Avoiding plumbing leaks?

[MattinIdaho]

Is there anything I can do with all of the fittings before I add water to help avoid leaks in the future? I have done a test run and it did not leak but I worry about it starting to leak someday down the road and want to avoid any problems that could be prevented right now.

[dava6711]

There's really not an awful lot you can do to prevent any leaks that might occur in the future, at least if the fittings/joints are solvent welded together! The best thing you can do is to ensure your plumbing is modular- ie lots of socket unions that screw and unscrew together so if you get any problems you'll be able to replace the leaking part and fit the replacement fitting onto the sound pipework via another socket union. Also make sure you have easy access to all parts of the pipework and can remove any part of it at anytime for maintenance, this is turn will ensure that any part of the pipework can be replaced if it develops a problem!

[ryeguyy84]

yeah I thought it would be a good idea to silicone around some piping i did... really sucks to remove when you need to but it didn't leak.

I really regret doing that though, would have preferred a leak

[OodleyBoodely]

My build is up in the air right now due to leaking plumbing, and, I hard plumbed it all which means I have to cut it all out and start over...big pita! One word of advice...when you leak test your tank, completely fill the tank and run the return pump at full return (or at the level it will be used) to make sure your drains and return lines can handle the pressure. I only passively tested my drains by filling the outside drain box and letting it sit a few days to see if there were any leaks. No leaks, so, I set up the tank and started up the pump. Bad leaks! Soaked my floor leaks. So, the moral is...do a proper leak test to be sure!

[dylan87]

i always use nenough sovent that when i push th epipe into the fitting and twist it a bead of solvent forms on the outside the fitting and pipe form with this you ensure even spread of solvent on the inside of the fitting and the bead ensures that if there isnt even spread you will get no leaks

[Reefermandan]

Me too dylan...I plumbed to basement so a lot of connections but I made sure to use a lot of primer and solvent and then ran a complete test with tap water for a few days. I then emptied and put in the fresh saltwater. I was really expecting a leak somewhere because I am not too good at this kind of stuff. Lucky I guess :)

[evsalty]

There's really not an awful lot you can do to prevent any leaks that might occur in the future, at least if the fittings/joints are solvent welded together! The best thing you can do is to ensure your plumbing is modular- ie lots of socket unions that screw and unscrew together so if you get any problems you'll be able to replace the leaking part and fit the replacement fitting onto the sound pipework via another socket union. Also make sure you have easy access to all parts of the pipework and can remove any part of it at anytime for maintenance, this is turn will ensure that any part of the pipework can be replaced if it develops a problem!


This is exactly what I do with my plumbing.

This tank is coming down but you can see the unions/valves that allow me to work on different parts of the plumbing while still running other parts. I had a frag tank on the left of the DT and BRS reactor that can not be seen but their pipes can be seen heading to the left.

http://i662.photobucket.com/albums/uu343/evsalty/CIMG1020.jpg

This is my 40br. It is going to be plumbed to the frag tank which is now an anemone tank. First pic is while still building it, second pic is it's first day of life.

http://i662.photobucket.com/albums/uu343/evsalty/40br/40brplumbing.jpg

http://i662.photobucket.com/albums/uu343/evsalty/40br/sumpplumbing.jpg

[AcMonster]

Wow! Some nice and clean plumbing there. Way to make the rest of us feel bad!

[ryeguyy84]

Seriously mine looks like I had a stroke midway through. What is that splitter coming off your return pump?

[dava6711]

Evsalty
Plumbing looks pretty similar to mine minus the (scwds)

ryeguyy84
They're scwds- water movement devices that split the flow from a return pump and oscillate the flow!

[Ron Reefman]

Is there anything I can do with all of the fittings before I add water to help avoid leaks in the future? I have done a test run and it did not leak but I worry about it starting to leak someday down the road and want to avoid any problems that could be prevented right now.

Hope it's not too late for you to add this, but if you are up and running already...
I put a liner of flexible PVC (shower pan liner sold at HD) under my sump, external pump and reactors, basically under everything in the stand. The liner runs about 8" up the insides of the stand. I had a leak in the external pump and it saved me from 10g of water on the floor.

[x947]

love the black !!