Sump/Fuge Build

[uall8up]

Well, I have been purchasing, piece by piece, all the equipment I need to build my sump/fuge. This is what I have so far....acrylic, WM Skimmer MF121, Mag 9.5 pump, Eshopps Overflow Box 1000, and a 55 gallon tank. I am waiting on my Sock holder and socks to arrive. I am suppose to go tonight and get the PVC and all the fittings I am going to need. Oh yeah, also waiting on a friend to dig out his jigsaw!!!

Wish me luck!!!:neutral:

 

[Reefing8EZ]

Looks like you're off to a good start. Good luck!

 

[Jgomez324]

I have a Refugium but don't know what to put in it?

 

[uall8up]

Well, got the baffles cut and installed into the sump. I am going out of town til Sunday so I think that will be a great amount of time to let the silicone set. When I get back I will work on the plumbing. I am very excited!!

 

[uall8up]

Well, with all the time I had on my hands, I was able to get the sump/fuge put together. It was pretty fun doing this with the hubby as my helper. lol I am pretty proud of my work. Everything seems to be in check and all is well. Still have to stock the fuge and get the pipes for the return into the tank. But, this is what I have so far.......

 

[Soehl]

Awesome!! Looks great! Fill that thing up with some macro and you will be rolling!

What did you use to put the baffles in? I did one a lot like this and just used silicone... About a month into it the baffles collapsed. I had to redo my whole thing. :sad:

 

[uall8up]

AHHH Don't say that, I used silicone also!!! I put a few handfulls of chaeto in tonight!

 

[Pappy]

Looks like its gonna be tough getting that sock out...did u put in unions?

 

[wysiwyg]

amazing job looks very nice congrats

 

[Giancarlo]

Silicone does not bond acrylic to glass, you have to do glass to glass or acrylic to acrylic (with using weldon) but silicone as soehl mentioned will buckle eventually. Another thing to keep an eye on is the acrylic expanding and cracking the glass, basically acrylic will absorb water and eventually bust through the glass, at least what i have read. When i made my first sump i had it for a year like that(acrylic on glass) without cracking, so you definatly have some time, but you do need to fix it eventually.

 

[Soehl]

ooohhhh.... Sorry. Didn't mean to burst your bubble. Keep a CLOSE eye on it. Maybe it will hold for you. I hope so.

Here is what I did after mine broke down. I decided to use a small piece of plexi with a indent, the thickness of the plexi taken out, at the top of each baffle. These I glued in place with Goop. Along the bottom I ran a brace the length of the tank, sandwiching all the baffles in. I siliconed these in place. I let the first coat of silicone dry over night and then added a second coat of silicone the next day. I am now in the process of letting the whole thing cure. I plan on a couple more days just to be sure it is all cured.


Where I had a perpindicular joint of 2 plexi pieces I drilled a hole through, or into, both pieces and filled the hole with epoxy. The perticual type of epoxy is extremely stong. It is Hysol 1c. Don't know if it is reef safe but just in case I covered all areas with silicone.

I have pictures if you would like to see them I can mail them to you. I have a heck of a time uploading pics on this site. My email is [email protected].

 

[Soehl]

I finally got them to work! The first pic shows the small support I glued on with Goop. The second pic shoes the braces I put on the bottom of the tank and the third pic shows the glues that I used.

 

[Soehl]

Oh. 1 more thing. I let this cure for 3 days. I think that was a big mistake I made the first time. You HAVE to give it time to cure...

 

[uall8up]

Thank you so much for the advice everyone. I let mine cure for a 5 days.

 

[zemuss]

The whole expanding issue of acrylic can be solved by cutting the baffles shorter than the width of the tank its going into. That way it lets it expand, however I doubt Cell Cast or any acrylic will absorb that much water to bust through.

 

[Giancarlo]

The whole expanding issue of acrylic can be solved by cutting the baffles shorter than the width of the tank its going into. That way it lets it expand, however I doubt Cell Cast or any acrylic will absorb that much water to bust through.

Agreed, but it won't solve the problem of silicone not able to bond the two together. It will cause a temporary seal, which will collapse with time.

 

[_Alex_]

i have a buddy that is going on 5 years with acrylic siliconed in to a glass tank.. no issues.. and another one going on a year...

as far as the expansion they have had no problems there either

 

[Giancarlo]

That's fine but why would you tell people to risk it. Its a gamble and the op might as well know the risks.

 

[uall8up]

Well, as my first build I am very happy with my work. Thank you all for your input. If you want to continue this debate please start a new thread.