Best way to deal with slow leak in sump

[Spudsly]

it seems that I have a slow leak in my sump. The previous owner had an external skimmer/return which has a plug blocking up the old piping. I thought it was solid but now I'm realizing there is a slow leak out of it... maybe to the tune of 5 mL per day... not a lot. What's the best way to seal it up? It's a plugged bulkhead with the old 1.25" pvc pipe sticking out on the external side (not pictured below)... I feel like I could get away with capping and pvc gluing the cap on but I'm worried that leak will just result in a nasty anaerobic nightmare, maybe I could remove the plug once I cap the pipe.

Alternatively, I could drain that chamber of the sump and line that plug with silicon?

Any suggestions?

 

[this is me]

Changing the rubber seal might just fix the slow leak. Or you can just do what you're thinking of by using silicone.
But if you know you will never ever use that hole, get a pieces of Acrylic and use Weldon 4 to bond the piece of acrylic to the tank to cover the hole.

 

[Spudsly]

Ah, that's a great idea. I've never really worked with acrylic. How long doe sit need to sit dry after bonding?

Nevermind, that was easy to google. Seems like 24 hours is recommended.

 

[Spudsly]

on the subject of acrylic, should I just go to a big box store for it? Who else would sell me a small patch of it?

 

[this is me]

You can get a small 8x10" sheet from the big box store.
Please think it thoroughly before you weld the hole shut. If for some reason you want to use an external pump, you will need to re-drill the hole.
I actually think replacing the rubber seal on the bulkhead or replacing the bulk head is a better idea. You never know when you need this hole or someone else will need this hole down the road.

 

[Spudsly]

Ok. Its actually not the bulkhead that's dripping. It's the plug I think. All of the dripped water is inside the PVC tube. Are plugs a suitable permanent solution? Maybe I should just try to redo the plug. I didn't mess with it too much but it felt like it was going to be challenging to remove the plug. Another option is to glue a cap at the end if the PVC outlet and then after 24 hours try to remove the plug. I could keep the cap dry by stuffing some paper towel in there but then I'd really need to make sure I could get the cap off... Worse comes to worse I could just drill or cut it off.

 

[dz6t]

Then a new plug at Homedepot will work fine for less than a buck.

 

[dz6t]

Give the plug a firm twist.
Or you can cap the other side of the bulkhead. and leave the plug alone.

 

[reefstarter]

Hello mole hill meet mountain

 

[FishHead]

hahahaa.. great stuff here.

 

[Spudsly]

Yeah, that's a fair criticism. To be honest I just want to make sure it's harndled now and done right while the tank is cycling and not very vulnerable rather than dealing with a slow steady leak for the next decade. I elected to drain that chamber of my sump (the last one, conveninently) and pvc glue a cap on the end and remove the plug. I'll try to let it dry for ~3 hours before I refill that chamber. I don't think I want to let my cycling tank sit cold overnight.

 

[cilyjr]

No its not a fair criticism. You asked for help on an odd leak.

Couldn't you just have unscrewed the plug applied new teflon tape (or paste depending on preference) and tightened the plug?

 

[Spudsly]

Yeah I think I could have. I wasn't 100% sure that plugs are meant to be permanent fixtures... I guess why not. I think in the long run I'll be happy it's glued though since I find my terrible plumbing skills are much more reliable with glue than with thread.

 

[reefstarter]

No its not a fair criticism. You asked for help on an odd leak.

Couldn't you just have unscrewed the plug applied new teflon tape (or paste depending on preference) and tightened the plug?

He's right it wasn't fair . It wasn't meant to be . It was meant to make you think and maybe help . don't overthink it is the message .in this hobby you will run in to a miriad of problems like this and if a small drip causes this much debate you are going to be floored when a real leak happens . or a pump fails just when you don't have money to replace it or a heater fails . I amnot trying to be a jerk here . Just hoping you are prepared for what is to come . I have dumped a hundred gallons of water on the floor and was lucky enough to come home before the pump went dry. Had AEFW , alk spikes heater issues and a ton of other things go wrong . keep it simple and don't over complicate things is the lesson I learned . And at the time I had 650 gallons going . I will be downsizing yet again after the move to maybe a reefer tank .