Sump and plumbing help

[Wheeldog]

Hello everyone,

I am in the process of setting up my new 100 gallon aquarium and am running into some issues with the plumbing. First off the tank has 2 40mm (1.25") drains that I plan to run in a Herbie setup, and 2 20mm(.5") returns. I know working with metric is a royal pain in the butt here in the US so I am considering ordering some conversion fittings to switch from metric if needed. I am most worried with the sump that came with the setup working well, the drain runs looking fine and how best to plumb the return. Here are the pics of what I have currently:

The first pic is just kind of thrown together with the supplied plumbing and I tried to run it all behind the stand to free up some space under the stand and both drains will go into that first chamber of the sump before the filter sock. Are the short horizonal runs on the drains ok? Should I move the gate valve closer to the sump (something like where the short vertical pipe is in my first pic)? Should I center my sump (I kind of like the idea of having it to one side so I have some space on the side to add other stuff like ATO tank)? Does this sump look like it's going to give me issues going forward? As far as the return currently the 2 return lines 3 into a 25mm (3/4") T that then goes to the sump. Is this setup ok or am I going to have flow rate issues? I don't know enough about Ts and reducing's effect on flow. My return pump is a Varios-6 with a 1.25" outlet that I was planning on plumbing into a 1" manifold with a few gate valves for future use. Should I just go from 1" to 3/4" to 25mm to 20mm and use the supplied plumbing or should I just keep it all 1" and go from 1" right down to 20mm on each return? (I can get the converters for this as well). I can also just ditch all the metric stuff and convert directly off the bulkheads to metric if that will be easier. Any input would be appreciated, Thanks!

 

[Idoc]

1. Horizontal runs on drain lines can be a problem if air gets trapped in the line. If this happens, it will make some noise and limit your drain return since it's heated fir the air to escape. Maybe see if you can use 45 degree fittings to keep the runs angled, if possible.

2. The lower the gate valve, usually the better. But, i have my gate valve a few inches down from my bulkhead and it works fine. I also use a Herbie style drain system.

3. Place the sump wherever you want it. I like mine to the side as well...i set mine to the drain line side of the stand in order to have a straight drop to the sump fir my drain lines.

4. I don't understand your next question about "the 2 return lines 3 into a 25mm (3/4") T that then goes to the sump." Are you talking about the return lines or the drain lines?

5. On my Varios 6, I reduced three output to 1" directly out of the pump, then reduced it further to 3/4" near the entrance into my tank...i have a single 3/4" return into my tank. If you plan on having manifolds, then keep the flow out of your pump as unrestricted as possible and reduce the line after the "T" to your manifold.

6. I would convert to standard US fittings as quickly as possible out of your bulkheads for ease of making changes later.

 

[Wheeldog]

Thanks for the reply! Somehow my typing wasn’t lining up with my mind, I meant the 2 return lines(on on each side of the tank) meet together in a T not 3. It’s a ~3/4” T with reducers on the 2 arms that connect to the return pipes that go to the tank. I just didn’t know if 1 3/4” line could feed 2 1/2” lines via a T.