Help!!!

[Raider84]

I would really appreaciate some advice on how to install a submersible pump into a resevoir and make it water tight. There are many threads about inline systems but few about submersible systems. The pump im planning on using has 3/4" outlet which needs to be brought down to 3/8", which might be a problem, i dunno.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

[beau_safken]

caulk, JB weld, plumbers putty...just some methods..
I dont know if that is what ya were looking for but...I'm mental today.

[camel]

Do you have the res? Tupperware could be a good option if not. I'd think cutting some neat holes, and some silicon would do the trick.

[Raider84]

I'm planning on making my own res, what I'm not sure of is how to mount the pump inside the res to have it hooked up to the outlet barb and still be watertight.

[vonkaar]

You have many options here... but most of them depend on how big you are planning on making the res. Some people build a res that's basically the dimensions of their pump, with just a little overhead for the intake to have marginal water-supply. Others build a freaking fish-tank, and they have to run their output hose a pretty good length before hitting the walls.

It also depends on the location of your hoses. If you have both hoses up top, you can have a little margin of error in the 'watertight' area. Some people worry about bacteria and such, so it really *should* be as water tight as possible... but then, one major reason to even have a res is to make refilling easier, which therefore reduces the need to have a 'bacterially sealed' cooling system. Blahblah... how do you plan on placing your hoses?

On placement, I don't suggest sending *both* tubes to the top, even if it's only a few inches from your pump. Every vertical inch is less head... keep it flat. If you have a maxijet, danner, eheim, via or pretty much any of the other 'common' WC pumps, your output hose will do better facing the SIDES of the res anyway. Sooo... if we are to go THAT way, you have only 2 options left. Mount the pump ON the output-hose wall, or on the opposite wall with a hose running TO the output wall. Both have their pros and cons.

Running a hose means you have to have 2 seals for the hose; one on the pump itself and one on the wall of the res. You would probably be best to use a threaded barb, or a male/male barb to go through the wall. Be careful though, because those barbs reduce flow a bit, so don't go crazy with it. Anyway, you need the two seals. The inner one may seem like it's less necessary compared to the outside one (who cares if you get a leak inside the res?) but they really ARE equally crucial. Any leaking water is less flow, less flow is less cooling, less cooling... blahblah... So make sure you have a clean connection on the pump. For the output side, you are either going to use a threaded barb or a double-headed barb. Basically, drill a hole VERY-slightly larger than your barb's middle-diameter. Place the barb in the hole, it should be a good fit. Use some sort of DRYs-HARD epoxy (like JB-Weld) to put it in place, let it dry overnight. After you have your wall with the barbs though it, seal it up with a nice coat of silicone. Coat BOTH sides of the hardened epoxy in silicone, spreading it with your finger to create a nice and even surface. Let it dry overnight.

If you wanted to mount the pump so it's output hole is ON the wall, the same process applies. Do your measuring so your hole is drilled exactly where you want it... too high and your pump won't hit the floor of the res... too low and your bottom wall won't join up with your output wall. Drill your hole. Attach (seal) the barb to your pump and follow the same steps to seal the barb in the wall.

Your output wall is done, now just figure out which wall you want your input hose to come in at. The top is a common solution, although if you don't have a FULL res, or allow some hose/tubing to go THROUGH the top of the ceiling, you'll have a slight dripping sound. And, depending on the power of your pump, that 'dripping' noise could be quite torrential =p. Just try imagining running a computer in a men's restroom with the title-holder of "world's largest bladder" does his business.

I would say, mount your input hose someplace else. Maybe the opposite wall from your output hose. Just use a threaded barb and seal it in the wall as mentioned.

For the actual construction of your res, stick with a plastic cement. I've seen people use L-braces for the walls... not only is that COOL, it makes sense. But, if you want a res that's as seamless as possible, straight-wall connections would suffice. Make sure to use a transparent silicone to fill in the insides of the joints, AFTER the cement has dried.

There are lots of articles, right here on overclockers.com that give all kinds of input on doing just this. You shouldn't have any problems.

[Raider84]

You the man... or woman vonkaar!! That helped out alot. My idea is to have the res just slightly bigger then the pump, and will rest in the hardrive bay of my chieftec dragon case. http://images10.newegg.com/productimage/11-125-220-07.JPG

What im thinking is the outlet hose be on the bottom of one side, the fill/bleed valve be above the outlet hose, and the inlet barb being above this. (see very crude pic, im not an artist :D ) http://www.imagestation.com/mypictures/inbox/view.html?url=http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid75/p74140b7553b97b48b38805e61c27b0f5/fb504767.jpg.orig.jpg&caption=res%20idea&id=4216342375

I need an adapter from 3/4" to 3/8", so im thinking have half on the adapter inside the res, an the other outside the res, so i could simply silicone the vertical divider to the res wall. Could that work?
http://waterscapesweb.com/images/AD-12M12B.jpg

As for the res itself, i found a clear plastic container that is roughly the perfect size with a large opening, i would just have to silcone it shut once the pump is installed. Would silicone be water tight!??!

http://www.tapplastics.com/uploads/products/images/fullsize/optional10/m103.jpg

I would really appreciate any feedback. Im still not sure how to make the powercable watertight.

[Raider84]

bump

[thorilan]

keep in mind that putting the pump in the res will raise your water temps