Sump set-up

[Slarti]

Bit of an odd ball question but with all the knowledgeable people on here I am sure someone would have worked this out before...

My sump has three chambers, first has my sock in it and also the skimmer pump and two outlet sponges with the body of skimmer in second chamber. Second chamber also contains my heater whilst final chamber has the return pump as well as the chiller pump in it. Chiller return actually ends up in first chamber again.

We have fairly mild winters and hot summers around here so I expect my heater to work mostly in winter and chiller mostly in summer with the opposite hardly ever happening. What I have found this winter though is that both heater and chiller worked way to much.

So typing this out I identified my first problem in letter the chiller back in, in front of the heater and I can easily let the return end up in the third chamber instead which may be the only thing I need to do.

So my actual question is how do people set this up and is there a 'best' way of doing it? I am not really looking at a temperature controller at this point due to lack of space and lack of money...

 

[Bouncingsoul39]

If possible I'd locate the chiller pump in the first chamber with the water returning into the last return pump chamber. Put the heater upstream from there either in the middle or first section. You could also relocate your heater into the overflow box if it will fit. You can get a used Digital Aquatics Reef Keeper lite for under a 100 bucks and that's really the best way to go if you can swing it.

 

[Dhoggs]

I am by no means an expert but I do have similar setup as yours when I started in this hobby.

What I had done when I had this setup was used my return pump to feed the chiller and the output of the chiller goes to the DT. This way you eliminate using 2 pumps and you are actually cooling the water in the DT.

 

[Slarti]

If possible I'd locate the chiller pump in the first chamber with the water returning into the last return pump chamber. Put the heater upstream from there either in the middle or first section. You could also relocate your heater into the overflow box if it will fit. You can get a used Digital Aquatics Reef Keeper lite for under a 100 bucks and that's really the best way to go if you can swing it.

That sounds like a plan, may need a slightly longer pipe to chiller and move some bio cubes around but otherwise that will work.

 

[Slarti]

I am by no means an expert but I do have similar setup as yours when I started in this hobby.

What I had done when I had this setup was used my return pump to feed the chiller and the output of the chiller goes to the DT. This way you eliminate using 2 pumps and you are actually cooling the water in the DT.

I like this idea as well but will have to check the flow through my chiller, current pump is much smaller than return pipe.