1" or 1.5" drain hole?

tigga · 02/24/2007, 04:39 PM

Should I drill a 1 inch or 1.5 inch drain hole on my 29g (30L, 12W, 18H)?

Also what are the size diamond coats for 1" hole and 1.5" hole? Is it 45mm and 65mm respectively?

ricwilli · 02/24/2007, 05:14 PM

I hope someone answers this question. I would like to drill my 72 gal tank and don't know which size to drill or what bulkhead to but.

reef_doug · 02/24/2007, 05:31 PM

I would drill a 1-3/4" hole to fit a 1" lightweight bulkhead for a 30g. A 1" bulkhead should give you up to 600 gph pending return pump. Which return pump? You probably don't want anything over 250-300 gph anyway in a 30g.

Remember the sump is for filtration and you don't want a ton of flow going through it. Use a couple powerheads in the display for the added circulation

See http://savko.com/PartList.asp?pgid=2

Best
Doug

tigga · 02/24/2007, 07:11 PM

People say that a 1.5" drain prevents the worry of snails, algae, and things to clog up the drain. However I feel I could easily buy 1" plumbing from websites.

Larry Waughon · 02/24/2007, 11:46 PM

I think a 1" is fine for your tank size.

savethereef · 02/25/2007, 02:02 AM

1 inch for a 29g is good and two 1/2 inch returns

Krypticol · 02/25/2007, 08:45 AM

Should you do 2 overflows for safety?
or is 1" big enough to not get clogged generally???

aaronmaestri · 02/25/2007, 08:54 AM

I have a 36Gal and wish I had drilled for a 1.5" drain.
but then again it all depends on your return pump and tank turnover

toddc76 · 02/25/2007, 09:51 AM

Is there any reason why not to jsut drill a bigger hole and be safer than sorry down the road.

In my 65g Tall I drilled (2) 1.5" bulkheads into it.

michaeldaly · 02/25/2007, 09:55 AM

I would go for the bigger bulkhead, far less chance of getting blocked and could allow for more powerful return pumps if needed.

02/24/2007, 04:39 PM	#1
tigga Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 196	1" or 1.5" drain hole? Should I drill a 1 inch or 1.5 inch drain hole on my 29g (30L, 12W, 18H)? Also what are the size diamond coats for 1" hole and 1.5" hole? Is it 45mm and 65mm respectively?

02/24/2007, 05:14 PM	#2
ricwilli Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 929	I hope someone answers this question. I would like to drill my 72 gal tank and don't know which size to drill or what bulkhead to but. __________________ If you buy cheap solution, be prepare for it's limitation.

02/24/2007, 05:31 PM	#3
reef_doug Premium Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Hesperia/Apple Valley Posts: 3,814	I would drill a 1-3/4" hole to fit a 1" lightweight bulkhead for a 30g. A 1" bulkhead should give you up to 600 gph pending return pump. Which return pump? You probably don't want anything over 250-300 gph anyway in a 30g. Remember the sump is for filtration and you don't want a ton of flow going through it. Use a couple powerheads in the display for the added circulation See http://savko.com/PartList.asp?pgid=2 Best Doug __________________ "If you have more than one tank in your livingroom, you might be a reefneck" Current Tank Info: 180r SoCal Creations, 75g SCC1M Sump, WM EcoBAK, NextReef SMR1, TropicMarin Salt, ACIII, 3x250w HQI Phoenix 14k, 2x140w Super Actinics, ATi BM250, Eheim 1262, Tunze 2x6100+7095, Tunze Osmolator, 6 stage RODI w/ Spectrapure MaxCap

02/25/2007, 02:02 AM	#6
savethereef SCRK Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Bellflower 90706 CA (So Cal) Posts: 7,720	1 inch for a 29g is good and two 1/2 inch returns __________________ Instead of building a reef in my home i would rather build my home in the reef. Rob aka STR SCRK & SCMAS MEMBER Current Tank Info: Leemar 450g 96L x36W x 30T 3/4 inch Starfire With 70g Sump Vertex 250 Royal Exclusive protein Skimmer Laguna 2900 Return pump 5 Aquaillumination Hydra's LED Modules. 4 Tunze Stream Bubble Magus Doser. Reef Keeper Elite

02/25/2007, 08:45 AM	#7
Krypticol Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: The Great Northwest... Posts: 103	Should you do 2 overflows for safety? or is 1" big enough to not get clogged generally??? __________________ Krypticol Current Tank Info: 14g Oceanic Bio Cube, building a 120g experimental setup!

02/24/2007, 07:11 PM	#4
tigga Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 196	People say that a 1.5" drain prevents the worry of snails, algae, and things to clog up the drain. However I feel I could easily buy 1" plumbing from websites.

02/24/2007, 11:46 PM	#5
Larry Waughon Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Pingree Grove, IL Posts: 1,872	I think a 1" is fine for your tank size.

02/25/2007, 08:54 AM	#8
aaronmaestri Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: New York Posts: 50	I have a 36Gal and wish I had drilled for a 1.5" drain. but then again it all depends on your return pump and tank turnover

02/25/2007, 09:51 AM	#9
toddc76 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Chicopee, MA Posts: 102	Is there any reason why not to jsut drill a bigger hole and be safer than sorry down the road. In my 65g Tall I drilled (2) 1.5" bulkheads into it. __________________ -=Todd C Current Tank Info: 14g Bio Cube, just getting started

02/25/2007, 09:55 AM	#10
michaeldaly Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Earth Posts: 2,009	I would go for the bigger bulkhead, far less chance of getting blocked and could allow for more powerful return pumps if needed.