10 gallon wet dry vac. I can do a 20 gallon water change in less than 5 min. I vac 20 gallon from my sump and suck up all the detritus in there
Not a bad plan for some scenarios especially sumps as mentioned; I've done this too. But you still wind up carrying a heavy container of water/muck to the drain...doesn't fix that. (At 8lbs per gallon, 20 gal of water is >150 lbs! I'm trying to avoid carrying a 5 gal bucket! LOL) Also, I'd advise to only get a vac you don't mind throwing away...the saltwater will make it short lived. (I.e. It will not last forever, so don't spend for a top-dollar machine for this...and get one with as much plastic/as little metal as possible.) Personally, I like the little 1-2 gallon vacs for this....never too heavy, but you might make a few trips to the drain.
Oberst, if this sounds handy for your scenario, I'd have a hose based solution for general cleanings and fillups, and the vac as a tool for sump-cleaning day only.
I'm afraid my mixing station and possibly drain will be quite far from my tank. In fact, I don't know where I'll be mixing at just yet. I doubt the wife is going to want me draining into her kitchen sink, so I guess I'll have to run it down the hall to the bathroom.
All though, I could run the hose down into the basement to the utility closet. It has a drain and I might could mix my water there (no sink, but it has a drain in the floor and I could put in a faucet easy enough). Since I live in CO, mixing water in the garage is pretty much out of the question during the winter months. A covenant mixing station was actually one of my big concerns for even setting up a tank. This little thread might have just solved that. I guess a larger pump for sending the water back would be in order though.
In many cases, draining into a bathroom toilet (as you mentioned) works well...usually low enough that a siphon will run fine and the toilet lid can be closed on the hose to hold it from falling out while you tend to the other end. Ditto for a basement drain..will work well...securing the hose may be a little trickier though. You may only need a pump for refilling.
And you're right about the larger pump if the mixing station has to be downstairs from the tank. Getting water up a flight will be prohibitively expensive in terms of the pump needed IMO.
Assuming your domicile is 11' per story and your sump rim is 2' off the ground, you're looking at a minimum head pressure of 13'. That's not counting pressure-loss from [how many?] feet of tubing or any other factors. Most pumps you'd want to consider for something like this shut off at around 8-10 feet, so you'll need a large/high-pressure (expensive) pump. Most likely something in the 1500gph range (QuietOne 9000, Mag 18, maybe even bigger) which will run you between $100 and $300. (It's only going to push - at most - a few hundred gph at this height.)
Maybe your budget can support this solution, but I'd try a bigger helping of creativity to work around needing this. If at all possible, find a place on the same level as (or even upstairs from) the tank to make your RO water and do mixing. All you really need room for is the RO reservoir, which can double as the mixing vat if needed. 18" diameter of floor space should be sufficient for the amount of water you'd want on-hand. The RO filter itself can be just about anywhere on a wall, in a cabinet...but I think it would also be ideal if it's not pushing product water upstairs either.
-Matt
P.S. If getting a 120g (48x24x24) is an option,
take it. The 120's shape is superior to that of a 90 gallon (48x18x24). 18" width is very limiting - in fact 24" can be too if you like big coral colonies or big fishes. In spite of how popular 90 gallon tanks are, I never ever recommend them. The 90's added height over a plain 75 is minimal - to me it's more a bother than a benefit (YMMV, of course)...plus it costs more than a 75. If 75 won't cut it and you're willing to spend more, I would go to a 120g in a heartbeat. If you're mostly a fish guy, it could be argued that a 125g (72x18x24) might be a smarter buy. Still stuck with the 18" width, but you have two whole extra feet of length. I wouldn't say this gives you the option for
big fish, but definitely more fish. And 125's tend to be more common/cheaper than 120's, FWIW.
