Looking for opinions on my build

[Dj A-Ron]

Hey guys. New here and am starting up my first reef tank. I’ve done a bunch of research but really don’t know what I’m doing. It’s a Reefer 250 So 54 gallon tank with 11 gallons in the sump. I’ve decided to plump the sump in my basement bellow. It’s all just dry fit so far. Haven’t glued anything yet. I plan to to soft plumb the return pump mainly cause I wasn’t sure if I could get the head pressure needed to get up to the living room above with all the bends in the plumbing. I’m gonna be using a Eco-tech Vectra M2 which should do the trick. I still have some work to do. I want to reroute the hose for the return pump and a couple other things. Can you guys take a look at the attached photos and see if this all looks like it will work okay? I have the main drain and the back up drain hard plumbed but there are quite a few 90 degree elbows used. I don’t think all the 90’s will effect the drainage but not sure...? Please let me know your opinions. Thanks for any advice.

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Evening

For a first build or a 10th, the build looks great. Nothing stands out to me on plumbing. I have never plumbed a Red Sea before though. On the vinyl hose to barb fittings I cannot tell, do you have a plastic hose clamp or some way to secure the hose onto the barb. That would be the only thing I can see.

If you like, get the thread going under member tanks section and get a build thread badge. This way everyone can watch this build. Looks great so far.

 

[Albertan22]

I would put the gate valve after the 90s. Generally you want the valve as close to the end of the drain line as possible so the pipe above can fill with water and push out the air to form the siphon. With a sump in the basement you can’t do that since you won’t be able to tune the overflow without seeing it. You still want to do everything you can to help that siphon establish. With that valve where it is, air will get trapped in those 90s and it will take forever for the noise to subside and the air to push out.

 

[Albertan22]

The drain pipes are probably also too deep in the sump. You want them to extend about an inch below water level. This also helps purge the air from the lines. Consider not glueing those last pieces of pipe below the 45s. That way you can pop the off and adjust the length if needed. The drains don’t have a lot of pressure so probably won’t leak, and even if they do, those joints are over the sump and will just drip into it.

 

[Dj A-Ron]

I would put the gate valve after the 90s. Generally you want the valve as close to the end of the drain line as possible so the pipe above can fill with water and push out the air to form the siphon. With a sump in the basement you can’t do that since you won’t be able to tune the overflow without seeing it. You still want to do everything you can to help that siphon establish. With that valve where it is, air will get trapped in those 90s and it will take forever for the noise to subside and the air to push out.

Do you think I should just put it in the basement just above where it finally drains into the sump? That’s where I was considering to put it anyway. I know I’d probably have to run upstairs a couple times or just have my wife up by the tank to listen.

 

[Dj A-Ron]

The drain pipes are probably also too deep in the sump. You want them to extend about an inch below water level. This also helps purge the air from the lines. Consider not glueing those last pieces of pipe below the 45s. That way you can pop the off and adjust the length if needed. The drains don’t have a lot of pressure so probably won’t leak, and even if they do, those joints are over the sump and will just drip into it.

Okay thanks. That’s a good tip. I kinda just looked at where the stock drains hung in the sump and did my best guess. I wasn’t sure how deep they were supposed to be. Now I know. I will do like you said. Thanks again

 

[Dj A-Ron]

Evening

For a first build or a 10th, the build looks great. Nothing stands out to me on plumbing. I have never plumbed a Red Sea before though. On the vinyl hose to barb fittings I cannot tell, do you have a plastic hose clamp or some way to secure the hose onto the barb. That would be the only thing I can see.

If you like, get the thread going under member tanks section and get a build thread badge. This way everyone can watch this build. Looks great so far.

I do have the clamps on hand. I didn’t push the hose all the way on or clamp it yet. I want to reroute the hose a little different. Thanks for the tip on the other thread.

 

[Albertan22]

Do you think I should just put it in the basement just above where it finally drains into the sump? That’s where I was considering to put it anyway. I know I’d probably have to run upstairs a couple times or just have my wife up by the tank to listen.

That would be the best place from a siphon perspective but will be a pain to tune. I can tell you that I put my valve too high and regret it, and I’m only dropping about 5 feet. I regret it because it can take quite a while for the siphon to establish, and sometimes it stalls and doesn’t establish and I have to re-tune it or stop the return pump and try again.