Pump/Draining Issue HELP

ggmichael · 09-16-2006, 10:53 AM

Ok something just doesn't seem right. Whenever hubby turns the pump off the water continues to drain from the tank into the wet/dry filter tank to the point that it goes below the overflow line on the main tank. Before the wet/dry filter tank overflows he has to turn the pump back on and then boom, all the levels go back to normal. Any ideas of what is happening?

Thanks so much all for your help. You are our lifesavers in this interesting learning period.

GG

ggmichael · 09-16-2006, 11:00 AM

nevermind, he's an engineer he figured it out...we panicked for nothing. He had the two discharge nozzles that are in the main tank set too low; so he figured it was suctioning until it hit air which was true. When he relocated one of the discharge nozzles up near the top waaalaaaa...

See it was set up right to begin with and he said he was messing with them the other day to, for some reason, redirect the water.

Ok I'll probably have more questions. Thanks to all for putting up with OUR blonde moments...even though neither of us is blonde

GG

ahill3780 · 09-16-2006, 11:55 PM

GG,

Yes, this is why return lines have anti-siphon holes drilled into the nozzle pipe just below the water line.

Everyone else,

What was happening was, when they cut off the return pump (pump that resides in their wet/dry sump to push the filtered water back into the tank) all the water left inside the pipe on its way up into the tank no longer had that driving force behind it and it only had one way to go: back down because of gravity.

When this happens the reurn nozzle inside the tank that normally acts as a faucet head spraying water into the tank now becomes a vacuum hose inside the tank sucking water out into the sump.

The water would continue falling into the sump until the water surface reached the open end of the return nozzle. Once air started to mix with the water rushing into the line it broke the siphon and the tank would cease draining.

The trick to solving this issue is to drill a hole (about 1/8") in the return line tube/pipe about 1/2" - 3/4" below the water line (that is, if the return line extends deeper than that) so that in the event of a siphon during a power outage the falling water line would uncover the hole and break the siphon before the water level drops beyond that mark.

HTH,
Aaron

jd@ga · 09-17-2006, 12:04 AM

Wow ! ahill3780 that was a GREAT call! I would say hi-5 but, I heard those are the leading causes of cancer. Great job!

ahill3780 · 09-17-2006, 02:39 AM

Thanks gd. I think I have more worry about contracting cancer from these cigarettes I smoke than a hi-5.