Wearing my "long time since I did this" hat.

I have a connector kit to join two water butts.

The diameter of the non-threaded bit is 24mm.
Outer diameter of the thread is 25.64 mm.

So do you cut the hole to be a tight fit (24 mm) and expect the connector
to cut a thread which seals, or do you cut for a loose fit (25 mm or even
26 mm)so the connector just slides in and the seal is on the mating faces
with the water butt plastic?

I'm about to go shed diving again, but the cutters at Screwfix are 25mm
which might be a hint.

Cheers



Dave R


--
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On 07/05/2021 15:31, David wrote:
Wearing my "long time since I did this" hat.

I have a connector kit to join two water butts.

The diameter of the non-threaded bit is 24mm.
Outer diameter of the thread is 25.64 mm.

So do you cut the hole to be a tight fit (24 mm) and expect the connector
to cut a thread which seals, or do you cut for a loose fit (25 mm or even
26 mm)so the connector just slides in and the seal is on the mating faces
with the water butt plastic?

I'm about to go shed diving again, but the cutters at Screwfix are 25mm
which might be a hint.

Cheers



Dave R


Depends on the materials of the water butt and the connector kit, and
whether or not the butt has a suitable surface finish to make a seal
with the supplied seal.

On 07/05/2021 16:34, Chris Hogg wrote:
On 7 May 2021 14:31:38 GMT, David wrote:

Wearing my "long time since I did this" hat.

I have a connector kit to join two water butts.

The diameter of the non-threaded bit is 24mm.
Outer diameter of the thread is 25.64 mm.

So do you cut the hole to be a tight fit (24 mm) and expect the connector
to cut a thread which seals, or do you cut for a loose fit (25 mm or even
26 mm)so the connector just slides in and the seal is on the mating faces
with the water butt plastic?

I'm about to go shed diving again, but the cutters at Screwfix are 25mm
which might be a hint.

Cheers



Dave R


On my water butt connectors, which are like this,
https://tinyurl.com/yjqlwtnmthe the threaded portion is a loose fit
through the hole in the butt. There is a plastic nut and a rubber
washer, and the plastic nut is tightened up to compress the rubber
washer against the wall of the butt and achieve a seal. The corrugated
hose between the two barbed connectors is a fairly tight push-fit onto
the connectors. Softening the hose slightly in hot water before
applying, helps. I applied some gutter sealant liberally over the
washer, the nut and the barbed connector to ensure a good seal. Didn't
bother with hose clips - didn't need them.


That URL didn't work for me.

newshound wrote:
On 07/05/2021 16:34, Chris Hogg wrote:
On 7 May 2021 14:31:38 GMT, David wrote:

Wearing my "long time since I did this" hat.

I have a connector kit to join two water butts.

The diameter of the non-threaded bit is 24mm.
Outer diameter of the thread is 25.64 mm.

So do you cut the hole to be a tight fit (24 mm) and expect the
connector
to cut a thread which seals, or do you cut for a loose fit (25 mm or
even
26 mm)so the connector just slides in and the seal is on the mating
faces
with the water butt plastic?

I'm about to go shed diving again, but the cutters at Screwfix are 25mm
which might be a hint.

Cheers



Dave R


On my water butt connectors, which are like this,
https://tinyurl.com/yjqlwtnmthe the threaded portion is a loose fit
through the hole in the butt. There is a plastic nut and a rubber
washer, and the plastic nut is tightened up to compress the rubber
washer against the wall of the butt and achieve a seal. The corrugated
hose between the two barbed connectors is a fairly tight push-fit onto
the connectors. Softening the hose slightly in hot water before
applying, helps. I applied some gutter sealant liberally over the
washer, the nut and the barbed connector to ensure a good seal. Didn't
bother with hose clips - didn't need them.


That URL didn't work for me.

https://preview.tinyurl.com/yjqlwtnm

Paul

On Fri, 07 May 2021 16:34:52 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:

On 7 May 2021 14:31:38 GMT, David wrote:

Wearing my "long time since I did this" hat.

I have a connector kit to join two water butts.

The diameter of the non-threaded bit is 24mm.
Outer diameter of the thread is 25.64 mm.

So do you cut the hole to be a tight fit (24 mm) and expect the
connector to cut a thread which seals, or do you cut for a loose fit (25
mm or even 26 mm)so the connector just slides in and the seal is on the
mating faces with the water butt plastic?

I'm about to go shed diving again, but the cutters at Screwfix are 25mm
which might be a hint.

Cheers



Dave R


On my water butt connectors, which are like this,
https://tinyurl.com/yjqlwtnmthe the threaded portion is a loose fit
through the hole in the butt. There is a plastic nut and a rubber
washer, and the plastic nut is tightened up to compress the rubber
washer against the wall of the butt and achieve a seal. The corrugated
hose between the two barbed connectors is a fairly tight push-fit onto
the connectors. Softening the hose slightly in hot water before
applying, helps. I applied some gutter sealant liberally over the
washer, the nut and the barbed connector to ensure a good seal. Didn't
bother with hose clips - didn't need them.

Thanks.

A vote for a loose fit and use the washers to make the seal.

All the cutters I can find seem to be 25 mm which may be a tight fit but
will check what the next size up is.

Don't think I can go above 26 mm for the hole and still have enough
surface for the washers to seal onto.

The main upside is that the connectors will be right at the top of the
water butts so a little leakage will not be a major problem, unlike the
taps at the bottom.


Cheers



Dave R



--
AMD FX-6300 in GA-990X-Gaming SLI-CF running Windows 7 Pro x64

--
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus

On 08/05/2021 13:03, David wrote:
On Fri, 07 May 2021 16:34:52 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:

On 7 May 2021 14:31:38 GMT, David wrote:

Wearing my "long time since I did this" hat.

I have a connector kit to join two water butts.

The diameter of the non-threaded bit is 24mm.
Outer diameter of the thread is 25.64 mm.

So do you cut the hole to be a tight fit (24 mm) and expect the
connector to cut a thread which seals, or do you cut for a loose fit (25
mm or even 26 mm)so the connector just slides in and the seal is on the
mating faces with the water butt plastic?

I'm about to go shed diving again, but the cutters at Screwfix are 25mm
which might be a hint.

Cheers



Dave R


On my water butt connectors, which are like this,
https://tinyurl.com/yjqlwtnmthe the threaded portion is a loose fit
through the hole in the butt. There is a plastic nut and a rubber
washer, and the plastic nut is tightened up to compress the rubber
washer against the wall of the butt and achieve a seal. The corrugated
hose between the two barbed connectors is a fairly tight push-fit onto
the connectors. Softening the hose slightly in hot water before
applying, helps. I applied some gutter sealant liberally over the
washer, the nut and the barbed connector to ensure a good seal. Didn't
bother with hose clips - didn't need them.

Thanks.

A vote for a loose fit and use the washers to make the seal.

That would be the normal approach using a plastic "tank connector". But,
with a metal plumbing fitting in a thick enough thermoplastic tank you
can get away with using the fitting as a "tap" in an undersized hole,
especially if you have a back-nut for extra security. A sealing washer
may not actually be necessary, especially if you put a smear of sealing
compound on the threads and the internal and external faces.


All the cutters I can find seem to be 25 mm which may be a tight fit but
will check what the next size up is.

Don't think I can go above 26 mm for the hole and still have enough
surface for the washers to seal onto.

The main upside is that the connectors will be right at the top of the
water butts so a little leakage will not be a major problem, unlike the
taps at the bottom.

You can use the same approach for taps, especially if they have a decent
length of thread so that there is plenty of room for a back nut.


Cheers



Dave R

David wrote:

Wearing my "long time since I did this" hat.

I have a connector kit to join two water butts.

I take it you have ruled out a permanent syphon between the two?

Chris
--
Chris J Dixon Nottingham UK
@ChrisJDixon1

Plant amazing Acers.

David wrote:

the connectors will be right at the top of the
water butts

Not at the bottom, so they fill and empty in sync?

On 09/05/2021 10:15, Chris J Dixon wrote:
David wrote:

Wearing my "long time since I did this" hat.

I have a connector kit to join two water butts.

I take it you have ruled out a permanent syphon between the two?

That is how I do mine. Small lead weights on each end of the pipe.

Getting it started the first time is fun and then every decade or so
after a build up of sludge in the bottom. Weights best off about 6" back
from the end of the pipe. I used clear 1cm silicone piping for mine.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

Problem is the material of the butt gets hard in the cold weather. I did
mine when I had one with screwing it in to a tight hole with it coated in
dow Corning eurathane bond. Seemed to last for many years.
Brian

--

This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...

Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!
"David" wrote in message
...
Wearing my "long time since I did this" hat.

I have a connector kit to join two water butts.

The diameter of the non-threaded bit is 24mm.
Outer diameter of the thread is 25.64 mm.

So do you cut the hole to be a tight fit (24 mm) and expect the connector
to cut a thread which seals, or do you cut for a loose fit (25 mm or even
26 mm)so the connector just slides in and the seal is on the mating faces
with the water butt plastic?

I'm about to go shed diving again, but the cutters at Screwfix are 25mm
which might be a hint.

Cheers



Dave R


--
AMD FX-6300 in GA-990X-Gaming SLI-CF running Windows 7 Pro x64

--
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus

Chris Hogg wrote:

Connecting the two butts at the bottom is by far the better way to do
it IMO. You only need one tap, and you only need to drill one extra
hole, and that in the butt that is going to have the tap, as you use
the tap-hole in the other butt for the connector fitting. But you do
need both butts to be empty first, on their sides, and the assistance
of a small person to crawl inside and screw up the nut. When the nut
starts to grip, tightening it from the outside is usually practical,
so the small person doesn't have to do it from the inside.

Given that various surrey/essex/warwick/tech flanges exist which can be
installed into H/W cylinders from the outside, don't suitable flanges
exist for water butts?

On Sun, 09 May 2021 11:43:36 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:

On Sun, 9 May 2021 11:03:29 +0100, Andy Burns
wrote:

David wrote:

the connectors will be right at the top of the
water butts

Not at the bottom, so they fill and empty in sync?

Connecting the two butts at the bottom is by far the better way to do
it IMO. You only need one tap, and you only need to drill one extra
hole, and that in the butt that is going to have the tap, as you use
the tap-hole in the other butt for the connector fitting. But you do
need both butts to be empty first, on their sides, and the assistance
of a small person to crawl inside and screw up the nut. When the nut
starts to grip, tightening it from the outside is usually practical,
so the small person doesn't have to do it from the inside. Once the
two fittings are in place, then the butts can be stood back upright
and the linking hose fitted.

Failure-critical though - one detached/damaged link and all the water goes.

I have 3 butts totalling about 550 li that are top-overflow, with no. 3
draining away from the sheds. No. 1 catches most of the crud by acting as a
settling tank. The gutters are covered by mesh but ash seeds and pine
needles...
In the autumn, when demand is low and the rains are starting, I use the
water from 2 and 3 then empty and clean out 3, repeat with 2 (after bailing
it into 3 if necessary) then bail 1 into 2 until the sediment stirs.
Cleaning 1 is the messy part and it needs a scrub as well. I save a couple
of gallons from 1 in a bucket so that the resident leeches have a temporary
home and the same water.
Usually end up with about 200 li left and 3 clean butts.
--
Peter.
The gods will stay away
whilst religions hold sway

On Sun, 09 May 2021 11:43:36 +0100, Chris Hogg wrote:

On Sun, 9 May 2021 11:03:29 +0100, Andy Burns
wrote:

David wrote:

the connectors will be right at the top of the
water butts

Not at the bottom, so they fill and empty in sync?

Connecting the two butts at the bottom is by far the better way to do
it IMO. You only need one tap, and you only need to drill one extra
hole, and that in the butt that is going to have the tap, as you use
the tap-hole in the other butt for the connector fitting. But you do
need both butts to be empty first, on their sides, and the assistance
of a small person to crawl inside and screw up the nut. When the nut
starts to grip, tightening it from the outside is usually practical,
so the small person doesn't have to do it from the inside. Once the
two fittings are in place, then the butts can be stood back upright
and the linking hose fitted.

Failure-critical though - one detached/damaged link and all the water goes.

I have 3 butts totalling about 550 li that are top-overflow, with no. 3
draining away from the sheds. No. 1 catches most of the crud by acting as a
settling tank. The gutters are covered by mesh but ash seeds and pine
needles...
In the autumn, when demand is low and the rains are starting, I use the
water from 2 and 3 then empty and clean out 3, repeat with 2 (after bailing
it into 3 if necessary) then bail 1 into 2 until the sediment stirs.
Cleaning 1 is the messy part and it needs a scrub as well. I save a couple
of gallons from 1 in a bucket so that the resident leeches have a temporary
home and the same water.
Usually end up with about 200 li left and 3 clean butts.
--
Peter.
The gods will stay away
whilst religions hold sway