Quastion About Bulkheads and unions?

[takagari]

I know bulk heads are threaded, have those. Once installed, a lot of threading is left, would a same sized union, or half of it precisely be able to thread onto the back of an installed bulk head?

Do any of them come with this ability? Seems silly to me to glue a pipe into a threaded piece to then glue a threaded bit onto that.

Looking to do 2 inch maybe even 2.5"
amazon.ca has plenty just unsure if they will mate, and rather not spend the money first for trial and error?


Thank you

 

[DN328]

Bulkheads come threaded and slip - on the inside. The outside is only to attach bulkhead.

You can use threaded connector to atrach threaded unions or cut appropriate size PVC and cement with slip unions.

 

[takagari]

You sorta of just answered me both ways.. lol I know the threads are for the attaching of the bulk, but do the treads match the unions? can you just thread it on?

 

[kendragon]

You sorta of just answered me both ways.. lol I know the threads are for the attaching of the bulk, but do the treads match the unions? can you just thread it on?

The threads for installation of the bulkhead to the tank are straight threads where the threads to connect your pipe to the bulkhead are pipe thread. They are different.
If you want to connect pipe to the straight thread you would need to get a pump adapter with o-ring.

 

[DN328]

You sorta of just answered me both ways.. lol I know the threads are for the attaching of the bulk, but do the treads match the unions? can you just thread it on?

I know what you were asking and gave you possible options to do it the right way. So no, the threads on outside of the bulkheads aren't used to attach anything.

 

[takagari]

Ah damn, thought so, but worth checking. seems somewhat like a wasted opportunity.

 

[ragin_cajun]

As someone who has run pipe, run tubing, run electrical conduit (PVC, aluminum tube, galvanized pipe, and PVC pipe), let me save you some time. It takes YEARS to truly understand all the ins and outs of running pipe/tubing--I did it for 3-4 years, and I never became truly skilled at it. What we do with these fish tanks is very simplistic compared to what real pro's do.

The "right way to do it" is much easier to communicate than the reasons why it is right, and people who know don't want to "rebuild the wheel" by thinking it all through to explain it.

So realize that whenever you try to improve on "the way it's done" with pipe/tubing/conduit and all the fittings and sizes and thread types......you're trying to improve on solutions that have been devised and improved on for hundreds of years by true masters of the craft. By men who achieved a level of proficiency with these things that few of us will ever appreciate, much less develop ourselves. And have decades of trial and error on their side, and decades of feedback from open markets. Pipe/plumbing/tubing fittings are engineering marvels that undergird civilization--among the highest achievements of humanity. It's that big of a deal. So, unless you're DaVinci or Archimedes, or Robert Manning, you probably aren't coming up with anything new.

As for why they don't make a bulkhead that can accept half of a pipe union.....think about it....why would they? they make a bulkhead with female NPT threads, that can accept a male NPT fitting or nipple. So you just buy whatever kind of union you want to have, with whatever connector type you want, to fit into the bulkhead. Choose from a PVC union that is Slip by Male Pipe Thread, or Slip by female pipe thread and a threaded nipple, or Slip by Slip and just glue a short piece of PVC pipe that is effectively a "slip nipple" , or.......etc, etc, etc.

There are a BUNCH of different types of PVC unions out there for you to choose from, so just choose one that fits in a threaded female NPT bulkhead fitting. Or a slip fitting. But, please, PLEASE, don't ask that they invent yet ANOTHER type of plumbing fitting. There's enough different ones out there, already.
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If I were you, I'd buy my plumbing fittings locally, at a local store you can drive to and look at fittings in your hand, and return ones you don't use. If you don't run pipe all day everyday, you'll need to do some trial and error to get the right fittings to do the job.

 

[duanes]

Once a bulkhead is in place, minerals in the water collect, making removal difficult, and I don't like messing with it, so I put a union a slight distance away. Allows for a good grip if things need to be moved. Fooling with the bulkhead often leads to pesky leaks, or even cracked tank glass where the mineral deposits collect. Much easier to deal with a user friendly Union than wrestle with something so close to the glass.
I try to put a Union every few feet of pipe length to make adjustments and maintenance easy. In my fish room I must have 15 Unions.
I would also agree with buying locally.
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