Danner MAG3: Use inlet as "barb"?

Hey peeps, I would like some advice.

I want to decrease flow constriction into the inlet of my pump. My plan is to use a home-brew Y fitting constructed out of copper pipe fittings to combine two res ports into one.

Here's a rendition of the back of my dual 5-1/4 bay res. There are 4 inlets and 4 outlets, all with 1/4 NPT threads:
[ o o o o ]
[ o o o o ]

I would like to use two of the bottom four holes as the source for my pump inlet. Thus:

| [ o o o o ]
| [ o o o o ]
|.. !___!
|.... !
(pump inlet)


Now, here's the kicker, and where I need advice. Can I use the outside surface of the MAG 3 pump inlet as a barb so that I maintain the benefit of using two res outputs? Could I use some 3/4" ID Tubing and slip it over the inlet, with lotsa silicone adhesive?

How reliable would this be?

I've got 3/4" hosing straight from my custom res to the inlet of the Mag3 like you are suggesting. I boiled the end of the hose and it was still quite a stretch to get it over. However, it's not falling off anytime soon!

Actually, what I had to do was boil the 3/4" hose for a minute and then I cut a notch in the end about 1/4" in to get it started on the inlet. Once it was on a bit, I trimmed off the part I notched and pushed it on the rest of the way. Just for good measure, I clamped it and it works like a charm.

You can get a reducer Y fitting that combines two 1/2" ID tube lines into one 3/4" Tube Line. You could use this, and use two reservoir outlets.

My rule of thumb...

If it's a B***H to get on, it's not going to leak or come apart very easy.

Thanks everyone!

I used 1" ID and stretched it over. Easy stretch, and with two clamps I've never had any leakage. Of course, it's not a high pressure part of the loop either, so that's good.

Yeah, I agree. 1" ID is the real deal. I wrapped a thread around it and measured circumferance. It is just over 1" in diameter.

I ordered 1" ID Tygon from McMaster, along with 1/2" tube to 1" NPT fittings and a 1" NPT "T" fitting. I'm gonna have two 1/2" flows entering 1" ID hose! wOOt! My pump is definitely not going to be thirsty.

Wanna see some pics when you get this set up. Sounds very kool.

Parts are in!

Well, that didn't take long to arrive! I received the fittings and one inch diameter Tygon tubing (which really needs some cleaning. Apparently they don't sell much of this at McMaster because it's nasty and has been sitting around for a while).

In the pic, you can see a portion of the external water cooling rig I'm working on. I purchased a second case identical to my primary case and am in the process of cutting it in half. It will reside on top of the primary case, with the cooling lines running in from above.

On the left you can see tha back end of the dual 5 1/4" bay res. On the right you can see where I plan to place my Chevette HC. The Fan will be on the outside of the case pulling air thru the radiator.

Notice how HUGE these fittings and tubing are. I can see why this wouldn't be practicable in an internal water cooling rig.

My guess is that the kink free "bend radius" for this 1" ID tubing would be about 3.5 to 4 feet. EEK!

Oops.... Here's the image.