Short power-outage resulted in a salty swimming pool in the living room

[Jaybird]

We had a short power break this morning and my sump started to overflow into the living room. I am very glad that I was home when it happened.

After cleaning it up I went to check what caused it. I turned off the pump and watched.....the water from the overflow stopped but the water level in the sump kept rising...and rising...and rising. The only thing that it could be is that the line for the pump is causing a reverse syphon when there is a power failure.

I'm going to home depot after work today to get some solid PVC tubing. I've attached a drawing of what I am hoping to do. By having two holes near the top of the water surface, this should break any syphon that was created, no? As the water drains back towards the sump the level will lower, expose the hole and break the syphon.

 

[neilanh]

Great idea, and very commonly used. Just some small holes drilled into you return line right below the water will do exactly what you described - allow air in to break the syphon when the return pump is shut off.

You'll need to keep an eye on them occassionally to ensure they don't gunk up from algae or salt, etc and clog the holes.

 

[fishmonkey]

yes, that will work.

 

[Jaybird]

Anything will be better than the massive flood I had this morning. I thought it was from my overflow but turns out it was just from the pump.

I have learned a lot just setting up this tank. I'm sure that I am bound to learn a lot more as this thing starts to grow.

 

[cabezon]

So your return outlet is on the bottom of the tank?

 

[fishmonkey]

oh, and also, you could add a check valve (or at least i think thats what it is called...) which should keep the tank from back siphoning.

 

[Jaybird]

So your return outlet is on the bottom of the tank?

The end of the tube connecting the pump in the sump goes near the bottom of the tank, after Being brought up behind and over the top of the tank........if that's what you mean by bottom

 

[bavass]

I drilled a hole in the pvc years ago to break syphon. The problem I had was sometimes it worked sometimes it didn't. Maybe the hole was to small. Anyway that was on my 20g. When I set up my 55g I measured out my 20g sump and I have a line on the sump that is a fill line. I know that as long as I don't go above that line. My tank will never overflow when power goes out and I don't have to worry if the syphon gets broke or not.

 

[Hinds04]

the wholes will work fine or you could just keep a little room in the sump and your return heads higher in the display tank that way by the time the sump fills the water will be below your return heads thus breaking the siphon.

 

[WhiteDevil]

You need to put a check valve on that return line.

We get outages here all the time and never had a tank overflow, then again one is reef ready and the other is a CPR/aquapro wet/dry set up.

Also why do you have the intake near the bottom of the tank? thats a disaster waiting to happen.

 

[Jaybird]

It's not an intake. It's the outflow. There is an overflow on the other side of the tank that goes to the sump.

The problem was that the spray bar from the pump would not break the syphon and would cause the sump to overflow. The extra holes have worked for nearly a year now.

 

[WhiteDevil]

spray bar was under water correct?

I still think a check valve on that line to the tank not the overflow will cease any chances of this again.