Aquarium Bulkheads

Aquarium bulkheads allow water to go through the walls of an aquarium without leaking. They are most commonly used to drain water from an aquarium. Aquarium bulkheads an also be used in aquarium sumps or anyplace that you want aquarium water to drain by gravity flow.

They can come in a "slip" fitting which is smooth on the inside, for PVC plumbing, or a "screw" fitting, which can be used to screw in things such as an intake screen.

Bulkheads can be a little tricky to install. Make sure that you install the rubber flange on the INSIDE of the aquarium. The threaded part sticks OUTSIDE of the aquarium. So if you are installing it, after drilling the hole, hold the bulkhead with the rubber gasket already installed, on the INSIDE of the aquarium and push through the threaded portion of the bulkhead through the hole.

Then screw on the nut on the outside of the aquarium.

Tighten down the nut but be careful not to tighten or twist it or you might break the aquarium glass. Believe me, I have done this! You only need to tighten it enough to snug up the flange and seal the rubber gasket to the aquarium. You can always tighten more after you fill the aquarium with water, if you need to, though you might get your tool wet !

Then you can attach your plumbing line to the outside portion. Most bulkheads today fit the standard "schedule 40" white PVC piping that can be commonly found at most home improvement supply stores like Lowes or Home Depot.