Help with sump design please

[daitheflu20]

This is what I came up with for the rebuild of my sump to pump pipe! My concern is that water wont be able to flow through the 90 degree bends fast enough for the pump but I have only 8'' to turn that water 180 degrees. Any thoughts?

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The other question I have is about the clear pipe that sits immediately after the pump. It is a one way valve that supposedly will prevent all the water from the tank above from flowing down into the sump via siphon in the even of a power failure. However there are holes in the overflow kit that would break the siphon...if I'm understanding the design correctly. If so, is this piece necessary? It ALWAYS seems to leak and there is a constant salt build up around the joints of it...annoys me.

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[jaustin]

I wouldn't worry about the bends, i'm sure the pump won't suffer that much. You can try to use some teflon tape around the threads on the check valve. Also it's not needed as long as the sump doesn't overflow if you shut your pump off.

 

[slayer]

make sure theres enough water head in that last chamber where the pump draws water from, and you wont have an issue,, of course your gonna loose some flow but in such a tight setup, i wouldnt worry about it..

 

[slayer]

i'd also put a strainer on that bulkhead, to prevent anything entering the pump blades...ie fish or any other large particles and i'd agree; remove the check valve, its sooner or later gonna fail...just drill some holes under the water line of you returns to stop shiponing when the pump stops....

 

[dannybradley]

The check valve, if plumbed properly shouldn't leak. Make sure the o-rings are still in place on the unions for the valve. I've used those valves for years and never had them fail. If it's a concern of yours also include a siphon break hole.

 

[daitheflu20]

slayer77;145789 wrote: i'd also put a strainer on that bulkhead, to prevent anything entering the pump blades...ie fish or any other large particles and i'd agree; remove the check valve, its sooner or later gonna fail...just drill some holes under the water line of you returns to stop shiponing when the pump stops....

Yeah I have the strainer, just wasnt on for the picture. The sump isnt running yet but I've got everyone up top with a bunch of power heads. The returns have holes in them already. Theyre built into the ball joint flexible return things. I believe its an all glass overflow kit. Whenever the pump is shut off, water continues to overflow for a few seconds, then I hear a gargle when the water has reached those holes. Then the water stops overflowing. I rarely, if ever, see this type of setup on the tanks posted here so I was pretty sure it wasnt necessary. Thing wasnt cheap either.

 

[dannybradley]

You can definitely set up a tank without a check valve. They're nice if you don't want any backflow whatsoever into your sump. Don't forget that a siphon break hole can get plugged just as check valve can. Your best bet is have a sump that will handle the excess water in the case of either(or both) failing.

 

[jmaneyapanda]

If at all possible- I would suggest NOT plumbing any restrictions before the pump. Pumps are not made for this. If you must, it is an acceptable risk, but I would only as a last ditch effort.

 

[daitheflu20]

jmaneyapanda;145902 wrote: If at all possible- I would suggest NOT plumbing any restrictions before the pump. Pumps are not made for this. If you must, it is an acceptable risk, but I would only as a last ditch effort.

Can you see any other way of plumbing it? The idea with this design was to have access to the pump for maintenance. The way it was plumbed before, I couldnt get to the pump without completely draining and removing the sump and there was still one 90 degree bend in the pipe. I only have the space visible in those pictures to work with.