Ebb and Flow Issue

So I just bought the Titan ebb n gro system off craigslist, I've got my whole system plumbed and I've confirmed the unit is working.. BUT

The control bucket has about 1 foot of upward elevation before going back down to the floor..

My brain is telling me that everything needs to be completely flat in order for this to work. (previously I thought the individual grow buckets should be elevated higher than the control bucket, however Titan made a video saying it all needs to be level..)

So my question: am I being paranoid or is 8inches-1foot of plumbing elevation off the control bucket going to cause the whole system not to work? It's not filling at all.

There is your answer?

Now try it all level as Titan instructed and see if that solves the problem?