New to using a Sump, protien Skimmer ? and...

[Rmckoy]

The easiest way …..
fill the display tank , and sump with no pumps running .
use a piece of masking tape and a sharpie marker. Mark the water level on the sump .

next turn on all pumps and wait for everything to balance .
that new water level in the sump will be your max fill when running line .
As long as pumps are running never let it get above that line and you will never have a flood !
for example . Picture of my return chamber of my sump .
the line is my max line when running

 

[WRB]

Looking at this pic I would think the primary drain would have some length of stand-pipe, right?

120 GALLON STARFIRE PNP SYSTEM

www.scaquariums.com

This company is only a hundred miles up the road from me and have a real life showroom with good reviews from R2R members that have bought from them in the past. 20,000 sq.ft. warehouse and their maple cabinets are built locally. Fingers crossed.

 

[WRB]

The easiest way …..
fill the display tank , and sump with no pumps running .
use a piece of masking tape and a sharpie marker. Mark the water level on the sump .

next turn on all pumps and wait for everything to balance .
that new water level in the sump will be your max fill when running line .
As long as pumps are running never let it get above that line and you will never have a flood !
for example . Picture of my return chamber of my sump .
the line is my max line when running

So your sump can handle ANY amount of water that drains into the tank if the power or pump fails since you set the level with nothing running! I admit to be slow on the learning curve but I'm getting it now, gotta get over my fear factor. Thanks.

 

[Rmckoy]

So your sump can handle ANY amount of water that drains into the tank if the power or pump fails since you set the level with nothing running! I admit to be slow on the learning curve but I'm getting it now, gotta get over my fear factor. Thanks.

For this particular system yes .

it’s a 230 gal with a 40 gal sump .
external skimmer .
When the power goes out . All water that drains will not over flow the sump

 

[WRB]

Confused again
This tank has an internal overflow box with three 1" holes. So should I reduce the return pump pipe to 3/4" and leave the main and emergency drains at 1"?
Also I have a 29 gal. sump and I'm still worried about an over flow during a power outage etc.
So how far below the waterline do I put the main drain?
Trail and error?

 

[Rmckoy]

Confused again
This tank has an internal overflow box with three 1" holes. So should I reduce the return pump pipe to 3/4" and leave the main and emergency drains at 1"?
Also I have a 29 gal. sump and I'm still worried about an over flow during a power outage etc.
So how far below the waterline do I put the main drain?
Trail and error?

Trial and error will almost always end with a error prior to success .

fill the tank with water while all pumps are off .
Keep filling until the water trickles down into the sump .
When the water in the sump is about 1” from
The top that’s enough water .

start the pumps and let it run , it will balance itself in a short time .
Where the water sits in the final section ( where the return pump is ) ( pumps up to the main display )
That’s your “MAXIMUM “ water level , never to exceed that level when running .
it’s a fail safe way to guarantee nothing can ever over flow .
we just tested that theory by filling the entire system prior to turning pumps on ( power fail test )

what could go wrong ?
There isn’t enough water in the system to overflow

even with time , the worse that can happen is a ato switch doesn’t work or adjusted incorrectly , which can cause too much water in the sump.
if it’s below your line on the sump , DO NOT OVER FILL ABOVE THAT LINE “

 

[WRB]

Thank you, really appreciate your patience.
So how do I know where to position the main drain in reference to the DT waterline when I'm setting it up?

 

[Rmckoy]

Thank you, really appreciate your patience.
So how do I know where to position the main drain in reference to the DT waterline when I'm setting it up?

Do you have pictures of the setup so far ?

 

[WRB]

Actually I'm attempting to figure out my plumbing concerns and needs while I wait for the tank.
Am I missing something? if the main drain is too far below the DT water line won't gravity continue to empty the tank until it's below that stand pipe. Sketchy directions I saw on a Facebook post where another buyer was having issues stated 6" below the weir fence. In a tank that size it would be about 29 gallons into the sump upon any failure. I don't have that much room even if the sump was totally empty. Not gonna have room to use the 50 gal. sump it comes with.

112 GALLON STARFIRE PNP SYSTEM

www.scaquariums.com

 

[Rmckoy]

Actually I'm attempting to figure out my plumbing concerns and needs while I wait for the tank.
Am I missing something? if the main drain is too far below the DT water line won't gravity continue to empty the tank until it's below that stand pipe. Sketchy directions I saw on a Facebook post where another buyer was having issues stated 6" below the weir fence. In a tank that size it would be about 29 gallons into the sump upon any failure. I don't have that much room even if the sump was totally empty. Not gonna have room to use the 50 gal. sump it comes with.

112 GALLON STARFIRE PNP SYSTEM

www.scaquariums.com

My overflow is roughly 3”-4” below the water
A simple elbow is all that’s needed

 

[WRB]

Thank you! That helps alot!

 

[Rmckoy]

Thank you! That helps alot!

Any other questions , feel free to ask . It can be quite overwhelming imagining that volume of water ….

 

[PeterEde]

Could I put the same valve in the drain line or is the water from the overflow side not an issue when the power or pump fails?

Your over flow stops once water reaches the level of the slots in the weir.
Water returns only until it reaches the level of the return pipe.