- Joined
- Dec 22, 2004
- Messages
- 1,713
A few of my service tanks have them, and even the higher-quality valves will tend to degrade over time as things grow on them. The nice ones are even clear so you can visually inspect growth inside. As they age I've found they tend to "bounce" for a few minutes after the pump turns off, making a thud-thud-thud sound. While they do this a certain amount of water is still flowing back through. Depending on the system it could be enough to flood.
Remember that anything that gets in there--even the tiniest piece of algae--can keep it from sealing completely. And even the smallest leak through the check valve is still enough to cause a flood given enough time: will the power be out for a minute or an hour?
The bottom line for me is it is a mechanical device, and every mechanical device will fail eventually, sooner in such a demanding environment as these. I've only had one fail and cause a minor flood (luckily on an engineered floor), but I top off the tank with the pump off to limit the valve's necessity. Is it possible for you to raise the wavemaker near the surface or drill an anti-siphon hole? Another option may be to add a closed loop and put the wavemaker on that.
Remember that anything that gets in there--even the tiniest piece of algae--can keep it from sealing completely. And even the smallest leak through the check valve is still enough to cause a flood given enough time: will the power be out for a minute or an hour?
The bottom line for me is it is a mechanical device, and every mechanical device will fail eventually, sooner in such a demanding environment as these. I've only had one fail and cause a minor flood (luckily on an engineered floor), but I top off the tank with the pump off to limit the valve's necessity. Is it possible for you to raise the wavemaker near the surface or drill an anti-siphon hole? Another option may be to add a closed loop and put the wavemaker on that.