40 Gallon Breeder Sump Question

[cdfjr1975]

Below is my drawing and some start up photos. Drawing is fairly accurate at 50 scale.

Bean animal main and secondary come into chamber one with the skimmer. Skimmer works on 6-8 inches of water but I have enough room to add six inch base, but will only do four as necessary with a 10 inch baffle. Have not made a decision on socks yet.

Bean animal emergency into chamber two which is undetermined use, but possibly most likely refugium. Figured since this is an emergency the pipe entering here should not be an issue, right?

Chamber three is return. Varios 6 appears it would need at least 3.5 inches of water so 9 should suffice.

This will allow a straight flow of all pipes from the bean animal to the sump.

Anything I'm missing or should consider instead?

All critiques and suggestions welcome.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Crabs McJones]

I like it looks well thought out. My only suggestion, and I've ran into this before, is make sure you have a definite spot to fit a heater. Some, with how long they are, dont fit in the desired chamber so account for that

 

[cdfjr1975]

Just assumed heaters would fit because sump was large enough, but I guess when you start dividing it up it could be too short. Thanks for bringing it up.

I've seen a lot of sumps with the return feeding the fuge from the center, any pros it cons anyone would like to discuss?

 

[Crabs McJones]

Just assumed heaters would fit because sump was large enough, but I guess when you start dividing it up it could be too short. Thanks for bringing it up.

I've seen a lot of sumps with the return feeding the fuge from the center, any pros it cons anyone would like to discuss?

I'm not familiar with the bean animal (3 drain) I have just two running the Herbie style, and what I do with mine is the primary runs through a filter sock and the emergency has a trickle that feeds the fuge. Not sure if you could do something similar?

 

[NinnJinn]

I like it looks well thought out. My only suggestion, and I've ran into this before, is make sure you have a definite spot to fit a heater. Some, with how long they are, dont fit in the desired chamber so account for that

That is the one thing I did not account for when building mine.

Filter sock is in the back corner of the particular section so therefore my two heaters had to go in at a slant.

 

[cdfjr1975]

Haha that definitely would have been me without crab mcjones advice.

That is the one thing I did not account for when building mine.

Filter sock is in the back corner of the particular section so therefore my two heaters had to go in at a slant.

 

[NinnJinn]

Haha that definitely would have been me without crab mcjones advice.

My mistake while doing mine was the fact that I used almost half the tank to put my Chaeto in. I really have no clue why I allotted so much space for it. But then had to cram the filter sock, skimmer, and two heaters into one itty-bitty section.

 

[NinnJinn]

But based on my build, the one thing I would suggest is if you're going to run a filter sock mount the holder a little bit below the top of the tank that way if your filter sock happens to clog up it will not overflow outside of the sump like it would mine.

 

[NinnJinn]

If at all possible have your skimmer already in your possession before you finish up your sump that way you can allow enough room to build a proper stand for your skimmer.

I already had a skimmer in mind and the description stated it needed between 8-12in of water......

When I finally received my skimmer I quickly found out if it's over 6 in in water it overflows. Based on what I already had in that particular section I was only able to build a little bitty stand and pretty much the sump divider, the back of the tank, and the sock holder is what's keeping it from falling over.

I know you are concentrating on your sump right now, but if it is going to be in a stand under the DT be sure you have enough of an opening in your stand to be able to pull your skimmer out for disassembly and deep cleaning. ( another lesson that I learned the hard way)

 

[Marc88]

I second the skimmer comment and add to it. I didn't account for the amount of space under my stand it would need. I figured building a stand would fix my depth issues. I quickly realized that as I raised it, I had trouble removing my skimmer cup. Looks like you have a 2x6 as your header for your stand but keep that in mind. I thought I had plenty of room until I didn't. Ultimately I ended up cutting back one of my baffles to lower the water level. It was not a hard job just a bit annoying.

 

[cdfjr1975]

Great points. As it sits now I can remove the skimmer once the cup is off, but it has to be tilted. I will need a bucket for the water that spills as I remove it. I will cut cardboard baffles tonight to test the true fit though. Thanks for pointing out the fit question it will be helpful when determining where to place that first baffle.

 

[Instigate]

But based on my build, the one thing I would suggest is if you're going to run a filter sock mount the holder a little bit below the top of the tank that way if your filter sock happens to clog up it will not overflow outside of the sump like it would mine.

You should swap out that rusty hose clamp with a plastic one!

 

[NinnJinn]

You should swap out that rusty hose clamp with a plastic one!

After I post a reply on a thread I always go back and reread it. The first thing that popped into my head was " man I need to change that rusty hose clamp with a plastic one."

While I was at the hardware store picking up PVC for the new fish to hide in I picked up 3 hose clamps. Plan on changing them out this evening after I get my fish settled into quarantine.

 

[cdfjr1975]

Drain plumbing complete and 10 out of 10 times I was able to remove the skimmer without touching cardboard baffle, or anything else for that matter. At least 8 of those were under the influence of the non sump photo.

 

[cdfjr1975]

I'm not familiar with the bean animal (3 drain) I have just two running the Herbie style, and what I do with mine is the primary runs through a filter sock and the emergency has a trickle that feeds the fuge. Not sure if you could do something similar?

The third drain is just an emergency but I like the idea off the trickle serving the second section. Since this is just a change in the overflow non-glued piping that should be easy to test.

 

[KCSUMPS]

This is a great thread! I picked up the 40 breeder today and am looking at how you are doing this. Only thing I am wanting to add to what you are doing is some filter media between the refugium and the return pump - I have seen a few that have a raising or lowering for water level and two 'shelves' for filter media between these.

That said, here is my question(s): What are you using for sealant? I have both the GE1 and the stuff from Home Depot that is right next to the acrylic... Are you going all glass for the dividers?

 

[cdfjr1975]

Glad you are finding this informative and sorry it has taken a slow turn.

I finally found a glass shop near me that will cut 1/4 inch glass for under $100. Plan to finalize the order tomorrow.

https://www.amazon.com/GE-1200-Construction-Silicone-Sealant/dp/B001G0YLXA

https://www.amazon.com/MOMENTIVE-RTV108-300ML-Silicone-One-Part-Translucent/dp/B077GQM76W

These are the silicone I read about and plan to order from Amazon. Pricy but have read about them as good suggestions. Edit: purchased the momentive from Amazon. Chose this because it is FDA food safe which is usually a good sign for our tanks.

I am changing my one inch space between baffles to two so I can accommodate any extras in the space as needed.

 

[KCSUMPS]

Nice and thanks for the extra info on sealants. so you are using both of the ones you listed or just one of these two for the installation of the sump baffles?

If you get it done can you throw out some pics? I am about a week from having the stand finally done and have the 40 breeder sitting waiting to start...

 

[cdfjr1975]

Only one, I put them both there because they were mentioned in many if the posts I read.

https://www.amazon.com/MOMENTI...Part-Translucent/dp/B077GQM76W

I pick up the glass tomorrow so I should be getting it sealed and water tested by the weekend.

Once I've got it set up I will post some pictures.

 

[cdfjr1975]

I picked up my glass today and I'm think I chose wrong on my size. I measured the bottom repeatedly and kept getting 17 1/4 so I ordered 17 for the glass leaving 1/8 on either side to inject the silicone. As I'm dry fitting the glass today i notice the gaps look much larger towards the top than I expected. I'm probably now sitting at about 1/4 each side near the top since there isn't silicone already there like in the bottom.

Question: do i need to get new glass or will the silicone securely fill this gap?