Buying a bulkhead fitting...
- Thread starter Spewn
- Start date
Lowes should have them, some (not all) Home Depot's and plumbing supply shops should have them as well.
Marine Depot has a lot of supplies online, including bulkheads:
http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_searchItem.aspx?IdCategory=&SearchText=bulkhead&parsed=1
http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_searchItem.aspx?IdCategory=&SearchText=bulkhead&parsed=1
Never seen a bulk head fitting at Lowes or Home Depot, and I’ve asked and searched their website. And yes you will get the odd stare, a little less around here (Puget Sound) since more people are familiar with boating. If you don’t want to buy from the sites listed above, try these DIY suggestions.
Go look in electrical, the gray pvc pipe used for conduit will fit with the white used for piping and is just as water tight. The big difference (and here is the advantage) is that the Grey uses strait threads (those are the grooves that screw things together) were the white uses National Pipe Thread, which is tapered. The tapered treads are great for water tight pipes since they smash together but this makes it nearly impossible to screw two coupling close enough until they would touch a bulk head wall. Thus, not very good for a bulk head seal. The grey can be screwed all the way together and the slip glued or whatever to other fitting. You can even try useing a male NPT coupling into a female Grey strait coupling they should go close enough together to seal on to most bulkhead walls. Gets some o-rings or use silicon since they don’t have the big flat washer face like bulkhead fittings and your holes will have to be just the right size for the threads.
Even better are the grey PVC fitting used to penetrate out of electrical boxes for flexible conduit, they are basically a bulk head fitting with a large plastic nut and a barbed end. Here’s a pic from the H/D web site called a “Carlon 1/2 In. Straight Carflex Fit”
Happy DIY ing
Go look in electrical, the gray pvc pipe used for conduit will fit with the white used for piping and is just as water tight. The big difference (and here is the advantage) is that the Grey uses strait threads (those are the grooves that screw things together) were the white uses National Pipe Thread, which is tapered. The tapered treads are great for water tight pipes since they smash together but this makes it nearly impossible to screw two coupling close enough until they would touch a bulk head wall. Thus, not very good for a bulk head seal. The grey can be screwed all the way together and the slip glued or whatever to other fitting. You can even try useing a male NPT coupling into a female Grey strait coupling they should go close enough together to seal on to most bulkhead walls. Gets some o-rings or use silicon since they don’t have the big flat washer face like bulkhead fittings and your holes will have to be just the right size for the threads.
Even better are the grey PVC fitting used to penetrate out of electrical boxes for flexible conduit, they are basically a bulk head fitting with a large plastic nut and a barbed end. Here’s a pic from the H/D web site called a “Carlon 1/2 In. Straight Carflex Fit”
Happy DIY ing
Some hardware stores have them, never seen them at HD or Lowes. Check plumbing supply places as well, or pool stores. Marine Depot if you want to pay shipping.
I've seen a bigger diameter bulkhead and even the black strainer fitting at Lowes about a month ago (maybe it is being sold here, because we're on the coast and there's alot of boating here as already mentioned above). Alot of the plumping supply stores will special order them for you if they don't have them in stock, which is better than ordering it yourself and paying shipping.