automatic shutoff valve?

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

Mbeef61

Aquarium Advice Regular
Joined
Apr 4, 2005
Messages
73
Location
corvallis or
does anyone know if there is such a thing as a shut off valve for gravity flow wet/dry filters that shuts closed is the power goes out? i have a 90 gal and 29 ref and if the power goes out i lose like 20 gal on the floor? im sure there is a solution for this because that is a major flaw when i am renting. salt water and carpets dont mix lol thanks
 
Your sump should not be that full. It needs to have room enough for the water to siphon back down or you need a better siphon break at the tank.
 
You can get a PVC backflow preventor. Just a couple bucks and it only lets water travel in one direction. That's what I have.
 
Check valves can and will fail. If it is set up right you should not need them. They are good insurance but I would not depend on one.

IMO
 
i have the U tube overflow and never have a problem with the back flow and good thing is when you start your pump back up the syphon system in it is still set up. also make sure your return spout has a diffusor built in it to help with the back flow from your return spout. if yours doesnt you can always drill a hole in it if you know where to put it.
 
no i dont have a back flow preventor on my return line...where should i drill the hole then to prevent backflow?
 
im talking about if my power goes out... my tank drains into my sump until the water level is below prefilter box and the siphon goes out...and that is like 20 gallons...my sump its big enough to hold all that so eventually it will go on the floor.
 
Your prefilter box needs to be at a height that will not allow water in it when your sump is full. I think the hole Johnathan was talking about was drilling a hole at the bottom of your U tube to break the suction at a higher level of water in your siphon box.
 
The solution is quite simple: drill two small holes in your return right at (or JUST below) the water line. When water tries to backflow down the return, the holes allow air in, thus breaking the siphon.

Drilling two holes limits the risk of blockage when the inevitable snail blocks one.
 
I agree with Midiman. You need a siphon break on the return pipe at the tank. Drill a hole or two right at or below the full tank water level. Water will flow out the hole when the pump is running but it is at the water surface so you waon't see or hear it. When water drops below the hole, it will break the siphon so that you don't have that much draining back into the sump.

This will probably help keep the water level in the HOB overflow higher thus keeping your siphon on the U tube. You don't want to lose that siphon on the U tube. That is bad news which you already know.

When power goes out, water will drain from 2 places, the overflow and the return line. Your overflow need to have a stand pipe or something to keep water at a certain level to not lose the siphon on the U tube. The hole on the return line will stop the back flow from the return line.

Should be fixable :)

Good Luck.
 
Your overflow need to have a stand pipe or something to keep water at a certain level to not lose the siphon on the U tube

Good point. I forgot about that, since mine has two compartments, one of which acts as a standpipe.
 
thanks ellisz, and everyone, all perfect solutions...i knew there had to be something simple because if it was like this on all wet/drys no one would have them if they overflow all the time! thanks guys
 
i know this is a older topic but those with the check values in the return, do they not work right? I plan to do the drilling of holes to break the siphon but I'd also want to get a check value too....unless they dont work
 
Gatorfreak said:
You can get a PVC backflow preventor. Just a couple bucks and it only lets water travel in one direction. That's what I have.

ive argued this before. you cannot use this with the overflow. it will not work. this type of valve allows water to flow one way and not the other. an overflowalways flows one way DOWN. if you are using this type of valve on an overflow you are in for a disaster.
 
I guess I wasn't clear about the location of the check valve. I have it on the return (pump -> display tank) which is always going up unless powered off.

Having said that, I also have the holes drilled in the return just below the display tank's water level should the check valve fail. I don't rely on it alone.
 
yeah, thats where im talkin about having it too...the return. My only thoughts are, after looking at them is it requires press to open the spring loaded value (which I doubt is stainless and will rust quickly unless you buy it from somewhere that can confirm its stainless) Im just curious if this will require a bigger pump to get the return you need. Oh, and they arent that cheap, check values at HD are $7 for a 3/4' and up....
 
The loss of water flow is something I've wondered about. I never did any kind of test to quantify any loss of flow. I should probably take it out and inspect it at some point to see if it's corroding.
 
pearsont74 said:
yeah, thats where im talkin about having it too...the return. My only thoughts are, after looking at them is it requires press to open the spring loaded value (which I doubt is stainless and will rust quickly unless you buy it from somewhere that can confirm its stainless) Im just curious if this will require a bigger pump to get the return you need. Oh, and they arent that cheap, check values at HD are $7 for a 3/4' and up....

i wouldnt use an hd valve use one specific for the hobby it will not cause a drastic loss of flow . but yes it is expensive and will clog but not rust.
 
someone needs to make a valve that goes on the hang on prefilter that will close with battery backup when the main power is cut off...this will allow water to stay in the chamber so that when power comes back on and the main gate opens then the siphon is uninterupted...only held while the power is out...this will also keep the pump from burning out
 
Mbeef61 said:
someone needs to make a valve that goes on the hang on prefilter that will close with battery backup when the main power is cut off...this will allow water to stay in the chamber so that when power comes back on and the main gate opens then the siphon is uninterupted...only held while the power is out...this will also keep the pump from burning out

couldnt you use a small pump that comes on to create the siphon for you.

i you drilled a small hole at the top of the siphon and connected a pump that returned back to the main tank. then when the power went off the siphon would break but when the power came back on the small pump would come on recreating the siphon.
 
Back
Top Bottom