Leaking Bulkhead Please HELP OMG!!!! SDKJNKalksdn@!#UY#BIDQKD AHHH

The downpipe in my overflow is fitted with a reducer joint which goes into the slip joint of the flange side. I think this may slowly be leaking (1 drop every 1 minute after return pump is powered off) because I see it dripping occasionally through bulkhead. I am scared to apply pressure and push the downpipe down because I dont want to break the glass or make the bulkhead leak more...This is where the T-valve came in handy. This plumbing kit is alittle annoying because it has a durso at the top of the downpipe so when the return pump powers off it siphons to the bottom of the durso (1.5" to 2"). Not only does that siphon down, but the level in our tank drops about 3 inches because the built in overflow has a gate which you can raise and lower, but even at the highest setting it still has 2 teeth cut lower than the high ones. I am now wondering if we should plug them up with something to limit the amount of water which siphons down

I have a few extra gaskets that would fit over the exterior threads. Are you saying to put a gasket in between the nut and the glass on the outside, in addition to the gasket under the flange on the inside? If not could you please elaborate or find a quick picture or something? This would be helpful, it sounds like an easy fix.

I am thinking the nut may need to be tightened a little more but I am scared that it will either crack the glass.. or cause a bigger leak.

 

Well they make all sizes... I was just using 1" as an example

 

Not a gasket, an O-ring and only thick enough (cross section diameter) to fill the void between the hole and the outside diameter of the bulkhead. If you have 1/8" play then you need a 1/16" thick O-ring or 1/16" per side to take the movement out and center the bulkhead. It is only to take up that space, not to act as a gasket.

 

So I went ahead and ordered that bulkhead (http://www.marinedepot.com/Standard_...FT1123-vi.html) ... and it was too big. I should have read more in depth about the DBP hole size, which I now know as 1.75". The bulkhead that came in the mail was 1.88". It was a quick stupid decision out of frustration...

I bought another bulkhead, similar to the bulkhead that came with the plumbing kit, from my LFS. It too had a little bit of wiggle room (from side to side) inside the glass hole. I figured that maybe the hole was factory drilled a little too big for the standard 1" ABS bulkheads, so maybe the SCH80 heavy duty one would fit.. Well it doesnt.

So I have this new awesome heavy duty bulkhead.. but it doesnt fit down inside the glass hole. It is approx. 0.13" too big.

This is really slowing down the process of setting this tank up. The corals dont seem happy , most likely because the pH is fluctuating because there is no sump and the lights go off every night. There is also some green algae growing on the rocks and poop is prob building up from my fish. If I had my sump setup right now I could solve all of these problems and end the headache.

AZ,

I have not yet tried this O-ring thing but I have a feeling that it would definitely help. Sorry for not completely understanding what you are talking about. I just want to be 100% sure I am doing things right. You are saying that a very small O-ring should fit around the downspout in-between the glass around the inside of the hole. This O-ring shouldnt stick out of the bottom at all, so the nut would still sit flush against the bottom glass when completely screwed in, and it shouldnt stick out of the top glass at all, meaning the rubber gasket would also still sit flush with the glass inside the tank?

 

You could also put a bead of silicone around the oring, I have had to use silicon before as sometimes I just couldnt get them to stop dripping, It wont hurt anything to run a bead of silicon areound it

Also did you use the bulkhead wrench that comes with the kit?
Because if you didn't use the wrench then you may not have tightened the bulkhead nut enough

It should have come with a wrench that looks like an angled piece of metal with to "C" channels cut into it

 

I was under the impression that using silicone will make the bulkhead and gasket slide and twist when you dont want it too, causing leaks.

The bulkhead wrench that came with my kit is crap. It is plastic and when you try to use it after hand tightening, it bends because it is filmsy.. I do have a channel lock wrench which does the job, its just harder to grab the nut with them because the nut is only 1/4" wide and at a weird angle.

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I just placed an order for this bulkhead: Double Threaded Bulkhead Fittings

Hopefully it will do the trick.. what do you guys think

 

While the silicon can cause the gasket to slip around and squish out from over the bulkhead that is only if your overtighten it and really are cranking down on it

I have used silicon on probably 30-35 tank setups and it always seemed to fix a slow drip issue, Those were unusual tanks though because they leaked and it was using the same overflow kit I had always used on customers tank setups

It's worth a try, I mean the worst that can happen is it still leaks and your back where you started, best case scenario is it fixes your slow leak

 

DO NOT use silicone. If you are serious about staying in this hobby do it right the first time.
The O-Ring should stretch snugly around the outside of the bulkhead so it fills the void between the ID of the drilled hole and the OD of the bulkhead. You if you have say 1/8" slop then you want an O-Ring with a thickness or cross section of 1/16" and a diameter somehwere less than that 1.75", maybe 1.5" and stretch or roll it on.

 

Bro silicone is fine to use, Ive been building and setting up tanks for 15 years and never had a problem using it, Bulkheads shouldnt leak in the first place I agree but using alittle bit of silicon isnt going to hurt anything I promise

 

How so?A small drip goes away fast and easy, if you move the tank, a razor blade works wonders on removing silicone. If he used a dollar of silicone, he would solve all of his problems.