So i just bought a 100g 6'x18"x18" 1/2" glass tank! i wanted to make WC's as easy as possible and i was wondering if anyone has experimented with a gravity type drain. I was thinking two holes drilled in the bottom of my tank where i can just open a nossel and the weight of the water will drain my tank. I'm sure it's been done i'm jsut wondering pro's/con's of this. Btw it would be a glass bottom tank.
Gravity WC
- Thread starter Bichir4Life
- Start date
I have no idea if it's tempered. Is there a way to check? Also i don't know what you mean by w/d but i think it's waste drain. My laundry room is the next room over and it has a wash tub in it. Also the sump for my house is not to far away.
For my tanks, I took a length of pvc pipe and used cable ties to string some hose along it. I run the end of the hose out of the garage and start the siphon. The pvc pipe acts as a handle so that you can direct the end of the siphon hose around the tank to pick up debris. You can also simply lean the pipe/hose in the tank and walk away for awhile. I would not drill.
Why wouldn't you drill? One of my friends has diamond tipped drill bits for 1/2" and 1" holes. He's drilled over 50 tanks and to me what your talking about is something i already am doing, i want easier than that. With this i wouldn't have to start a siphon just let gravity do it's work...
Drilling the bottom of the tank is risky, some tank bottoms are tempored. Also if you get a leak do to faulty seal or bulkhead, and your not there to catch it you will loose 100% of the water and fish.
This is why you never see tanks drilled on the bottom without a overflow builtin. The overflow is a backup, that way if the bulkhead or seal failed the overflow would save your tank.
Also I am not saying you would for get but if you ever forgot about this drain while you where doing your wc you could lose all the water.
If you want a best of both worlds do one of the following two options I have set both up and they both work
1: hook a T and ball valve to the output on your canister, this way your canister can pump the water out of the tank.
2: Put a pvc siphon in your tank 1 inch below where you want the water level to drain to, and place a ball valve on this. Once you start the siphon it will be maintained for ever as you don't drain below the intake. All you do is open the valve let it drain and close it when done.
This is just my 2 cents.
This is why you never see tanks drilled on the bottom without a overflow builtin. The overflow is a backup, that way if the bulkhead or seal failed the overflow would save your tank.
Also I am not saying you would for get but if you ever forgot about this drain while you where doing your wc you could lose all the water.
If you want a best of both worlds do one of the following two options I have set both up and they both work
1: hook a T and ball valve to the output on your canister, this way your canister can pump the water out of the tank.
2: Put a pvc siphon in your tank 1 inch below where you want the water level to drain to, and place a ball valve on this. Once you start the siphon it will be maintained for ever as you don't drain below the intake. All you do is open the valve let it drain and close it when done.
This is just my 2 cents.
I take it this tanks going to be barebottomed? If not you're gonna have massive clogging problems. I have seen some cool set-ups where a hole is drilled in the tank and 2 tubes extend out of them to make skimmer overflows that sit at the water line.
Yea it will be bare bottomed. So is it only the bottom thats tempered? Looks like i'm just going to end up doing to it the old fashion way.