ANOTHER small leak

[NewbReefer]

I used clear vinyl tubing on my All-Glass bulkheads and there has been not so much as a trace of water under my tank. Whats nice about the vinyl tubing is you can heat it up for few minutes with a hair dryer or even just in hot water which will expand it and then you can slide it onto your bulkhead, that helps to make sure you get it over 100% of the barbs, and as it cools it forms to the barbs, then i slipped on a hose clamp but would be willing to bet my whole setup that i would get no leaks without the clamp...it's just a, i'd rather be safe than sorry, kinda thing.

as for the barbs being sanded off, you may as well try some other sort of hose before going and buying a new bulkhead. I think you can get it to work with the ones you got. I feel for ya man, i hate having to redo things over and over again until i get it right. you've just had sore luck. keep at it, it'll be worth it.

[NewbReefer]

on more thing, keep in mind that your return pipe is under a little bit of pressure because your pumping uphill and fighting gravity, where your line going out of your tank to the sump is not fighting gravity and is not under pressure. Your flex PVC might not be soft enough to create a solid seal over the entire surface of the barbs on the bulkhead allowing the water under pressure to escape. hope this helps

[yote]

Salty,I think Newb just hit your nail right on the head.
When you sanded the barbs off,you didnt get it perfectly round,there for its not sealing all the way around.
Just get some hose and soak it in some hot water for a minute or 2.Slip it over the bulkhead,just be sure to get it all the up over the last barb.When the hose cools it will shrink some which will give it air tight seal.Tighten the hose clamp for an added safety.
That should fix your leak and your headache.
When I plumbed in my wet/dry,all I used was the vinyl tubing.3/4 id to be exact.havent seen the first drop of a leak.

[SSalty]

You guys ROCK!!!

Thanks soooo much.

Off to Lowes (I love that store) even though I am only going to buy tubing and hose clamps, I am sure I will end up spending 100$, I always find something else that I just have to have, haha.

[matthew1048]

Did ya get the leak fixed up Salty??? I surely hope you have, for the sake of your sanity, LOL!!!

[NewbReefer]

I love lowes and home depot too! i can never seem to get all the parts i need in one trip though, and end up making 3 or more trips. keep us posted on the progress with the leak SSalty.

[SSalty]

Ladies and gentleman, break out the champagne, SSalty is officially leak free.
Here is what I did. I had to keep the bottom portion of the spa-flex because it was glued to my pump. So I cut the spa-flex off of the bulkhead and made another cut after the union. I then used a slip x female coupling, (yes, I used the special cement to bond these fitting together) I then used a male x barb fitting, heated and connected the clear vinyl tube from the barbed fitting to the bulkhead, then double hose clamped that beotch, it has been up and running for 6 hours and no leaks yet. The advice about heating up the vinyl before applying it to the barbs worked out great. Thanks a lot guys. I am soooooo relieved, and can't wait to enjoy this hobby, haha.

Of course, things are better with pictures.

[reeffreak]

Glad things worked out

[NewbReefer]

Im happy it worked out for ya, glad the advice helped

[yote]

We Knew you were a plumber at heart there salty
Glad you got it fixed,now sit back,relax,and enjoy your tank