Redesigning my 3 tank stack to a overflow/sump setup. Need Ideas!

[meicalnissyen]

Greetings
I've been searching and reading all morning, but have not found any directly common situations
I have a stack of three tanks, which I am moving a few feet and plan to frame around with windowed viewing, essentially formalizing the existing effect of using the stack as a divider between rooms

the stack has had individual pumps and filters for the past 4 years, but I wish to setup a drilled overflow to sump, common sump, common return

Using a pump I recently obtained,

4-mdqx-sc

and measuring max flow of 900+ at 10 ft with 3 other outputs at 3, 5,and 7feet,

I figure I can get a balanced flow of 250~300 gph to each tank

drilling 2 holes per tank, one main, one emergency


thinking Durso, open to other quieting ideas mebbe a bean on the end wall.....


all the utilities will be on the end of the stack, and given the tight quarters under the tanks, is there any advantage to driling the ends as opposed to the traditional bottom?

go with 1" bulk heads, or is 3/4" sufficient/better ?


can I " Y" the top tank drain into the middle tankdrain , then to the bottom tank,...? increasing pipe dia of course
otherwise, I'm going to end up with 6 pipes into the sump.....

Sump is restrained by underneath frame constraints
like an L on its side, it will be appx 7" high, foot wide, mebbe 2~3 feet long .
the short leg of L will be drain entry
rough sketch included

just looking for some rough guidance
feel free to redirect me if this has been covered elswhere

Thanks in advance Gents

 

[mcarroll]

I think you'll have to make the bottom tank the sump.

Run the return flow to the top tank.

Drain the top tank into the second tank.

Drain the second tank into the sump.

I think drilling the bottom may be handy if you want to completely drain the tank at some point...otherwise drill where it's convenient.

I'd drill at the water's surface by the wall so you can build something to hide the drain plumbing.

For this I wouldn't mess with the complicated drain layouts, just upsize your drain plumbing one size (say, from 1" to 1.25") and keep it simple.

Remember you generally only need 2x to 4x the volume of your display tanks in GPH of actual flow. For two 55's feeding a common sump, that's 220 gph to 440 gph.

It won't be hard to silence that much flow...

$0.02

 

[mcarroll]

I would recoat that stand as well.

Looks like steel, which will rust like crazy with saltwater near it...in spots you didn't even know were uncoated!!

 

[meicalnissyen]

I would recoat that stand as well.

Looks like steel, which will rust like crazy with saltwater near it...in spots you didn't even know were uncoated!!

Yup, I'm adding a proly uneeded brace on the nuts, and replacing the screws. and mebbe pay to have It PC'd. I can do 18" wheels, but no way can I bake that stand !

 

[mcarroll]

18" wheels?! I'm not even sure what that means in this context.

I think even a thorough cleaning and degreasing plus a coat of rustoleum would be a good at-home solution.

 

[meicalnissyen]

Huh,
well gotta keep all three as display.
that said, I embrace your trickle down Idea,
question, doing that, will balancing the overflow drain rates become tricky? er,?

I currently have one tank that was drilled by prior owner with a curved corner overflow and 2 holes bulkheaded with a 1, and 1.25 out the bottom

I could use this tank in the top spot with a durso on the 1.25 and the 1" as emergency

I have a 75 currently in the bottom spot, needs drilling, and a good lead on another that will also need drilling.

Guess I could do one more bottom corner overflow in the middle spot, and a bean type in the bottom to buy me some space for sumpage underneath

gate valves on the drains I imagine

The calculator dictates 1.24 for 900 gph

I can throttle that back a bit (alot)

Likeing this marine pure block thing I could use just one of those baffle direct flow thru it, and be done and done for bio I'd bet


any other caveats???

 

[meicalnissyen]

18" wheels?! I'm not even sure what that means in this context.

I think even a thorough cleaning and degreasing plus a coat of rustoleum would be a good at-home solution.

I have a good sized home powder coating operation going

 

[mcarroll]

will balancing the overflow drain rates become tricky? er,?

No, easier. Automatic, in fact. Balancing multiple outlets as you planned can be difficult.

one tank that was drilled by prior owner with a curved corner overflow and 2 holes

I would probably use the 1" for the return since it's there...don't think you'll need a spare drain, but it won't hurt either.

gate valves on the drains I imagine

Gravity drains should be as open and unobstructed as possible, so no valves for me!

for bio

What kind of tanks a these going to be?

If there will be anything close to 1 pound per gallon of corals+live rock, additional bio filtration shouldn't be required.

 

[meicalnissyen]

No, easier. Automatic, in fact. Balancing multiple outlets as you planned can be difficult.



I would probably use the 1" for the return since it's there...don't think you'll need a spare drain, but it won't hurt either.



Gravity drains should be as open and unobstructed as possible, so no valves for me!



What kind of tanks a these going to be?

If there will be anything close to 1 pound per gallon of corals+live rock, additional bio filtration shouldn't be required.

Well,, uh,

I haven't run a reef in 18 years, I keep a huge oscar that I hand feed, a Red devil, that is the biggest ******* inside of glass walls, and a kinda failed ****** community tank that is looking for a purpose.

I posted here because freshwater people can't plumb to save their lives............

 

[mcarroll]

I loved my Oscar.

So this will remain a freshwater system, correct?

 

[mcarroll]

My my figuring, a 7x12x36" sump is only 13 gallons. If it's virtually sealed under the bottom tank, I'm not sure what utility you could get out of that small size.

I'd consider that bottom-tank-as-sump idea a little more. Look at some of the reef sumps that are decked out as grow out spaces or full-boat refugiums. You don't lose an entire tank...

Just for an example to imagine: consider putting a glass wall in the bottom tank to create a return pump chamber - it can be exactly as wide as the pump you select to put in there. (Tiny, if you are plumbing an external pump.) The rest of the tank can be normal, more or less. Dealing with the drain plumbing is the only other issue...at reasonable (low) flow rates it should be easy to handle that. At most, another small walled space on the other end of the tank, or in the back would isolate it as much as needed.

 

[meicalnissyen]

Yep, staying fresh...
Looking at petstore reefs is like sitting on a ducati,...... Its nice, but just doesnt fire the need to stick my hand back in the badger hole

13 with mebbe another 7 from the short leg of the L .....
Lean, 225 of DT needs how much to handle on off hi lo tide cycling

Proly 5 gallons anyway

So you're thinking movong the communiy tank to the bottom spot, and nicking a third of it for sump

Kind of ideas i posted to get

Thats going to need 2 beers to digest

Thanks man