow before it can travel through the tubing, then it has to bypass the heater.

 

[weaglereefer]

One Dumm Hikk;343321 wrote: With it the way you have the red drawn, the surface skim in the overflow box will never get to the sump. The film will simply build up in the overflow box until it causes problems. How you quieten them down is personal preference but you need the water drawn from the surface into the drain or you will have issues with it down the road.

Thank you, that is the kind of information I was looking for and something I hadn't thought about. Now what if I capped off the bottom of the extended tube and drilled holes in it all down the tube so the water is drawn in from multiple levels, not just the top or bottom (think 20-30 small holes, like 1/4").

 

[one dumm hikk]

The water is going to move quicker through the top holes than the bottom holes and you will end up with stagnant water in the bottom of the pipe where its capped off. If you are worried about the heater not keeping the tank warm if the pump fails then you could always try to hide it in the tank. Or, simply move it to the display if you have a pump failuter. I don't think you are going to see a lot of heat transfer from the overflow box into the tank itself. Before it ever starts heating the tank water, it will have to heat the acrylic panel up warmer than the tank water.

 

[weaglereefer]

Hmm, well it seems the easiest way to accomplish what I'm wanting might just be to throw a spare MJ-400 in the overflow and call it a day. That would keep the water well circulated and make sure no debris settles on the bottom.

 

[william1]

I have ran this type of overflow and its noisey. For about $10 you can make a gurgle buster. It was the best decision I ever made. My 90gallon used to be so loud and now I cant even hear the 180 gallon. Quite as a mouse. Enjoy

 

[weaglereefer]

I know, I think I showed that to you, lol, and I run one in my HOB overflow box. I was just going to experiment some with this design as it seems pretty popular. I may still construct a Hofer setup if I'm not satisfied with this.

 

[william1]

I wasnt to sure how it would work in my 24" overflows but I like it alot. easy to adjust, which you cant do it with the other to quite it down. Just becuase its popular doesnt mean its the best like my MRC skimmer.

 

[weaglereefer]

I know, I figured the popularity is due to the ease of construction vs. the Hofer, but I'll have both and can see which one I like better before deciding. Nice being able to DIY these things, and I love the adjustable height standpipe that came with the tank.

 

[william1]

The hofer took my about 30 min each. The other is alot simpler though.

 

[lilrobb]

I am running this setup on my 55gal.
The surface skim does NOT cause problems - the 'fresh'warer coming into the overflow keeps it constantly turning over...

Robb

 

[weaglereefer]

Alright, builit the Durso, that took all of 2min to do. I went ahead and got the pieces necessary for 2 different Hofer setups. One uses a 1.25"/1.5" flow bell and one is a 1.25/2" flow bell. I wanted to use the adjustable stand pipe because it's thin walled PVC so I got a variety of sizes and will see which one makes the least noise. Because they will all use the 1.25" end cap with 1/4" PEX tubing and an air flow adjuster, I only had to get one endcap, so that's a buck saved. I guess I'll report back when I decide which is the most quiet setup.

 

[weaglereefer]

I'll have a heater in the sump as well, but my 400watt heater is too big to fit comfortably in the sump, where the 200watt heater fits perfectly in between one of the baffles.

 

[pochaxoo]

Ok, now I am dying to know which gurgle buster was quieter. I just bought a few pieced to make the 1 1/4 to 2" bell version, not being sure if the 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 would be enough flow. Let me know how your tests go. I will be building mine tommorrow.

 

[weaglereefer]

Oh, well I won't be building mine for a while yet. I may be able to get the tank changed over in 2 weeks.