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View Full Version : How to connect Pump to system?



Jeff
03-15-2012, 04:07 PM
So it's the easiest question in the world, but since I have a lot of self doubt, I find myself deferring to others who have experience with this stuff!

Here is the pump I have:

http://diyaquaponics.com/forum/download/file.php?mode=view&id=1687&sid=7a73845408b565353243a7f80a397b3a

It came with no connections or tubing. I want to use strictly PVC to connect it to my 3/4" pipe leading to my system.

So the question is, if I walk into Home Depot, what is the name of the connections that I need to do this? The top of the pump is a 1/2" MPT outlet, and as I mentioned, my system is 3/4".

So is it a female 1/2" to 3/4" adapter needed? What would the name be? I tried to look at Home Depot for something, but I didn't know what to look for. I guess the one female end has to be threaded and 1/2" in size in order to connect......but the opposite end needs to be able to fit onto a smooth 3/4" PVC.

Help a brother out! :lol: :lol: ;) :D

Oliver
03-15-2012, 06:00 PM
Jeff,

There are at least two ways to do what you want. Simplest is to get a 1/2 inch fpt to 1/2 inch slip. Also get a 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch slip reducer. Ask for help when you get to the store and they will get you where you need to go. It all depends on what you are connecting to, as in 3/4 inch pvc pipe.

Oliver

Jeff
03-15-2012, 06:56 PM
Jeff,

There are at least two ways to do what you want. Simplest is to get a 1/2 inch fpt to 1/2 inch slip. Also get a 1/2 inch to 3/4 inch slip reducer. Ask for help when you get to the store and they will get you where you need to go. It all depends on what you are connecting to, as in 3/4 inch pvc pipe.

Oliver

Oliver - Perfect! Thanks for the answer and reassurance! :)

davidstcldfl
03-16-2012, 02:35 AM
Simplest is to get a 1/2 inch fpt to 1/2 inch slip
The box should be marked .... 1/2 inch female adapter. They "might" even have a reducing female adapter....1/2 " fpt to 3/4 " slip.
Consider adding a 3/4 inch 'union' to your pipe as it comes out of the tank. That way it will be easy to pull the pump out to clean the filter and the impeller... :)

keith_r
03-16-2012, 05:28 AM
i wouldn't bother using the sponge "pre-filter" - if you leave it, you'll have to clean it occassionally (when you notice the flow decreasing)

Jeff
03-16-2012, 07:40 AM
Regarding the filter, I wasn't planning on using that sponge simply because I thought the point was to have the solids removed and pumped to the grow beds. If I used a filter, it seems like that would defeat the purpose. If I should be using some kind of makeshift filter (using a screen or something on the pump's intake, then let me know.

Oliver
03-18-2012, 08:59 AM
make sure the screen is either stainless steel or nonmetallic.

Oliver

bsfman
03-18-2012, 05:17 PM
Regarding the filter, I wasn't planning on using that sponge simply because I thought the point was to have the solids removed and pumped to the grow beds. If I used a filter, it seems like that would defeat the purpose. If I should be using some kind of makeshift filter (using a screen or something on the pump's intake, then let me know.

I tried going "sponge filterless", but if you wind up with snails in your system (which I have) the snails LOVE crawling into the pump intake if it's minus the filter. I don't mind the snails (the tilapia love munching on them!) but they can seriously clog your pump intake. I went back to the sponge filter despite every second day filter cleanings, since my system here runs smoother with them.

To avoid snails, be very careful about introducing duckweed or water hyacinth or any plants, stones, or solid objects from a natural water source into your system!

Jeff
03-19-2012, 10:21 AM
Regarding the filter, I wasn't planning on using that sponge simply because I thought the point was to have the solids removed and pumped to the grow beds. If I used a filter, it seems like that would defeat the purpose. If I should be using some kind of makeshift filter (using a screen or something on the pump's intake, then let me know.

I tried going "sponge filterless", but if you wind up with snails in your system (which I have) the snails LOVE crawling into the pump intake if it's minus the filter. I don't mind the snails (the tilapia love munching on them!) but they can seriously clog your pump intake. I went back to the sponge filter despite every second day filter cleanings, since my system here runs smoother with them.

To avoid snails, be very careful about introducing duckweed or water hyacinth or any plants, stones, or solid objects from a natural water source into your system!

Out of curiosity, if you use a sponge filter, doesn't that leave most of the fish waste solids behind in the tank, thus not delivering them to the grow beds?

bsfman
03-19-2012, 03:52 PM
Out of curiosity, if you use a sponge filter, doesn't that leave most of the fish waste solids behind in the tank, thus not delivering them to the grow beds?

I don't want solids in my growbeds. In fact, I pre-filter the water through a mechanical filter between my pump and growbeds to eliminate them. Plenty of nutrients in the water alone without gunking up the growbeds with extra crud. There are also plenty of solids that make it past the sponge prefilter and wind up lodging and decomposing in my mech filters.

Jeff
03-19-2012, 05:12 PM
Out of curiosity, if you use a sponge filter, doesn't that leave most of the fish waste solids behind in the tank, thus not delivering them to the grow beds?

I don't want solids in my growbeds. In fact, I pre-filter the water through a mechanical filter between my pump and growbeds to eliminate them. Plenty of nutrients in the water alone without gunking up the growbeds with extra crud. There are also plenty of solids that make it past the sponge prefilter and wind up lodging and decomposing in my mech filters.

So despite the little bit of poop that makes it past the sponge filter, is the rest of the poop just sitting in the fish tank? If so, do you have to occasionally clean that out somehow? Or does it just eventually break down into small, microscopic poop pieces that get sucked up through the sponge over time and into the system?

bsfman
03-20-2012, 05:47 AM
So despite the little bit of poop that makes it past the sponge filter, is the rest of the poop just sitting in the fish tank? If so, do you have to occasionally clean that out somehow? Or does it just eventually break down into small, microscopic poop pieces that get sucked up through the sponge over time and into the system?

Yes, it stays in the tank and eventually breaks down. The dissolved nutrients are always in the water. Two of my systems pump from a sump separate from the tank, so with or without sponge filter, there's still going to be solids in the tank. In my largest system, the sump is the tank. It's an 8' diameter wading pool, so there is really no way a single pump is going to manage to suck all the poop and leaves from the tank anyways. All of my systems use a mechanical/biological pre-filter before the water enters the growbeds.

keith_r
03-20-2012, 06:04 AM
occasionally i do siphon the bottom of my tanks if i notice any buildup..
i've read quite a few debates on the subject of adding filtration to an ap system, with folks pretty passionate about what they think
if i was gettinga buildup of anything in my growbeds, and my growbeds had a healthy worm population, i'd think that i was either overfeeding, or underfiltered, and would approach it from there.. by either adding growbeds, mechanical filtration, or reducing stocking density..
i've seen gravel growbed systems that were not cleaned in years that had no significant buildup..
the nitrification process occurs mostly on the surface area of the media in the growbeds... so i would prefer that the solids make there way to the growbeds..

Jeff
03-20-2012, 09:01 AM
I have no problem leaving the sponge filter off my pump in the fish tank......I just don't know if this will damage the pump or lower the lifespan of it (it's a mag drive pump).

With this initial system, I wasn't having any sump tanks or extra bio-filters to buffer anything.

keith_r
03-20-2012, 10:15 AM
completely a personal choice.. leaving the filter on does add a level of maintenance
on the other hand, i'm using sponge filters in my breeding tanks (minnows, crayfiish, scuds and glass shrimp)
for my first system i bought a pond pump from home depot, it's a mag drive, i never used the filter, and it's been pumping pretty much nonstop for 2 years this may..