Have a flood? Please help the rest of us.

[pmrossetti]

Very sorry. What was the cause? What are your conclusions? Thank you. :)

[mfinn]

Over tightened pvc fitting from a pump. Cracked the pvc fitting in the middle of the night. Woke up to about 40 gallons of saltwater on the floor.


Conclusion,
know when to quit turning the fitting with the oversized channellocks.:)

[gannetnz]

i woke up last week to my temp holding tank had split a seam and put 100L all over the floor. ended up having to get the carpet wet/dry cleaned 3 times to get all the sale out :(

[billdogg]

A flood??? LMAO!!! which flood would you like to hear about???????

the bottom line on all of mine is that they can all be tied directly to HUMAN ERROR. I'm still looking for this HUMAN, and when I find him, boy is he gonna get it!!!

[pmrossetti]

Hi all at RC, I'm a retired safety engineer so with that in mind let me comment on the first 2 so far. In eliminating safety hazards there are 3 steps. 1. Engineering controls(change what you're doing or engineer the problem out). 2. Administrative controls(use people the right way or train them properly and last 3. Personnal Protective Equipment( gloves, masks, etc.
The first incident can be TOTALLY eliminated by using a submersible pump(hazard eliminated), the 2nd not completely, but I would bet it was a glass tank. Acrylic takes more care but is vastly stronger than glass. Hope these help. Keep em comoing and I hope I can help. :)

[aquaph8]

My worst flood came from a check valve going bad. The power went out and I guess the check valve had been going one direction for so long it got stuck and didnt close. I now test my check valve weekly to make sure it still works. I only lost about 10 or 15 gallons on the floor, but thats alot more than one would think.

[pmrossetti]

aquaph8 and all, NEVER rely on a check valve. Many ways for failure. Always be sure your sump can handle the back siphon from your tank. Otherwise a flood WILL happen. Thanks :)

[bmullikin1]

mine was from leaving rodi on too long and overflowing all over closet, luckily it was still fresh water. should get a float valve, but i use the oven timer to remind me for now.

[pmrossetti]

bmullikin1, Sorry about your accident. Yes a float valve would help. But why didn't the oven timer remind you? :) Love to all.

[jayk198030]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15611671#post15611671 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bmullikin1
mine was from leaving rodi on too long and overflowing all over closet, luckily it was still fresh water. should get a float valve, but i use the oven timer to remind me for now.

same happened to me. i got a float valve now. i dont rely on my self to hear the timer. my luck i would be using the bath room when it went off.

[pmrossetti]

jayk198030, Good decision, You'll be OK from now on.

[goochesfish]

I had an anemone go into the overflow box. It split in 3 pieces and survived to be healthy nems that I profited from. Water flowed out of the tank, onto the chiller which proceeded to develop into a near electrical fire while I was at work. Carpet was soaked!

[GTriever]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15611391#post15611391 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by billdogg
A flood??? LMAO!!! which flood would you like to hear about???????

+1; overflowing skimmer, RO/DI left on, ATO hose slipping out of the tank, cracked tank... which one ya wanna hear about? :rolleyes:

[03sonicstang]

Very sorry to hear these stories...but great thread idea!

[seafansar]

We all need LEAKFROGS! lol
BEEP!!! BEEP!!!
http://www.gizmodiva.com/entry_images/0308/17/leak_frog_1.jpg

I'm going to get one or something similar.

As for floods...from my dad's set up, no mine...
RO is on a float valve that goes into a 55 gallon barrel that in turn is the ATO water for his tank. One day, while he was asleep in the chair next to the tank (LOL), the pipe that puts the ATO water into the tank fell out and the ATO merrily pumped 55+ gallons of water onto the carpet. When my dad woke up, his feet landed in the giant puddle and he knew something was horribly wrong. We cleaned and dried the carpet, but mold grew under it and even under the wall paper, so we had to take down the tank and replace the carpet with tile. Oh and before replacing it, my poor dad got pneumonia from breathing in mold spores! Poor dad...a little leakfrog, water alarm, could have saved him from all that trouble. Too bad we didn't know such a thing existed back then.

[audiophile42]

While running the RO/DI into a 32 gal brute container, I decided to watch a movie. Wake up several hours later after passing out on the couch to find a nice puddle in the apartment. Now I set timers whenever I have the RO/DI running.

[pmrossetti]

Great input folks. I hope this helps people. As for skimmer overflowing, I guess it's external? Not a good idea. Hoses coming loose? Always anchor them. As for anemone in overflow box, I don't have enough info. Ahang on box? One overflow is always a risk. Always have two if possible. Keep em coming. Love to all. And don't be discouraged. :)

[trexer]

I have survived a few small floods that could have been large floods but were caught in time.

[trexer]

I am glad that everyone has moved past the floods that have happened. One of my friends had a flood and that was it for his tank.

[pmrossetti]

That's why I tried this thread. Preventing floods promotes the hobby. IMHO floods are so discouraging they must be avoided as THE priority. :)

[IridescentLily]

A bump in the night

*waves at pmr*

[BuddhaKiss]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15611671#post15611671 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bmullikin1
mine was from leaving rodi on too long and overflowing all over closet, luckily it was still fresh water. should get a float valve, but i use the oven timer to remind me for now.

hahaha, that's happened to me a few times. I use a timer now

[Michael_84]

I built a drain into my stand for the potential overflow issue. My tank has been up a week and already it has saved my floor. I simply made a pan out of 1/2" plywood and covered the inside in Fibergass shower wall material. then I bored and routed a hole in the center. I then installed a drain, and a 1" Pipe that goes through the floor (In the wall) down the the sump pump. Works well. After I first test ran the tank I siphoned all the water into the base of the stand. It swallowed alll 90 Gallons w/no issue, and a dry floor.

[IridescentLily]

That's seriously a great idea Michael84.

[pmrossetti]

Excellent stuff folks. :)