Fixing a Leaky Bulkhead while the water is running??

[chuckdallas]

I built an Algae Turf Scrubber (ATS) using a thin rectangular plastic wastebasket. They recommended a Home Depot Bucket, but I was afraid that a bulkhead would leak with a curved surface so I used a rectangular wastebasket so the bulkhead would be on a flat surface of the plastic wastebasket. I installed the ATS and everything was running fine for 2-3 months. Recently, I moved the wastebasket and since I didn't use enough silicone on both sides of the bulkhead, it has begun to leak. The drip is about one drop per 30-40 minutes, so it's pretty slow. I put a metal brownie pan underneath to contain the leak but now I need to make a permanent fix. I know that you are supposed to wait about 24 hours for silicone to dry, so I'm not sure that un-installing the ATS and re-siliconing the bulkhead will work. Since the ATS is growing the algae that I need to keep the nitrates and phosphates down in the tank, I don't want to unhook the ATS and run the filter system without it for 24 hours to allow the silicone to dry completely.

I used some of the Aquascape two-part epoxy for attaching frags to rocks to stem the flow when this happened about a month ago and that worked for a bit. I used heavy duty duct tape to hold the epoxy, but after moving the bucket 2-3 more times, the water has found a weak point.

Any suggestions from the experts besides the "die hard refugium folks" telling me to get rid of the ATS? It works REALLY well with my filter sock and skimmer and I'm happy that it's taking care of the phosphates and nitrates. Thanks in advance.

[johnnyb05]

i wouldnt worry about 24 hrs. just keep the algae heated and some flow. plenty times i have remodeled my sump and my refug was fine. i put a heater and powerheads in my main tank and ref. this is a sps tank. one time my 65 gal tank split a seam. took a whole day to go buy a new tank, transfer a 5" sand bed, fish, coral the whole nine yards, boy was i worried. next day after the storm of the century the tank never looked better.

[mcoomer]

You used silicone to seal your bulkhead? Is there not a rubber gasket in place? I've never had to seal one with silicone. If you're going to reseal it with silicone I don't really see a shortcut. I suspect you'll have to cut the water and drain it to a level that allows you to have a dry workspace for the silicone to adhere.

Mike

[chimmike]

agreed. Once you use silicone to seal it, now you need to wait for new silicone to seal properly. The rubber seal that came with the bulkhead should have worked without the use of silicone, honestly.

[jeff@zina.com]

For the Homer bucket you want a Uniseal, not a bulkhead. For your problem now, you have to drain, dry and fix it properly.

Jeff

[chuckdallas]

I didn't really use the silicone to seal the bulkhead. I didn't want to screw the rubber gasket on too tight, for fear of cracking the plastic wastebasket around the area where I drill the hole in the basket, so I screwed it in "enough" (or so I thought) and then applied a super thin coating of silicone around the edge of the bulkheads that touched the plastic wastebasket to make sure it "stuck" to the plastic wall. I guess I'll unhook it tomorrow and tighten the screws on each side of the bulkhead.