Help...Bulkhead Leaking

[joesandy1822]

Got the pond up and running today. We have a very slight leak at the intake bulkhead at the bottom of the filterfalls. It is a very slow drip, but we don't feel comfortable just ignoring it. Neither of us are plumbing experts, so forgive me if I sound very amateur here (that's because I am!). But the instructions said to only hand tighten the bulkhead, and then give it another 1/2 turn with the wrench. That is exactly what I did, because I am so nervous about cracking something. Hubby gave it a bit more of a turn, and it did slow the leak down to a minimal drip, but we don't feel comfortable leaving it drip even a little. The area is sandy, and I could just see it causing a problem down the road.

I guess what I'm asking is......how likely or easy is it to wreck or crack a bulkhead from overtightening? Like I said, I gave it only 1/2 turn, and hubby probably turned it less than another 1/4 turn after that. And I was the one who "hand tightened" it to begin with. I'm assuming my hand tightening would be less than a strong man, even though I'm a strong woman. I am also afraid of damaging the filterfalls box if we overtighten. I suppose this would be extremely unlikely, but wouldn't want to have to replace that.

Also wondered about pipe tape. Nowhere did it mention that the bulkhead itself should have pipe tape applied. Only the actual PVC pipe fittings were mentioned to be taped, so I did NOT tape the bulkhead itself. Should I have???

Advice???

Thanks,
Sandy

 

[HTH]

The bulkhead should seal to the container/filterfalls with its rubber seal. Use the teflon tape on the pipe treads only.

Where is it leaking. On the threads on on the rubber seal?

It it is a slow leak it may stop on its own. A small bit of dirt or crude of some sort will flow into the path blocking it. Can you place a container under the drip to monitor how much it is leaking ?

 

[Dave 54]

I take it the bulk head is fibre glass yes ?
I used to make and surf in canoes prior to my accident fibre glass can stand quite a bit of abuse so I think you could tighten a tad more.....
There may be as HTH states correcly a leak in the fitting must probably the rubber seal .
in reality a small drip in the sceme of things isnt much to worry about it should with a bit of deritus self seal .
We had a major leak on one of our own filters a few years ago we were chasing that damn leak all over the place could we seal it NO.....
But my point here is your not running fresh water 24/7 back into the pond to mantain a water level which is what we has to do until we had built and replaced the old filter with a barrel filter
So you see yours isnt going to drain the pond as its minute but I understand your concern little leaks can turn into large ones it has to be addressed check if you have the rubber seal in the correct place if its not or you think its in need of replacement then do so .

rgrds

Dave

 

[Catfishnut]

Sandy,

Overtightening the bulkhead fitting probably won't crack or break it in most cases, but you shouldn't overtighten them for other reasons. Often, the seal will deform and even "push" out from the surface that it is intended to seal, thus creating a leak. My recommendation is to apply a marine grade adhesive to the seal and to the side of the filter-falls basin (having both items well cleaned of any oils and dirt and water). Allow the adhesive to get tacky and then tighten the fittings on as originally instructed. Allow the prescribed amount of time for the adhesive to cure before replacing the water.

I would use a marine-grade adhesive designed for totally submerged applications. Standard silicone rubber is not typically rated this way, but you may get away with using it for this purpose if you select a grade for outdoor use like rain gutters or such or kitchen and bath applications.

However, I highly recommend 3M 5200 Marine polyurethane adhesive. I have tried it and love it! It works awesome!
You can order it from JamestownDistributors.com in several sizes for the least expensive price that I can find anywhere.

On another note, I believe that the rubber-like gasket of the bulkhead should be installed on the water bearing side of the vessel wall, hence inside the tank. This way the water pressure pushes on the sealing gasket and forces it against the wall to make an even better seal. If placed on the outside of the vessel, the water pressure wants to push it away from the tank, so that automatically invites a leak.

Gordy

 

[sissy]

I got 2 rubber seals with mine one goes out side and one went inside but have seen alot that only have one .But you can buy another .You can use silicon to seal them also I always use a little in between
[sharedmedia=core:attachments:52793]

 

[joesandy1822]

The bulkhead should seal to the container/filterfalls with its rubber seal. Use the teflon tape on the pipe treads only.

Where is it leaking. On the threads on on the rubber seal?

It it is a slow leak it may stop on its own. A small bit of dirt or crude of some sort will flow into the path blocking it. Can you place a container under the drip to monitor how much it is leaking ?

I used the teflon tape on the PVC pipe threads only, as you mentioned. I hope I can explain this right. The bulkhead came with one rubber washer and one plastic washer. The rubber washer went on the inside of the waterfall filter. The plastic washer went on the outside of the waterfall filter. The leak is occuring on the threads of the piece that comes out from inside, but after the nut if that makes sense.

For those that mentioned this won't drain my pond since it's such a slow leak, I get that. My concern is that one drip every minute over time adds up, and eventually it could erode the foundation that the filter is sitting on since it is high in sand. I could just see my waterfall falling into my pond, pulling the liner in with it, and one morning waking up to an empty pond. I guess once I rock in the waterfall area, that won't be much of a concern.

I did put a small container under the drip to see how much it is leaking, but it is raining today so it won't be a good test. I am hoping over the next couple days it just stops. I am afraid to tighten anymore for fear of making it worse, but tightening might be the necessary thing to do. And as I've found, what a horrible HASSLE it is to redo anything when there is no bottom drain on the filter! I think one day soon I will install one because otherwise doing maintenance on this thing will be a total nightmare. There is a backflow preventer in the skimmer which prevents the filter from draining when you turn off the pump in the skimmer. So I have to suck out the water with a shop vac as it is now. And this filter holds a LOT of water.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Sandy

 

[joesandy1822]

I take it the bulk head is fibre glass yes ?
I used to make and surf in canoes prior to my accident fibre glass can stand quite a bit of abuse so I think you could tighten a tad more.....
There may be as HTH states correcly a leak in the fitting must probably the rubber seal .
in reality a small drip in the sceme of things isnt much to worry about it should with a bit of deritus self seal .
We had a major leak on one of our own filters a few years ago we were chasing that damn leak all over the place could we seal it NO.....
But my point here is your not running fresh water 24/7 back into the pond to mantain a water level which is what we has to do until we had built and replaced the old filter with a barrel filter
So you see yours isnt going to drain the pond as its minute but I understand your concern little leaks can turn into large ones it has to be addressed check if you have the rubber seal in the correct place if its not or you think its in need of replacement then do so .

rgrds

Dave

Yes, I may try to tighten a bit more, or just wait and see if it stops. I know it won't drain the pond, but see my reply above about erosion. Thanks for the suggestions!

Sandy

 

[sissy]

you can go buy another rubber washer they are cheap enough and see if that resolves the problem

 

[joesandy1822]

Sandy,

Overtightening the bulkhead fitting probably won't crack or break it in most cases, but you shouldn't overtighten them for other reasons. Often, the seal will deform and even "push" out from the surface that it is intended to seal, thus creating a leak. My recommendation is to apply a marine grade adhesive to the seal and to the side of the filter-falls basin (having both items well cleaned of any oils and dirt and water). Allow the adhesive to get tacky and then tighten the fittings on as originally instructed. Allow the prescribed amount of time for the adhesive to cure before replacing the water.

I would use a marine-grade adhesive designed for totally submerged applications. Standard silicone rubber is not typically rated this way, but you may get away with using it for this purpose if you select a grade for outdoor use like rain gutters or such or kitchen and bath applications.

However, I highly recommend 3M 5200 Marine polyurethane adhesive. I have tried it and love it! It works awesome!
You can order it from JamestownDistributors.com in several sizes for the least expensive price that I can find anywhere.

On another note, I believe that the rubber-like gasket of the bulkhead should be installed on the water bearing side of the vessel wall, hence inside the tank. This way the water pressure pushes on the sealing gasket and forces it against the wall to make an even better seal. If placed on the outside of the vessel, the water pressure wants to push it away from the tank, so that automatically invites a leak.

Gordy

Yep, I put the rubber seal on the water bearing side. I might just try to crank it down a bit more before I empty the whole thing again to take it apart and reseal. It's such a pain since there is no bottom drain on the filter (YET!).

Thanks for the suggestions.

Sandy

 

[joesandy1822]

I got 2 rubber seals with mine one goes out side and one went inside but have seen alot that only have one .But you can buy another .You can use silicon to seal them also I always use a little in between

This is a good idea. If the leak doesn't stop with a bit more tightening or a few more days waiting, I could get a second rubber seal and put it on the outside as well. I just hate the thought of emptying the thing even once more. Every time I empty it, I have to use a shop vac since there is no bottom drain, and I end up getting the waterfall filter out of level again since it's not rocked in yet, and trying to level it with the liner already attached with silicone is no easy task.

 

[sissy]

I had one that had only one rubber seal and darn thing never stopped leaking and tried silicon to seal it and ended up taking it all off and putting a second rubber gasket on it to stop it .I kept tightening it and ended up get a shower drain rubber gasket and done was a pain in the butt for months .I think it was because it was a round container
[sharedmedia=core:attachments:53329]

 

[joesandy1822]

I had one that had only one rubber seal and darn thing never stopped leaking and tried silicon to seal it and ended up taking it all off and putting a second rubber gasket on it to stop it .I kept tightening it and ended up get a shower drain rubber gasket and done was a pain in the butt for months .I think it was because it was a round container

When you added the second rubber gasket, did you add it to the inside, or put it on the outside of the filter container?

 

[sissy]

I had the one inside so added the one to out side .I also put some silicon in there just in case .I was not going to keep emptying and starting again .I figured I had it so why not add it as extra precaution and I put pipe tape on both sides

 

[addy1]

When I put my skimmer in, I gooped the gasket inside and outside with pl roofing goop, did not want a leak. No leaks at all. Was very paranoid about putting something through the liner.

 

[joesandy1822]

When I put my skimmer in, I gooped the gasket inside and outside with pl roofing goop, did not want a leak. No leaks at all. Was very paranoid about putting something through the liner.

I hear ya! Cutting that liner was VERY scary to me. I'm surprised I even did it. I pray it never leaks anywhere. It will be a miracle though, considering how much garbage we dug up when we dug the pond. We literally hit somebody's dump from 60 years ago. Two different areas in the pond's edge had glass, metal, you name it. I did my very best to get it all out, but I'm certain there is glass in there somewhere. I hope between the quality underlayment and the thickness of the liner, we'll be safe. I'd think a leak in a liner somewhere would be almost impossible to find.