myindoorocean
Well-known member
In the interest of keeping my overflow box as small as possible, we only put 2 holes in it - 3/4" for return, 1-1/2" for overflow. I'm trying to talk myself into using a herbie style overflow with one pipe, and I think I've done it. Let me know if you think my logic is faulty.
My tank size inside is 23" x 53" x 20", with 1-1/2" empty at the top. My overflow is 8" x 8". My sump inside is 15" x 45" x 15". My normal water level is at 11", so there is 4" empty at the top. My return chamber in the sump is 6" x 15" x 12".
If I don't have the gate valve dialed in properly, the level in the overflow will go down or up. If it goes down, that will mean there will be more water in the sump. The volume of the whole overflow is approximately 4.5 gallons, and the volume of the empty area at the top of the sump is 11.7 gallons, so no problems there.
If the level in the overflow goes up, either because of the gate valve being out of adjustment or something blocking the drain, the tank level will rise and the sump level will go down, but only from the return chamber. The total volume of the return chamber is 4.7 gallons, so if it empties all the way, it would not overflow the tank because the available volume in the tank/overflow is 8.7. So no problem there, as far as overflow goes.
I will be getting a leak detector module for my Neptune controller, which allows me to have up to 4 water sensors. I would put 1 on the outside of the stand in back, one on the floor of the stand, and I think I could wire a float valve into one of the remaining ports. I would put the float valve in the return chamber of the sump, so that if it dropped too low it would turn off the return pump to avoid it running without water. I could also put a float switch near the top of the tank to turn off the pump if it happened to get too full, but I don't think this is possible. There isn't enough water in the return chamber to overflow the tank, and the rest of the water in the sump just sits there. If I get more water into the sump, that means there is more empty volume in the tank to handle it.
One possible issue is the ATO. If the volume gets too high in the overflow and it goes down in the return chamber, the ATO is going to come on. If it's on for too long I suppose it could add a bunch of water to the system, though the osmolator will only run for 10 minutes and then it will go off. With the pump I'm using it will put a half gallon max in in 10 minutes, then it turns off until it gets reset. So that wouldn't affect the system.
Actually, the biggest problem I think would be the possibility of fluctuation in the return chamber, which would mess with the osmolator.
Can anyone see a flaw in my logic? It's entirely possible!
My tank size inside is 23" x 53" x 20", with 1-1/2" empty at the top. My overflow is 8" x 8". My sump inside is 15" x 45" x 15". My normal water level is at 11", so there is 4" empty at the top. My return chamber in the sump is 6" x 15" x 12".
If I don't have the gate valve dialed in properly, the level in the overflow will go down or up. If it goes down, that will mean there will be more water in the sump. The volume of the whole overflow is approximately 4.5 gallons, and the volume of the empty area at the top of the sump is 11.7 gallons, so no problems there.
If the level in the overflow goes up, either because of the gate valve being out of adjustment or something blocking the drain, the tank level will rise and the sump level will go down, but only from the return chamber. The total volume of the return chamber is 4.7 gallons, so if it empties all the way, it would not overflow the tank because the available volume in the tank/overflow is 8.7. So no problem there, as far as overflow goes.
I will be getting a leak detector module for my Neptune controller, which allows me to have up to 4 water sensors. I would put 1 on the outside of the stand in back, one on the floor of the stand, and I think I could wire a float valve into one of the remaining ports. I would put the float valve in the return chamber of the sump, so that if it dropped too low it would turn off the return pump to avoid it running without water. I could also put a float switch near the top of the tank to turn off the pump if it happened to get too full, but I don't think this is possible. There isn't enough water in the return chamber to overflow the tank, and the rest of the water in the sump just sits there. If I get more water into the sump, that means there is more empty volume in the tank to handle it.
One possible issue is the ATO. If the volume gets too high in the overflow and it goes down in the return chamber, the ATO is going to come on. If it's on for too long I suppose it could add a bunch of water to the system, though the osmolator will only run for 10 minutes and then it will go off. With the pump I'm using it will put a half gallon max in in 10 minutes, then it turns off until it gets reset. So that wouldn't affect the system.
Actually, the biggest problem I think would be the possibility of fluctuation in the return chamber, which would mess with the osmolator.
Can anyone see a flaw in my logic? It's entirely possible!
