We've Sprung a Leak! - Aquaponic Gardening2024-03-29T15:55:34Zhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/forum/topics/we-ve-sprung-a-leak?commentId=4778851%3AComment%3A422637&feed=yes&xn_auth=noThanks and good luck up there!tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-20:4778851:Comment:4239952012-12-20T15:05:47.561ZAmanda Plantehttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/AmandaPlante
<p>Thanks and good luck up there!</p>
<p>Thanks and good luck up there!</p> Well done Amanda. Now get rea…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-20:4778851:Comment:4242382012-12-20T14:48:04.478ZJim Fiskhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/JimFisk
<p>Well done Amanda. Now get ready for the blizzard<a style="cursor: pointer;"><img src="http://www.bkserv.net/images/Grin.gif"/></a></p>
<p>We're expecting 60 mph winds on our 4 mil poly GH roof. Yikes!</p>
<p>Well done Amanda. Now get ready for the blizzard<a style="cursor: pointer;"><img src="http://www.bkserv.net/images/Grin.gif"/></a></p>
<p>We're expecting 60 mph winds on our 4 mil poly GH roof. Yikes!</p> I'm pleased to inform you tha…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-20:4778851:Comment:4241552012-12-20T14:36:30.092ZAmanda Plantehttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/AmandaPlante
<p>I'm pleased to inform you that the leak has apparently been repaired. Unfortunately, we were unable to identify exactly where the water was leaking out of the tank. We think it may have been a crack caused by a student actually getting into the tank, or dropping their pruners in the tank, or something along those lines. I never actually caught a student doing this, but there has been a time or two when the class has accused a student of being unprofessional around the aquaponic unit.…</p>
<p>I'm pleased to inform you that the leak has apparently been repaired. Unfortunately, we were unable to identify exactly where the water was leaking out of the tank. We think it may have been a crack caused by a student actually getting into the tank, or dropping their pruners in the tank, or something along those lines. I never actually caught a student doing this, but there has been a time or two when the class has accused a student of being unprofessional around the aquaponic unit. Based on where the moisture had peeled the floor paint under the tank, we were able to pinpoint a couple broad areas, which we covered in marine grade silicone. It's been 3 days, and the floor's still dry! Thanks for your help!</p>
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<p>While we were working on repairing the leak, we updated the adapters between the connector pipe and the tanks. Although Home Depot's website listed bulkhead fittings, the employees at our local stores (we have a few) had never heard of them. The same went for Lowes.</p>
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<p>So we went with the electrical adapters. We had to pick up O rings large enough to fit the 1" adapters from a car repair shop. Even though they didn't have them on the shelfs, they did have some big enough stashed away in the back of the store. No need for even a drop of caulk -- they're holding just fine!</p>
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<p>Thanks again to everyone for your help. This would have been a lot more difficult without your advice.</p> I'll be sure to pick up bulkh…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-13:4778851:Comment:4227452012-12-13T22:20:35.146ZAmanda Plantehttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/AmandaPlante
<p>I'll be sure to pick up bulkhead fittings from Home Depot as well. They seem pretty easy to understand, which is good because I'm a little dense when it comes to plumbing. I'll examine both ways and go with the one I figure out how to do first. </p>
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<p>Thanks for your help. We'll get an early start on this Monday, and I hope that things will be back to normal by Wednesday. I'll keep everyone posted!</p>
<p>I'll be sure to pick up bulkhead fittings from Home Depot as well. They seem pretty easy to understand, which is good because I'm a little dense when it comes to plumbing. I'll examine both ways and go with the one I figure out how to do first. </p>
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<p>Thanks for your help. We'll get an early start on this Monday, and I hope that things will be back to normal by Wednesday. I'll keep everyone posted!</p> Hi Amanda,
I am hoping the ho…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-13:4778851:Comment:4230112012-12-13T22:12:04.089ZHarold Sukhbirhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/HaroldSukhbir
<p>Hi Amanda,</p>
<p>I am hoping the hole in the tanks are neatly done. With the small shoulder of the fitting, if the holes you bored are not completely round, meaning that they were done that way initially, you may have problems with sealing. Bulkhead fittings have a wider gasket so its not a problem with irregular sized holes.You may also give thought to the purchase of a PVC union for maintenance purposes as well.</p>
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<p><br></br> <br></br> <cite>Amanda Plante said:…</cite></p>
<p>Hi Amanda,</p>
<p>I am hoping the hole in the tanks are neatly done. With the small shoulder of the fitting, if the holes you bored are not completely round, meaning that they were done that way initially, you may have problems with sealing. Bulkhead fittings have a wider gasket so its not a problem with irregular sized holes.You may also give thought to the purchase of a PVC union for maintenance purposes as well.</p>
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<p><br/> <br/> <cite>Amanda Plante said:</cite></p>
<blockquote cite="http://community.theaquaponicsource.com/forum/topics/we-ve-sprung-a-leak?xg_source=msg_com_forum&id=4778851%3ATopic%3A422081&page=2#4778851Comment422928"><div><div class="xg_user_generated"><p>Great! Thanks for your help. I'll make the necessary purchases tomorrow and start on repairs Monday. I'll keep you posted!</p>
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<p>Just to make sure I understood everyone correctly, we'll need:</p>
<ul>
<li>Male and female threaded electrical adapters for 1" PVC pipe</li>
<li>O rings</li>
<li>Marine grade silicone</li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
</blockquote> Only one TA needs to be from…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-13:4778851:Comment:4229292012-12-13T17:04:52.739ZJim Fiskhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/JimFisk
<p>Only one TA needs to be from the electrical dept. but that doesn't matter all that much except to us ocd freaknoids (of which I am one:-). The grey plastic has fire retardants so I like to expose the water to them as little as possible. Thus female electric and male from plumbing dept. You'll notice that the exposure on the female is far smaller (tiny really) but really no big deal. Electrical fittings have no taper allowing you to tighten them all the way to the tank plastic resulting in a…</p>
<p>Only one TA needs to be from the electrical dept. but that doesn't matter all that much except to us ocd freaknoids (of which I am one:-). The grey plastic has fire retardants so I like to expose the water to them as little as possible. Thus female electric and male from plumbing dept. You'll notice that the exposure on the female is far smaller (tiny really) but really no big deal. Electrical fittings have no taper allowing you to tighten them all the way to the tank plastic resulting in a tight seal. One of a thousand things I have learned while building and fine tuning our system over the past year come January.</p>
<p>To answer your question: Yes. The "O" rings come in a package of 5 I believe and are in the plumbing dept. Their biggest fits nice and tight on the 1". Have fun.</p> Great! Thanks for your help.…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-13:4778851:Comment:4229282012-12-13T16:04:14.812ZAmanda Plantehttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/AmandaPlante
<p>Great! Thanks for your help. I'll make the necessary purchases tomorrow and start on repairs Monday. I'll keep you posted!</p>
<p></p>
<p>Just to make sure I understood everyone correctly, we'll need:</p>
<ul>
<li>Male and female threaded electrical adapters for 1" PVC pipe</li>
<li>O rings</li>
<li>Marine grade silicone</li>
</ul>
<p>Great! Thanks for your help. I'll make the necessary purchases tomorrow and start on repairs Monday. I'll keep you posted!</p>
<p></p>
<p>Just to make sure I understood everyone correctly, we'll need:</p>
<ul>
<li>Male and female threaded electrical adapters for 1" PVC pipe</li>
<li>O rings</li>
<li>Marine grade silicone</li>
</ul> Have fun finding that leak, A…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-13:4778851:Comment:4227212012-12-13T13:09:07.143ZJim Fiskhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/JimFisk
<p>Have fun finding that leak, A good flashlight and a dry hand is a good start.</p>
<p>As far as the taper is concerned I don't think it is enough that it won't conform as long as you can crank down on the TAs. Make sure the "o"ring is hard to fit on as it will pop out if it is too loose. The silicone not only helps the seal but is a great lubricant as you tighten the TAs.</p>
<p>Have fun finding that leak, A good flashlight and a dry hand is a good start.</p>
<p>As far as the taper is concerned I don't think it is enough that it won't conform as long as you can crank down on the TAs. Make sure the "o"ring is hard to fit on as it will pop out if it is too loose. The silicone not only helps the seal but is a great lubricant as you tighten the TAs.</p> Good deal. I can see now tha…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-13:4778851:Comment:4226732012-12-13T12:14:00.967ZAmanda Plantehttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/AmandaPlante
<p>Good deal. I can see now that I'll heed to make some changes to the system while I'm repairing the leak. Thanks for your assistance! There are two more obstacles to overcome before I do this:</p>
<ol>
<li>Does anyone have any tips for finding the hole? Based on the small amount of water lost and the trickle of water on the floor, I'd say the hole is very small and difficult to find.</li>
<li>The sides of the water reservoirs are tapered. I'm concerned that when I update the male/female…</li>
</ol>
<p>Good deal. I can see now that I'll heed to make some changes to the system while I'm repairing the leak. Thanks for your assistance! There are two more obstacles to overcome before I do this:</p>
<ol>
<li>Does anyone have any tips for finding the hole? Based on the small amount of water lost and the trickle of water on the floor, I'd say the hole is very small and difficult to find.</li>
<li>The sides of the water reservoirs are tapered. I'm concerned that when I update the male/female adapters, I won't be able to connect them with a level piece of PVC. Thoughts? Attached is an old photo of one of the bins to help you visualize the extent of the tapering.</li>
</ol>
<p>Thanks again for your help!</p> I don't think looking at your…tag:aquaponicgardening.ning.com,2012-12-12:4778851:Comment:4226002012-12-12T23:04:45.933ZJim Fiskhttps://aquaponicgardening.ning.com/profile/JimFisk
<p>I don't think looking at your pic that you used an electrical TA for either the male or female thread. Either one will do in my experience. Normally I will use it for the female even though my pic showed a male but that was because my skimmer tee has a female thread. If you use 2 plumbing TAs due to the taper, you will never be able to tighten them far enough before the taper jams you up. The threads on the electrical TAs ARE NOT TAPERED. Very important. Use what I am suggesting and you will…</p>
<p>I don't think looking at your pic that you used an electrical TA for either the male or female thread. Either one will do in my experience. Normally I will use it for the female even though my pic showed a male but that was because my skimmer tee has a female thread. If you use 2 plumbing TAs due to the taper, you will never be able to tighten them far enough before the taper jams you up. The threads on the electrical TAs ARE NOT TAPERED. Very important. Use what I am suggesting and you will not have leaks and you will save $<a style="cursor: pointer;"><img src="http://www.bkserv.net/images/Smile.gif"/>. Marine silicone and "O" rings are cheap. You should not need caulk.<br/></a></p>