Sump Recommendation - 50 EXT Lagoon

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atlantean

atlantean

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I'm venturing outside of nano-sized tanks and am putting together a 50 EXT Lagoon build. I need some recommendations on sumps for it. I will be building a custom stand so there is some flexibility with stand size. I was considering the Octo 15A sump based on price and smaller footprint to have extra room to organize everything non-sump related. Anyone find the Trigger 26 to be a little large for this tank? Stand will be about 40 inches tall, so there may be some vertical room to put in a shelf if I have a longer sump.

I'd appreciate any thoughts or recommendations.
 
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So one thing to consider one a sump is the space for a return pump, some sump makers take space from the return section, I think that is a problem, do you really want your ATO constantly kicking in because you have a micro mini return section and then it is hard to get a pump to fit.

Second thing to look at, Socks No socks, filter pads, or just dumps into the sump.

Sumps go longer for cheap but god forbid if you want to go wide.

Geo make a very expensive but very nice cube sump, maybe look at that for inspiration.

GEO SU23S. this one for inspiration. Very costly.

GEO SU24R. I have this one.

I also have Fiji 44 sump and a Bashea micro sump.
 
Tidal Gardens
Why spend all that money? Pick up a 40b and get a sump kit. There are plenty of kits out there to set it up based on the equipment you want to use. Refugium options as well. To me, sumps are one of the most overpriced pieces of equipment out there. An acrylic box with baffles shouldn’t cost $400+
Especially when you can pick up a 40b for $40 on sale. Fiji cube 40b sump kit is $150. How much is a Fiji cube sump at that same size?
Sorry, didn’t mean to go off on a rant, but unless you’re trying to show off or display your sump, spend that extra money on a piece or two of real ocean rock. Food for thought.
 
minus9 said:
Why spend all that money? Pick up a 40b and get a sump kit. There are plenty of kits out there to set it up based on the equipment you want to use. Refugium options as well. To me, sumps are one of the most overpriced pieces of equipment out there. An acrylic box with baffles shouldn’t cost $400+
Especially when you can pick up a 40b for $40 on sale. Fiji cube 40b sump kit is $150. How much is a Fiji cube sump at that same size?
Sorry, didn’t mean to go off on a rant, but unless you’re trying to show off or display your sump, spend that extra money on a piece or two of real ocean rock. Food for thought.
Click to expand...

I agree in theory, but I do want a clean look and have now realized I'd like a cube for the stand layout I'm looking to create. Since I'm transferring my existing tank with mini coral colonies and KP Aquatics live rock, I hopefully won't have a ton of new expenses aside from sump-related equipment (and the tank itself).
 
atlantean said:
I agree in theory, but I do want a clean look and have now realized I'd like a cube for the stand layout I'm looking to create. Since I'm transferring my existing tank with mini coral colonies and KP Aquatics live rock, I hopefully won't have a ton of new expenses aside from sump-related equipment (and the tank itself).
Click to expand...
Yeah, sorry, I was just looking at sumps the other day and had a get off my lawn moment. I didn't mean to rain on your parade. I love the look of a nice well built/planned sump and totally get it. I have an emerald 34 that I've since modded and bought during a Black Friday sale, but it was still expensive for what it is. I like some features of Bashsea and FijiCube sumps, just wished that they would make a convertible sump that allowed you to move or change how the compartments are used. I guess Bashsea kinda has this in their Smart series, but their return sections are small. What are your dimensions in the sump area? Do you plan on using a refugium or algae chamber?
 
BRS
Blue Spot Octopus said:
So one thing to consider one a sump is the space for a return pump, some sump makers take space from the return section, I think that is a problem, do you really want your ATO constantly kicking in because you have a micro mini return section and then it is hard to get a pump to fit.

Second thing to look at, Socks No socks, filter pads, or just dumps into the sump.

Sumps go longer for cheap but god forbid if you want to go wide.

Geo make a very expensive but very nice cube sump, maybe look at that for inspiration.

GEO SU23S. this one for inspiration. Very costly.

GEO SU24R. I have this one.

I also have Fiji 44 sump and a Bashea micro sump.
Click to expand...
atlantean said:
I agree in theory, but I do want a clean look and have now realized I'd like a cube for the stand layout I'm looking to create. Since I'm transferring my existing tank with mini coral colonies and KP Aquatics live rock, I hopefully won't have a ton of new expenses aside from sump-related equipment (and the tank itself).
Click to expand...
I think I'd like a cube sump. I don't need a refugium section at the moment, but would like the option. I don't quite have a good understanding of how sump flow and water level all interact.


Other features:
- Filter socks for now, with option to upgrade to fleece roller.
- 20 inch width would be ideal.

If you take the 24x30 tank, I think a 20x20 cube would be nice underneath and leave room for an ATO reservoir in the stand and some other storage. I'm thinking the stand will be around the size of the tank with an 8 inch rim that extends beyond the borders of the tank to serve as a sort of "bar-top" surface.
 
The stand will be something like this one that I built for my 15 gallon but super-sized. The top will extend farther beyond the base and have some bracing (8 inches rather than the 2 inches here). I'm not sure if it would look weird if the cabinet was larger than the actual tank.
IMG_4218.jpg


I like the idea of pulling up a stool with a drink by the tank like this design allows:
131293506_2144753625656745_3536695116942880197_n.jpg


Sorry... my brain is drifting into stand planning now.
 
Right now it seems I'm left comparing the Fiji 20 Cube ($306) to the Bashsea and Trigger cubes (>$400).
 
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The Fiji-20 is just poorly designed. The return compartment is tiny because of the useless refugium chamber. The included bulkheads are the cheapest and immediately cracked upon assembly. The media basket sounds like a monsoon unless you put something underneath to break the splash. When the media clogs the chamber has to fill all the way to the top where the overflow holes are, draining the tiny return chamber. Socks are really the only option unless you use a very coarse filter pad. Overall a lot of wasted space with this sump. I wouldn't buy another FiJi Cube sump.

Welcome to the IM 50 EXT club!
 
Seems like the Bashsea could be able to fit the Red Sea ReefMat in the skimmer section and a Reef Octopus 110SSS in the refugium section.
 
Once you have your stand built you can measure the available space to see what sump will fit, it can be daunting fitting in a tight sump, sometimes it has to go through the back or tilted sideways.j Be careful on Bashea sumps there returns can be rather small so you will need to know what size pumps fit into it. Keep researching watch videos on you tube for the IM Lagoon 50 tank, see what others are doing, wisdom versus opinions.
 
AS
The IM EXT is on my short list. Doing your own stand, you will need the inside dim's. I was going to go with the IM stand and the Trigger 26 was what I was looking at. I just parted with my SCA 50 and the Trigger 20, I would not hesitate to get one again. Although it was tight, everything fit, 110sss, Varios, heater etc.
 
I decided to go with the Bashsea Cube. While they do have smaller return areas, it isn’t much different than their larger sumps so it should be fine to fit a lot of single returns for this size tank. I mostly like the flexibility it has in the first sump area to potentially fit the Red Sea ReefMat if I want to go that route.
 

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