To SCH 80 or not to SCH 80

[ISMANU]

Ok so the The title pretty much says it all, I have always used schedule 40 but have seen a lot of people using SCH 80 and most the big Online stores sell it. So I ask the community for reasons to or not to use Schedule 80 in my 250 setup.

I'll Start,

Sched 80 is significantly more Expensive :thumbdown

[laugh]

Big waste of money. Actually has a smaller ID and therefore more friction. Also it's a huge waste of money. I feel compelled to add that the the extra cost is not worth it. So if you want to show everyone how much money you have to waste then it's perfect.

[Aquatron]

Sch 40 works well will aquarium builds......but i would use sch 80 bulkheads as there is a big difference over pvc/abs bulkheads. Also alot of reefer's use sch 80 gate valves which are alot better than sch 40 ball valves but sch 40 gate valves work well too:)

Good Luck!

[tidewater]

Sch 40 will work just fine. As long as it's not foam core which is not rated for pressure. That is only available for sizes 1 1/2" and larger.

[plapczynski]

40 should be fine.

[no694terry]

I used sch40 to make potato canons, and i fired them with oxygen/acetelene. If sch40 can hold up to an explosion capable of propelling a 12 once potato 400 yards then i think it can pump water into a fish tank.

[Gorgok]

I will also add that i did, and will continue to, use sch80 bulkheads even though the rest is not.

[rovster]

The pipe and fittings are not much more. The valves are MUCH more. I did mostly schedule 80, and all the schedule 40 I used will be painted dark grey to match. There is a pretty big difference in the inner diameter as well. I used a mix of both, but mostly sh80 valves and fittings, spaflex, and sch40 piping, with some sch40 fittings not available in 80. The piping and fittings in my overflow is black.......oh yeah, they have that too;)

[Acrylics]

no good reason to use 80 for anything but bulkhead fittings and valves if you wish. I'll always stick with Sch80 bulkhead fittings and most valves.
Spears makes almost every fitting and pipe in black and many other colors if that's what you're after.. or paint it all :)

James

[madean]

I have heard of to many horror stories of sched 40 bulkheads cracking and leaking. I personally think in the grand scheme of things the cost of sched 80 vs 40 is miniscule compared to what your going to spend for the rest of the setup and what goes in it. At the bare minimum I would use sched 80 bulkheads. Go from there on what your willing to spend. I will probably go all sched 80, but I dont have a lot of plumbing. There is a huge difference with sched 40 to sched 80 bulkheads. Check out Hayward bulkheads.

[sleepydoc]

Do they even make schedule 40 bulkheads? I've only seen ABS and schedule 80.

I have a suspicion that many problems come from ABS bulkheads having too much torque place on them or from being over-tightened and cracking. That said, if it's that easy to do and/or that common of a mistake, ABS is probably not the best material for them.

[psteeleb]

from this chart you can see the inside diameter and pressure ratings for schedule 40 vs 80. your tank will probably run about 5psi, max maybe 10

homes usually run 40 psi

http://dfwmas.org/Forums/download/file.php?id=69607


from this chart you can see that you will need to increase the sch 80 pipe size to get the same flow from a sch 40 pipe (showing gravity drains as a comparison)

http://www.dfwmas.org/Forums/download/file.php?id=69598

use schedul 80 bulkheads - the 40s tend to have cheap threads that can slip easily

use 40 for everything else unless you want to use grey pipe for looks or plan to step on it

[tdb320reef]

Did it mostly for looks. It was expensive about $400 for everything. Then again there is nothing cheap about the build. Here are some pics of my 320

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