Overflow Plumbing

[Amateur Reefer]

I’m planning my next build and my first upgrade from a BioCube. I’ve decided to go with a bean animal overflow system. I’m thinking about installing a drain out to the outside of my house on the wall in the back of the tanks. I would then plumb the third overflow (the emergency) straight to that drain out and not the sump. I’m also thinking about drilling an emergency line out in the sump above the water line to the drain out as a redundancy to prevent any flooding. (This could also help regulate water level if I decide to connect two tanks together that I already have for a larger sump).

I’m trying to identify what can go wrong with this design. I don’t see a lot of experienced reefers doing it, so I must be missing something Thoughts, anyone?

 

[Geebs19]

Interesting thought. Im sure someone on here has thought/done this before. Sounds like a good fail safe.

 

[Larry L]

The emergency drain in the Bean Animal setup is there as a failsafe so that if both of the other two overflow drains clog, there is still a way for the water to get back down to the sump instead of overflowing over the top of the tank edge. If you routed the emergency drain outside, and both of your other overflow drains clogged, then your return pump would drain the sump.

 

[Amateur Reefer]

The emergency drain in the Bean Animal setup is there as a failsafe so that if both of the other two overflow drains clog, there is still a way for the water to get back down to the sump instead of overflowing over the top of the tank edge. If you routed the emergency drain outside, and both of your other overflow drains clogged, then your return pump would drain the sump.

Good point. I currently use the auto aqua smart security to prevent the sump from running dry and would do that again on this system, so I didn’t even think about that. I was more concerned with preventing the sump from overflowing.

Do you think there any problems with having an emergency drain from the sump to the outside drain?

 

[theatrus]

Good point. I currently use the auto aqua smart security to prevent the sump from running dry and would do that again on this system, so I didn’t even think about that. I was more concerned with preventing the sump from overflowing.

Do you think there any problems with having an emergency drain from the sump to the outside drain?

If you have an ATO, you'll end up with a freshwater tank as well.

I'm not sure this is worth the complication?

 

[Reab]

I think that it is unnecessary. With proper water levels you will not overflow. Just do some testing when you first have it set up. The baffles of the sump should be low enough so that if the pump stops, the water from the display can drain down. Now, test your drains, clog them up and see what happens. The amount of water in the last chamber of the sump + the ATO fill water, because this will trip the ATO, should all fit in the DT

 

[Reab]

99% of ATO today have a sensor that tell them when too much water is too much so it will not just continuously fill