Drip Drip Goes The Uniseal (Leaking!)

so i finally got a chance to look at the bulkheads i bought. they are double threaded.

do i just need to find a PVC fitting that is male threaded to match and into 1/5" glued PVC joint



if i turned it around backwards, the 1.5" PVC fits in the other end perfectly, until it gets to the internal thread.

who has something similiar?

will this work? 1st 2 pics are on the outside (bottom) of tote.

3rd pic is inside. i did not pay much attention to the bottom side of these HDX totes, but they aren't completely flat i think the bulkhead will tighten up and seal however.

Those are probably going to leak

I hate mechanical bulk heads just as much if not more then uni seals

My only suggestion is to use a aquarium silicone and pray

Those grooves might fuck you

After all the car i took with mine just yhe material deflecting made them weep

And weeping adds up FAST

Cold$moke said:

Those are probably going to leak

I hate mechanical bulk heads just as much if not more then uni seals

My only suggestion is to use a aquarium silicone and pray

Those grooves might fuck you

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hmm, well i might have to change totes. guess i will seal one and see if it holds

lol, without any silicone they leaked badly. the groves in the totes are not going to work.

shopping for new totes !!!!

Sour Wreck said:

lol, without any silicone they leaked badly. the groves in the totes are not going to work.

shopping for new totes !!!!

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Sorry bud i was hopeful

You could make them work if you applied epoxy to the totes to fill in the grooves then it would probably work sweet

But i dont know if its worth your time

I like the brute totes but they are more spendy unfortunately

Sour Wreck said:

lol, without any silicone they leaked badly. the groves in the totes are not going to work.

shopping for new totes !!!!

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Well dang. I just looked at my 27 gallon Costco totes and they have that same bottom. I wonder if I could put the drain in one of the corners without hitting one of the grooves? Or maybe just hit 2 of the grooves and use silicone or epoxy to manage it.

As long as its flat.

The big problem is deburring the hole and making sure its very clean as plastic threads ,grit,hair you name it gets in the seal and shell leak ....

Have your pupes kinked to one side too much and shell leak.



Have the wall of your bucket split after months of faithful service (yep happend) and shell leak real bad hahaa


This is one of the few reasons im trying to find a grow method that has the same growth rates as rdwc but in a more usuer friendly,maintenence friendly, and with less POWER CONSUMTION

Even scratches that run from your hole under the gasket can cause weepage

Cold$moke said:

Even scratches that run from your hole under the gasket can cause weepage

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I learned all that shit the hard way by drilling holes in aquariums. Still haven’t dove into “real” hydro. I think 6” Rockwool and blumats are in my future.

Michael Huntherz said:

I learned all that shit the hard way by drilling holes in aquariums. Still haven’t dove into “real” hydro. I think 6” Rockwool and blumats are in my future.

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Aquarium exp goes hand in hand with a lot of what we do

Youd probably nail it

Cold$moke said:

You could make them work if you applied epoxy to the totes to fill in the grooves then it would probably work sweet

But i dont know if its worth your time

I like the brute totes but they are more spendy unfortunately

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i think you nailed it. i need some Brute totes. rubbermaids, correct?

fairly thick and not brittle, flat bottom, correct?

Sour Wreck said:

i think you nailed it. i need some Brute totes. rubbermaids, correct?

fairly thick and not brittle, flat bottom, correct?

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Let me go look at the bottoms

Ok actuall the brutes arent flat either


They have reinforcing ribs on the underside but if your bulk head will fit in the square with no righting on it it would work.

Might have to just go throught the side
Or modify your totes with epoxy to work

The only setups i have seen to use bottom drain where dutch buckets on youtube not saying its not a good idea but its difficult to get the intended function without shaped prupose made contaniers

I cant think of too many pros with going through the bottom any ways since you bulkheads will mean not all of the water would drain anyways

You probably have close to the same amount as if you side mounted it .

Cold$moke said:

Ok actuall the brutes arent flat either


They have reinforcing ribs on the underside but if your bulk head will fit in the square with no righting on it it would work.

Might have to just go throught the side
Or modify your totes with epoxy to work
View attachment 4122837

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i don't suppose you know that little square's dimensions, do you? the bulkheads need 3 1/4" inches of flatness.

Cold$moke said:

The only setups i have seen to use bottom drain where dutch buckets on youtube not saying its not a good idea but its difficult to get the intended function without shaped prupose made contaniers

I cant think of too many pros with going through the bottom any ways since you bulkheads will mean not all of the water would drain anyways

You probably have close to the same amount as if you side mounted it .

Click to expand...

i could drain them down to less that 1/2" water with them mounted on bottom. probably more than an inch if mounted on the side.

I know just saying its very minimal of a diff

I almost went down the bottom drain road

Just didnt want to have to elevate the system

As funny stuff happens when you got 20 gals in a tote