Been driving my self nuts over picking a refug/sump!?

[ProfitOfDoom]

I been on the hunt for a sump/refugium,we are somewhat new and we had our tank for almost two years and up to now we been using a homemade 20g sump just a single sock/skimmer/return.

It is what it is and done the job but it's falling apart,So im looking to upgrade and we would like to try out a refugium. I really dont have no interest in building one,I made a few sock upgrades to my current sump and really wasn't into the glass/plexiglass cutting and gluing thing. I enjoyed building my own stand for the tank,,but sump stuff,,not so much.

We have a 75g with a CPR hob,so its a single hose that drains into the sump. I see many of them have two or more intakes where it can be drained into,Im assuming it doesnt matter and just plug it off and not use the others?

I think I narrowed it down to a Eshopps R-300, Trigger Emerald 34,Or the Skimz UP34 SumpPro.
Some are more expensive than others but all and all,Each is a good chunk of money. But my problem is im not in love with any of these,as they all seemed to be flawed and for $300-$500 I want to be extremely happy with something im buying. But than again maybe these will do the job and then some for me...

I think im discarding the Eshopps as I dont like how it works "if I understand it right?" Looks like one hose runs through a sock,then to the skimmer,then to the return and the Other hose runs to the sock,Then to the Refugium and then just returns. Is this a good method? As I said before I only have one hose draining to the sump,Possible to get a split tube or something? This method just seems odd,But im not sure.

Next is the trigger Emerald 34,I think I like most stuff about it,Only problem I see and hear about is the Skimmer is right in front of the socks and will cause a pain to get to and remove the sock for cleaning and changing. Its also pretty pricey compared to the other sumps I mentioned.

Last on my list is the Skimz UP34 Sumpro,This also has a lot going for it. Seems pretty well made,better price point,Most the features im looking for,But my big hang up is the refugium department,,Its only 5" wide! If it wasn't for that I think I would be setting this up under my tank by now. I was planing on using Chaeto and from what I see it grows Rapidly! That little section will be taken over in no time,,Right?

Im pretty much a noob and these are just the few refugium/sumps that caught my eye,So if Im looking at something wrong,Or maybe skipped another brand out there,Please let me know!
Thanks for the help!

 

[Airwarf]

I'm just commenting on the Eshopps since I have one. The two drain inlets go into the same chamber and the water just naturally flows between the filter sock or the refugium.

Like you I only have use for one of the inlets so I used the second one for my heater. The bulkhead holds my heater in perfect position and I just cut the drain pipe shorter to completely expose the heating element to the water. Plus a very high flow area to keep transfer heat faster. win win

 

[GoVols]

I love GEO products

http://www.geosreef.com/product/geo-su24r-white/

 

[ontop27]

I'm just commenting on the Eshopps since I have one. The two drain inlets go into the same chamber and the water just naturally flows between the filter sock or the refugium.

Like you I only have use for one of the inlets so I used the second one for my heater. The bulkhead holds my heater in perfect position and I just cut the drain pipe shorter to completely expose the heating element to the water. Plus a very high flow area to keep transfer heat faster. win win

Is the summerge line fully in the water? I have eshopps skimmer and jager heaters as well and it looks like its cutting it close there

 

[[Cameron]]

My suggestion is to get a Triton style sump. The Synergy Reef 34 or Trigger Triton 34. They have good sized fuge sections before the skimmer section. Even if you don't use Triton itself the high flow sump with a natural filter mechanism is fantastic.

If it were me though, I would just get another X gallon glass aquarium and caulk acrylic sections in. Cutting acrylic is super easy since you score and snap. There is an easy and fast "trick" to suspend acrylic baffles in a glass tank. I am sure once the parts are there, I can score, snap and caulk one together in about ten minutes and just about anyone can do it that fast. You don't even have to be very precise since the caulk covers imperfections.

 

[Broadfield]

Also check out @Elite-Aquatics. Talk to Tyler there and tell him Broadfield referred you. If one of their off-the-shelf sumps don't work for you, then they can modify it for you to your specifications.

 

[Matthew Frost]

I personally have an e-shops r-300. I love the sump all things considered. Its not without its flaws but I think its a great product for the price. If I had any one I wanted it would be the synergy or trigger.

 

[vertigo01]

You may give the Ice Cap brand sump by Coral Vue, a gander.
I am running their 36 and although it doesn't have a dedicated refugium, it does have a built in 7gal ATO reservoir that with just a very little drilling, could become a decent refugium.

 

[Js.Aqua.Project]

The Eshopps R series are nice sumps, I think the 300 would be overkill for a 75, you could use an R200 or possibly even a 100.

If you could do without a fuge, I have used and like the IceCap sumps. I think the IceCap 24 is all you need for a 75gal.

 

[GWHouston]

I can’t attest to the functional aspect of the eshopps yet but the build quality of my R200 is exceptional. It will filter my 120 with an eshopps S200 skimmer. The skimmer spot is 13.5 by 11.5, plenty big for a good skimmer. As for the refugium it appears to be good size for growing your greens. It’s in the front where it’s serviceable when needed. My return compartment is large enough for me to fit a 3100 gph dc pump. I registered my sump and got a two year warranty.

 

[madweazl]

I have the 2nd gen Eshopps on my 75g and it has been great but I don't understand the concept of the new ones at all; extra chambers/walls just reduce usable space with little to no upside.

 

[GWHouston]

I have the 2nd gen Eshopps on my 75g and it has been great but I don't understand the concept of the new ones at all; extra chambers/walls just reduce usable space with little to no upside.

This might help

Dual Water Channel Design
Eshopps R-Series sumps feature unique flow through the separate refugium and skimmer chamber. The main advantage is that your skimmer can now uptake undissolved organics while your refugium can absorb nutrients like ammonia, phosphorus, and other unwanted nutrients without having to compete with each other.

Water Flow
The Eshopps R-Series of sumps has a unique flow pattern. Water first drains into the main drain chamber where a portion of the water will flow into the refugium chamber, and skimmer chamber completely separate. The skimmer compartment has a filter sock to help polish the water of any debris or detritus before entering the protein skimmer, where the refugium compartment gets completely unfiltered water. Keeping the flow paths isolated greatly increases the protein skimmers efficiency and also the growth rate of the refugium. Both chambers drain into the return pump chamber where water can be pushed back into the aquarium by your choice of return pump.

 

[ProfitOfDoom]

Id like to fit the largest sump I could in my stand now,which is anything up to a 36"x 15" and if we upgrade to a larger tank I would like to use this sump as well. Unless is there harm in running a sump to large for my 75g now?

 

[madweazl]

Something like a Trigger 30 would work well; you can run the refugium in the first chamber and the skimmer in the second to free up a little extra space for the refugium (what I did with the Eshopps R200). This also leaves you some room for other things in the stand without being too cluttered.

 

[GWHouston]

I had a choice of a larger sump but considered it to be a waste of my valuable space under my tank. Since the R200 is 30 in. long, I wil have about 14 inches left to use for other purposes if needed. The R200 is rated up to 225 gal.

 

[madweazl]

I had a choice of a larger sump but considered it to be a waste of my valuable space under my tank. Since the R200 is 30 in. long, I wil have about 14 inches left to use for other purposes if needed. The R200 is rated up to 225 gal.

The rating in regard to tank capacity is worthless, find what you want the sump for and size it accordingly (e.g. the individual chambers). My opinion, the new gen Eshopps refugium compartment is worthless (too small to be of any good).

 

[GWHouston]

The rating in regard to tank capacity is worthless, find what you want the sump for and size it accordingly (e.g. the individual chambers). My opinion, the new gen Eshopps refugium compartment is worthless (too small to be of any good).

The bio load would also be a factor in deciding which is best. For me, space was most critical since under my DT is 43x17. Anything larger and it destroys my plans. As for the refugium section, I noticed one of our more successful reefers in our club growing her greens so fast, she was cultivating them every week...all in a space smaller than this refugium. The right lighting is detrimental to a successful refugium. I'm gonna start out with two 24" LED light strips (looks like t5's) and see if thats enough.

 

[madweazl]

The bio load would also be a factor in deciding which is best. For me, space was most critical since under my DT is 43x17. Anything larger and it destroys my plans. As for the refugium section, I noticed one of our more successful reefers in our club growing her greens so fast, she was cultivating them every week...all in a space smaller than this refugium. The right lighting is detrimental to a successful refugium. I'm gonna start out with two 24" LED light strips (looks like t5's) and see if thats enough.

You can certainly grow macro-algae and lighting is important but the real issue is, can you grow enough to benefit the tank? Typically, we're trying to use the macro-algae within the refugium for nutrient control/export to support the system. In regard to the Trigger 30, that yields a refugium compartment that is roughly 10% the system capacity and that is generally accepted as being large enough to benefit the system. The current gen Eshopps R-300 is smaller (refugium capacity) than that of the Trigger 30 which has a six inch shorter foot print.

 

[sundog101]

I'm planning a sump upgrade and probably will go with a trigger ruby 30. I was really looking at Bashsea, and have heard really good things about them. They are NICE sumps. The main reason I'm going with a trigger is that it is a tad shorter and will fit better in my cabinet.

 

[GWHouston]

You can certainly grow macro-algae and lighting is important but the real issue is, can you grow enough to benefit the tank? Typically, we're trying to use the macro-algae within the refugium for nutrient control/export to support the system. In regard to the Trigger 30, that yields a refugium compartment that is roughly 10% the system capacity and that is generally accepted as being large enough to benefit the system. The current gen Eshopps R-300 is smaller (refugium capacity) than that of the Trigger 30 which has a six inch shorter foot print.

The R200 gen 3 refugium is 10x8.5. My tank is a 120 which should give me a total volume of roughly 145 gallons. Is this refugium too small for my needs? BTW, that ruby 30 does look nice.