Sump Opinions

[AllSignsPointToFish]

Aren't you supposed to skim after the Chaetomorpha has had a chance to remove nutrients from the water? Maybe it doesn't matter and I'm not sure how much phosphate/nitrate gets removed in the skimming process, but I seem to recall reading that somewhere.

I do like your setup. What kind of light are you running for the Chaeto?

 

[DeniseAndy]

Currently I have a 40b and instituted a sump onto it and could not be happier. I have always run small tanks with HOB skimmers, but wanted a clean look. Everything is in the sump except a powerhead and tiny overflow box. Very clean and I can grow pods in the sump on the bits of rock down there. I am currently using a 10g since it is what was laying around at the time. No chambers in mine though. No room.

 

[DeniseAndy]

Aren't you supposed to skim after the Chaetomorpha has had a chance to remove nutrients from the water? Maybe it doesn't matter and I'm not sure how much phosphate/nitrate gets removed in the skimming process, but I seem to recall reading that somewhere.

I do like your setup. What kind of light are you running for the Chaeto?

I pull the water from my dirty section to the external skimmer on my large system, but still water flows into the refugium section. So, before or after does not really matter much water still goes both ways.

 

[Damon]

Aren't you supposed to skim after the Chaetomorpha has had a chance to remove nutrients from the water? Maybe it doesn't matter and I'm not sure how much phosphate/nitrate gets removed in the skimming process, but I seem to recall reading that somewhere.

I do like your setup. What kind of light are you running for the Chaeto?

I found that it doesn't matter. As a matter of fact, skimming after pulls a lot of the pods, snails, and shrimp that grow and live in the cheato, that would otherwise (lol, if they're lucky) find their way to the display.. That is, as long as they aren't chopped to bits in the process.. But a lot of things I read, I am like "that doesn't make common sense". At least to me.. Lol, our skimmer and other pumps can really easily get clogged, frozen, etc from calcium carbonate, not to mention baby small shells. I have so many snails and pods down there that is insane.. Lol, my skimmer would be full of them.. With my setup, it's bad enough having the amount of bugs,snails etc that live all over the place and crawl all over the skimmer, with it being the first thing in line. I couldn't imagine the issues I would have if I put the skimmer "after" the fuge.. That's just asking for disaster imho..

And it's a 150 watt high pressure sodium.. Cheato growing machine! Lol.. I've been using them for years.. It's a little different looking now though after six months of use.. I need to scrape the corraline again..

 

[Davileet]

Sumps are relatively easy like others have posted. I have only had issues when I made my baffles too large in the past and it did not allow enough water to complete the loop. That was on a 500 gallon system with a 75 gallon sump, so a 40b will not have an issue with that.

You should decide what you want to do with your space. I would purchase the skimmer you want to use if you are going to, before placing any walls in your sump. If you want to go with a more natural way of filtering and forgo the skimmer, having a larger space for Chaeto is a good option to. I would skip putting sand in the sump, and instead opt for rubble. Placing sand in your sump will become a nutrient sink if you do not siphon it periodically or have really good cleaners.

 

[drstratton]

I have a 75g DT with a 40g breeder sump. I personally wouldn't be without one! It adds more water to your system which will help it to be more stable. Also as NanaReefer stated the less you mess with your DT the better! I would get the largest sump I could to fit in the stand!

 

[dangros]

I used a 40b for the sump on my 90g mixed reef tank. Here are bits of advice from my experience
1) Get a good skimmer. I have a vertex 150 and love the fact that it's super quiet and big for my tank. Took 3 days to break in and a couple weeks to totally nail down but it's well worth it. The previous skimmer was noisier and I'm so glad I upgraded.
2) I made my 1st baffle too high which means I need to lift my skimmer up on a pedestal by approx 3". That leaves me about 1/2" short from being able to install a swabbie and that ticks me off to no end! Think about what water height you want/need in your chambers.
3) noise: If you use PVC in the plumbing for the return, use soft connections b/w the return pump and pvc. It will help reduce noise. Also put padding under the pumps to reduce vibrations.
4) Dont put water in the sump till you've put everything in there and your happy with the placement of everything and are ready to turn that bad boy on!
5) Take your time and do it right. Dont take shortcuts. Salt water on the floor is not only a heart ripping experience, it's dangerous! I was almost electrocuted at 1am in my basement when a tub of live rock burst - spilling water all over the place.