Hey every I got my first sump tank today its posted in the project forum if anyone wants to see. Well since this is my first sump I have some questions well I've set all up its running great but I unplugged the sump bump for a few seconds and the sump tank Allmost over flowed now the real question is if the power goes out what well happen will I get a Floyd in my house??
sump help please
- Thread starter GrindeL89
- Start date
That's the problem with a non closed loop sump.
You have to account for the amount of water in the pipes and the water above the drain line in the tank. This amount of water will drain into the sump when the pump gets shut off.
To answer your question.....Shut the pump off to check. This will be what happens if your power shuts off. If the amount of water that drains into the sump is greater than the amount of volume occupied by air in the sump, then it's going to overflow.
If it overflows, you need to do something immediately about your design, or else you are going to end up with a flooded floor if/when your power goes out.
You have to account for the amount of water in the pipes and the water above the drain line in the tank. This amount of water will drain into the sump when the pump gets shut off.
To answer your question.....Shut the pump off to check. This will be what happens if your power shuts off. If the amount of water that drains into the sump is greater than the amount of volume occupied by air in the sump, then it's going to overflow.
If it overflows, you need to do something immediately about your design, or else you are going to end up with a flooded floor if/when your power goes out.
First thing you need is a check valve on the return to make sure it doesn't back siphon water from the tank into the sump. This can also be accomplished by drilling a little hole in the return just above the water line to allow air in to act as a siphon break. Be careful though, as water will flow out of this hole, so make sure it is directed into the tank.
Then you need to do some testing between the sump and the overflow. You need to make sure your sump tank has enough capacity to accept any water that will still drain through the overflow after a power failure. So you need to make sure you don't set the sump up so that it is at full capacity, you need to leave a few gallons of leeway.
What type of overflow are you using? If it is a siphon style, you also need to test to make sure that if the siphon fails, you have enough capacity left in the tank to accept any water that will still be sent up through the pump.
This can all take a little practice, but getting the hang of it isn't all that hard, and once you figure it out, just put little marks on the tank and sump for the proper water levels.
Then you need to do some testing between the sump and the overflow. You need to make sure your sump tank has enough capacity to accept any water that will still drain through the overflow after a power failure. So you need to make sure you don't set the sump up so that it is at full capacity, you need to leave a few gallons of leeway.
What type of overflow are you using? If it is a siphon style, you also need to test to make sure that if the siphon fails, you have enough capacity left in the tank to accept any water that will still be sent up through the pump.
This can all take a little practice, but getting the hang of it isn't all that hard, and once you figure it out, just put little marks on the tank and sump for the proper water levels.
I actually just looked at your pics in the DIY forum, and it doesn't look like you have a siphon style overflow, so that is good, one less thing to worry about.
However, that sump tank looks WAY too small for a 160 gallon tank, which may be your issue. It is typically recommended to have a sump about 1/3 of the volume of your tank, this isn't really needed for filter media, but for capacity for when issues like yours arise.
However, that sump tank looks WAY too small for a 160 gallon tank, which may be your issue. It is typically recommended to have a sump about 1/3 of the volume of your tank, this isn't really needed for filter media, but for capacity for when issues like yours arise.
Ok I shoved the issue. The tank water over flows into these pockets then a plastic piece full of air lifts when the the water is high to allow water to drain back to the sump. Well what I had to do is remove some water from the sump when in return once the power to pump is cut alls I need is enough room in the sump to composite intill the water in the pockets empty down the air lift is closed. Below I will post pics.
