The leaky sump or not

basile · Mar 23, 2017

Last night their was water on the floor..............either my new sump or my RODI reservoir. Made a water change to empty the RO and set it aside. clean up and dry it and put towels to see if water would continue to leak from the sump. I was hoping not................this means another dang set back. got to empty the sump and go yell at Canus Ottawa for either a new one or repair. But i can't tell from where exactly yet. I know the general area, but who knows . Should i ask for a new one???

How long can i run my tank without a sump and skimmer i have only one fish in a 150 G tank and a few corals. how long do you think. Thanks

vlangel · Mar 23, 2017

Your tank and fish should be fine indefinitely. I had a 90 gallon tank that did not have a sump and skimmer for years and it had 7 fish in it. Just be careful when you feed and keep up with water changes.

Waters · Mar 23, 2017

I would definately be asking for a new sump if it is new. You can run the tank as long as you need to without the sump as long as the heaters are in the DT.

wkscott · Mar 23, 2017

Find the source of the leak before taking any further action. A tank of your size with just one fish (unless that fish is gigantic) can go on forever without a sump or protein skimmer as long as there is adequate circulation in the tank and you do some partial water changes occasionally.
Sumps don't typically leak. The culprit is most likely in the RO/DI setup. Check there first.
You can always do a small taste test. If the water is salty, it's the sump. If it's fresh-tasting, it's your RO/DI system. Not really scientific, but it will work.
If you don't want to taste it, put a couple of drops on your refractometer, if you have one.

basile · Mar 23, 2017

I found it; @$%%&^*&&^%$#@ it was a power cord from one of the heater that was channeling droplets behind the tank saw it with own eyes. Still i'll do as you say for the RODI tub, can never be too careful thanks guy for you suggestions. I'm spending the day here i'm too spooked as it is lol.

wkscott · Mar 23, 2017

basile said:
I found it; @$%%&^*&&^%$#@ it was a power cord from one of the heater that was channeling droplets behind the tank saw it with own eyes. Still i'll do as you say for the RODI tub, can never be too careful thanks guy for you suggestions. I'm spending the day here i'm too spooked as it is lol.

Glad you found it, and didn't jump all over the sump manufacturer! I took the day off from work too. Just finished cleaning my 90g, including sump, overflow, glass tops, and changed all of my media. Of course a 25% water change. I'm exhausted. Think I'll take a nap .

basile · Mar 23, 2017

wkscott said:
Glad you found it, and didn't jump all over the sump manufacturer! I took the day off from work too. Just finished cleaning my 90g, including sump, overflow, glass tops, and changed all of my media. Of course a 25% water change. I'm exhausted. Think I'll take a nap .

LOL i did too take a nap, i was on edge for so long , even if the drip is gone i'm still checking, i think it'll take a while before i trust my system. This new sump has its shortcomings . I also found very Odd that a brand new sump would leak that way that's why i kept looking for another explication, which led me to my discovery. Ouff it seems all good for now. I'm glad i don't have carpet otherwise i wouldn't of known until lots of damage had been done. This is one reason i made my floor in tiles on the first place.

JBradford · Mar 23, 2017

wkscott said:
Find the source of the leak before taking any further action. A tank of your size with just one fish (unless that fish is gigantic) can go on forever without a sump or protein skimmer as long as there is adequate circulation in the tank and you do some partial water changes occasionally.
Sumps don't typically leak. The culprit is most likely in the RO/DI setup. Check there first.
You can always do a small taste test. If the water is salty, it's the sump. If it's fresh-tasting, it's your RO/DI system. Not really scientific, but it will work.
If you don't want to taste it, put a couple of drops on your refractometer, if you have one.

I wouldn't taste test in my house. My wife's Chihuahua has a tendency to use the bathroom indoors by the tank at night. I think in her mind she is then able to blame it on the fish for splashing. That would be a horrible shock lol.

OP: Glad you got it fixed.