Need help with sump design.
- Thread starter saltines
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This is my first sump and works great, just I'd do the last piece of glass on each baffle 1" less than it's front piece
Very nice
760mason
Active Member
There is nothing wrong with your design. It will work, but what is your goal ? Will you be running a bio pellet reactor? If so the need for a fuge is not necessary. I have one bubble trap in mine. The new skimmers don't produce excess micro bubbles like they did in the past. If you have the room I would use 2 40 gallons. One as your drain, skimmer and return and the second as your fuge. Your refugium in your 40 gallon sump is to small to be very effective in your size tank. Looking at your current design your fuge is only going to hold maybe 5 gallons of water. If you are cramped for space I would forgo the fuge and run bio pellets.
VicD81
Well-Known Member
Let me Clarify the above statement. If the primary purpose of the fuge is nutrient uptake then its not necessary. You need TONS of macro algae to make a difference. If you plan to keep certain fish, like Mandarins, then a fuge is still not necessary but very helpful. Macro algae will house pods that fish like mandarins love to eat. Bioplastics and other forms of carbon dosing do a much better job at lowering nutrients.
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saltines
New Member
Well i wanted to include it for nutrient uptake and to house copepods or whatever. Like i said this is my first tank so i dont really know much about this as you all do. I know its not a very big fuge but what else am i going to put it in there since ill have a small return and skimmer section taking up about 1/2 of the total tank space. I decided on a 40g sump based on my total volume of flowback that i needed and other peoples own 180g designs. I also built the stand around the sump dimensions. That was the biggest tank size i could fit in there based on manufacturers premade tank dimensions. Of course i could fit more volume tanks say a 55g but then its dimensions would give me a hard time with easy access. In order to add anything else in there i would need to: remove 300lbs of sand/rock, remove 350 lb tank, disassemble the stand top and then throw in another 40b, assuming i will have enough length inside the stand. Either that or try to dissassemble all the wood glue silicone an nails from a side panel. So im basically saying its going to be a headache trying to add something extra under there.
VicD81
Well-Known Member
40G tank is plenty. Just dont expect much from the fuge. Get some reactors for things like biobellets, GFO (Dont Run in conjunction with biopellets), Carbon, Kalk reactor etcetera etcetera etcetera.
If you are integrating a manifold one strong enough pump can run everything you need or each reactor can have its own pump.
If you are integrating a manifold one strong enough pump can run everything you need or each reactor can have its own pump.
VicD81
Well-Known Member
Not really. Wont need a kalk stirrer if you dont need to keep up with calcium uptake of corals. Wont need Biopellets if the bioload is not high same with GFO. Carbon is good to have it will polish the water make it crystal clear.
Just stick with your original plan. Keep it simple & enjoy!!
saltines
New Member
Ok so i just got my glass today and glued up the divider baffle for the skimmer. I had to do it inside the stand so its not a real pretty job but it should be water tight. I went with 10 inches on all my baffles. Now before i glue the bubble trap on the return/fuge side i want some input on how big the return should be. Like i said im planning on running this with an ATO. My initial thought was to make a smaller return chamber that way i avoid salinity spikes with large refills from the ATO. But now upon doing some lurking I see recommendations to opt for a larger return chamber to avoid running my return pump dry. Need some input on my next step.
Chetrod
Active Member
The return are is where the most noticable evaporation happens. A large or small return with an ATO will work. My ATO dumps about five gallons in at a time. However, in my reservoir I have a float valve hooked to the RO to prevent the reservoir from ever going dry. Because no matter the size of your return area if the reservoir is dry then your pump can still go dry.
