why have floss after chaeto chamber in sump?

[Swingline77]

I've seen sump designs in which the downstream boundary consists of a weir followed by a sponge, floss, etc. What's the purpose of this sponge/floss? I'm guessing it's to catch small pieces of chaeto that pass through the weir. If this is the case, how necessary is it? If small pieces of chaeto get through, is it just an aesthetic issue relating to their getting into the DT? Is it something more problematic, such as clogging up the return pump? Thanks

 

[Hemmdog]

I've seen sump designs in which the downstream boundary consists of a weir followed by a sponge, floss, etc. What's the purpose of this sponge/floss? I'm guessing it's to catch small pieces of chaeto that pass through the weir. If this is the case, how necessary is it? If small pieces of chaeto get through, is it just an aesthetic issue relating to their getting into the DT? Is it something more problematic, such as clogging up the return pump? Thanks

I used a sponge after my fuge in my Trigger. It ended up getting clogged quickly and caused issues with my Tunze ATO, which caused the water level to rise, which caused my skimmer to wet skim and fill up 8 times a day.

Now I just have it all free flowing. No socks so sponge just bioballs after the baffle and in the bottom of the fuge. So far so good it fixed the ato and skimmer issue. Some chaeto goes in the display, but my tangs eat it so it’s not super untolerable as of yet.

 

[Swingline77]

I used a sponge after my fuge in my Trigger. It ended up getting clogged quickly and caused issues with my Tunze ATO, which caused the water level to rise, which caused my skimmer to wet skim and fill up 8 times a day.

Now I just have it all free flowing. No socks so sponge just bioballs after the baffle and in the bottom of the fuge. So far so good it fixed the ato and skimmer issue. Some chaeto goes in the display, but my tangs eat it so it’s not super untolerable as of yet.

That's so great to hear. That means less work, less complication, etc.

 

[Swingline77]

How does this sound for a sump layout?

I have a 20 gal tall. I could drill two holes in a narrow side, with their centers at about 7" above the bottom. I would have chamber 1 dedicated to a skimmer, with a depth of 10". Overflow would be into a chaeto area, as large as I can make it (which wouldn't be very, unfortunately). I would then have an overflow weir of less than 10" height, then two other pieces to form a bubble trap, then a "return area" that will be plumbed with a bulkhead near the bottom, flowing to a return pump.

The issue with all this is that the bubble trap and return area will take up quite a bit of real estate. I guess I just need enough space between the panes of glass in the trap and the "return area" for cleaning. I suppose I could get a bottle brush in between 3/4" spaces, though I'd need a little more width in the "return area" since I'd want to mount level switches, etc.

Ideally I'd like to simplify even further, but I don't know if it's practical. For instance, maybe I could have a screen over the return outlet, and not have to mess with a weir, though this might present problems with bubbles and chaeto clogging. Any thoughts?

 

[Cali-Saltwater-1st-Timer]

I used a sponge after my fuge in my Trigger. It ended up getting clogged quickly and caused issues with my Tunze ATO, which caused the water level to rise, which caused my skimmer to wet skim and fill up 8 times a day.

Now I just have it all free flowing. No socks so sponge just bioballs after the baffle and in the bottom of the fuge. So far so good it fixed the ato and skimmer issue. Some chaeto goes in the display, but my tangs eat it so it’s not super untolerable as of yet.

This happened to me as well! The cheato doesn't clog your return pump?

 

[PedroYoung]

I've seen a couple posts where folks have had cheato get hung up in the return pump impeller. It's the kind of thing you could probably monitor for with the 2016 version apex with power monitoring.

 

[SMSREEF]

What I did was silicone in a piece of egg crate right above where water overflows. It traps the bigger pieces of macro algae but lets the water through. Small pieces do get into the tank once in a while but nothing that will clog up pump.

 

[Ratherbeflyen]

I put in some lighting diffuser in my fuge. It works well to keep cheato from getting into the return pump.

 

[JonnyTorch]

What I did was silicone in a piece of egg crate right above where water overflows. It traps the bigger pieces of macro algae but lets the water through. Small pieces do get into the tank once in a while but nothing that will clog up pump.

This is what I was thinking, only removable such as like a hang-on-back lid. Think a piece of egg crate, with a lip on the end that alows you to "hang" it on the inside of the overflow to the pump column. That's what I'm thinking. Has your egg crate thing been working out? no bits in your impeller? Thanks!

 

[SMSREEF]

This is what I was thinking, only removable such as like a hang-on-back lid. Think a piece of egg crate, with a lip on the end that alows you to "hang" it on the inside of the overflow to the pump column. That's what I'm thinking. Has your egg crate thing been working out? no bits in your impeller? Thanks!

The egg crate worked good, but I added a few baby trochus snails and shrimp in my fuge that could get through the openings so I have a piece of sponge in front of the egg crate now.

 

[JonnyTorch]

The egg crate worked good, but I added a few baby trochus snails and shrimp in my fuge that could get through the openings so I have a piece of sponge in front of the egg crate now.

Thanks for sharing! That's good way to have it, vertically in the slot. way better than my idea. that way it can just fit right in there up and down. I like your way. Thank you!

 

[JonnyTorch]

@SMSREEF dont you just hate re positioning those suction cups?