sump check in for big tank build

ballroomdude · Oct 12, 2015

In the process of planning a 600+ gallon aquarium bar. It will be a FOWLR and will have probably 600 to 800 pounds of live rock in it. I am probably going to be turning over 4000 gph to 6000 gph into the sump at a head height of about 10 inches.

I figured I could have a 3 section sump like this:

DT->
1. coarse foam->med. foam->micro foam/filter floss->
2. media bags with ROX carbon->
3. final sump chamber with pipe leading to external pump for protein skimmer that goes back to section 2 for more carbon dosing as I will be using ozone injection, and a pipe leading to an external pump for return back to the DT

I'm trying to figure out how big I need the sump to be to accomplish this.

I plan on running a lifereef vs3 72" tall protein skimmer driven by a big reeflo pump (hammerhead) and probably a 1.5 to 2hp return pump on a gate valve to move water back to the DT. At most I'll have 3' of head on the return side.

Thoughts? I like simple.

143MPCo · Oct 13, 2015

http://diyfishkeepers.com/SumpSizeCalculator.htm

143MPCo · Oct 13, 2015

http://reef.diesyst.com/volcalc/volcalc.html

ballroomdude · Oct 13, 2015

Awesome. Just what I needed

ballroomdude · Oct 13, 2015

Found some good info. Says that to flow 6000 gph I'll need a 3.2" pipe with water being 1" over the weir top.

Also says that I'd need 90+ inches of horizontal weir to achieve this which shouldn't be a problem.

Lastly I've discovered that in the event of a power outage I'll be dealing with just north of 40 gallons emptying into the sump with a 1" water height clearance over the weir. I have room for 9 feet of sump and figured if I built it at 36 inches of height with only a 24 inch water table I'd be able to handle the overflow without worrying about flooding.

I was going to use a 4 inch pvc pipe with grooves cut in it along the entire back wall and both sides of the tank to allow the overflow to stay happy. I'll be using a beananimal system and if I run it like I said above I should have around 174" of horizontal weir to collect water. Should be enough to keep the surface skimmed properly in my L shaped tank.