[Jeremy0322]

I finally got enough time to sit down and make my oh so advanced blueprints for my sump. The picture is a little ugly but all i have is "paint" so i will explain it the best that i can.



There will be a 1 inch bulkhead on the left side of the tank that will drop water about4 feet into the sump. The first chamber will be where the skimmer is located as well as a filter sock at the end of the drain pipe. From there it will go through a section of over under baffles full of small LR rubble(i dont have the space in the 20 long to make them all 4 inches apart so it will be around 2.5-3 inches apart and i will just make the rock really small). It will make its way into the second chamber where the heater will be as well as a Mag 7.5 return pump to bring the water back up 4 feet into the tank. Now comes the fun part...

The last section of the sump is the fuge as you can tell. It got me to thinking about how to bring the water into it without making this huge flow because that is now what you want and i saw something on RB a few days ago that was cool. Someone took a pvc pipe and drilled like, 500 holes into it for his overflow type thing. That is what i am going to do. I will divert the flow from the return line and take a small portion of the water back into the fuge, very slowly, so as not to mess anything up in there. I will have some rock in there as well as a 4 inch sand bed. It all seems to be good now but i am having some trouble with the return line. So here come the questions...

#1. What size pipe will i need coming off of the 7 before i T it off.
#2. What size pipe should i run once it is T'd off for the return to the tank as well as the bring in for the fuge.
#3.What is the best material out there to make the baffles with, and is there anything in the silicone sealant that i should watch for that may not be "reef safe".

Also, if there is anything else that i am missing please let me know. With how much i have thought about this i am sure that i am just overlooking something but my fluid based physics are a little rusty right now, lol, so the flow may be a little off right now. Please butcher the idea, it is better to look stupid right now then to start setting it up and feel really stupid then. Thanks in advance.

[adam jenkins]

I used 1/4'' plexi for my baffles.For silicone I used loctite.It's made for aquariums.My setup is similar except mine overflows into my 'fuge,into my''equipment''section(sk immer,heater,ect..)throug h my bubble trap into my return pump area.I have my return line ''t-ed'' off going back to my 'fuge with ball valves on both lines to help regulate flow.

[NATIVEVAMAN]

The flow for the fuge should come from the drain line not the return.
The pipe size for your return line should be 3/4 since that is what the pump will be.
You will need 1/2 inch pipe to feed the fuge from the main drain line.
Plexiglass is fine or glass would work for the over unders.
Once again I will strongly urge you to use an overflow in the main tank with both drain and return lines going thru it.With the system as it is you will have no protection from a syphon if the pumps go off.

[map95003]

This is what I'm building, my return (mag 950) it "T'd" off to the fuge, return from the fuge goes back to the sump return area...I'm not sure if this is the best way to go.

I was thinking the skimmer return in my design is too close to the sump return area, might create a lot of bubbles. Any one have any suggestions for a bubble-trap in this setup? Thanks.

Note: The overflow from the display tank does not go through the fuge (it looks that way in the picture), the pipe runs behind the fuge into the water-change area. When I'm ready to do water-changes I don't have to shut anything down, I just have to shut off the valve that allow flow to the water-change area of the sump, and that would route the overflow to the baffle area (bypassing the first baffle to prevent any water from going to the water-change area). I would then discard the water in the water-change area, refill it, open the valve and whalla...

[pogodzib]

Your drain line should be split to reef both your skimmer area and your fuge. If you have the water go through the skimmer and then pumped from your return line to the fuge, it won't be as effective because the fuge is receiving water that is already skimmed. Also, the water being pumped in the return line is under pressure so it will come shooting out of whatever pipe you have teed off.

Originally Posted by Jeremy0322

#1. What size pipe will i need coming off of the 7 before i T it off.

Mag 7s have a 1/2" outlet, but they pump more water if the return line is upsized by 1-2 sizes so I'd recommend starting with a 3/4" line.

Originally Posted by Jeremy0322

#2. What size pipe should i run once it is T'd off for the return to the tank as well as the bring in for the fuge.

I wouldn't tee it off, but if you do go that route, stick with the same size all the way still.

Originally Posted by Jeremy0322

#3.What is the best material out there to make the baffles with, and is there anything in the silicone sealant that i should watch for that may not be "reef safe".

Most people use 1/4" plexiglass for baffles. For the silicone sealant, any 100% silicone should be fine. I've used DAP and GE silicone in the past without any problems. If you're worried about it, many hardware and fish stores will sell "aquarium safe" silicone sealant for a little bit more than standard silicone.

[map95003]

The problem I see with having the overflow going through the fuge before the skimmer is that pods and stuff will most likely get skimmed out when they go through the skimmer. If I t-off the return to have some go to the fuge, I'll put a gate-valve just before the fuge to adjust the flow going to the fuge....you don't think that would be a better setup?

[map95003]

sorry Jeremy, I'm not trying to hijack your thread, but I'm hoping this would help both of us.

[NATIVEVAMAN]

I think both Brian and I both suggested a t off the main drain to feed the fuge,and that the fuge have a reverse flow.No one suggested having the before the skimmer or first in the line of flow.

[map95003]

Hey Native, you and Brian always have good suggestions...I just want to make sure I get exactly what you're thinking. I apologize but you would have to break it down for me, I'm still a newbie

It soulds like what you're saying is to split (t-off) the line coming from the overflow box to go to the fuge and the sump, the one that goes to the sump then goes through the skimmer, the outlet from the fuge bypasses the skimmer and goes directly to the sump return area or the LR rubble area...am I getting this right...I know I'm being a pain, but I just want to build this right the first time....thanks for your help. Please feel free to mark up my design that is attached in this thread.

[pogodzib]

Yes, that is right. The drain line should be split into two lines. One goes to the fuge and one goes to the skimmer. You can put valves on the lines after the split to control how much flow goes to both areas. From there the water should go to the return area. Neither the fuge or skimmed water goes through the other (skimmer or fuge) area.

[pogodzib]

Here's a good link showing how I recommend a sump be divided.

Melevsreef.com | Acrylic Sumps & Refugiums

[adam jenkins]

That is the sump I used for my design.My fuge is in my sump.My display flows directly to my fuge,into my skimmer area through the bubble trap into my return pump.My return pump is a little bigger than I needed so instead of using a ball valve to cut it back I ''t'' the return line and use the extra flow in my fuge for my water flow.

[pogodzib]

Ideally, you want low flow through your fuge area and a higher flow in your skimmer area. The low flow works better for the macro algae to be able to do its thing and the high flow in the skimmer area allows keeps the water in the skimmer compartment dirtier.

[adam jenkins]

I see the flaws in my set up now.Since I'm still setting the tank up I think I'll do a little redesign.I guess I've got my weekend planned.THANKS ALOT(lol)

[Jeremy0322]

So all that i really did wrong with this was T'd off the wrong line. The rest of it should be alright, but i will just have the water from the drain flow into the fuge and the sump. And then it wil be returned with 1 line?

[Jeremy0322]

And also, if you guys dont mind the ones on here that have nice ones set up if you could get a few pictures and post them that may help me with some of the other refinements and ideas. Just if you have 10 free minutes with nothing to do. Thanks in advance.

[map95003]

Brian & Native, thanks a lot...too bad I didn't ask you guys a week ago, I just received my MAG 950 yesterday, the reason I got that was because I was planning to T-off the return and have some go to my fuge...with your recommendation I could have probably gotten away with the MAG700. I hope the 950 isn't too much, I might still have to T-off a bit if it's too much flow.

[pogodzib]

Map95003 - For a 75 gal tank, the Mag 9.5 pump will be good, as long as your overflow can keep up. If it can't, just throttle the pump back by adding a valve to the return line.

Adam - Your welcome. Getting everything setup correctly when you start is much better than changing it around later.

Jeremy - Yes, you have it figured out. You just tapped the wrong line. Here is a pic of my sump. My skimmer is ran external so you won't see it in the sump, but the right side of my sump is where the water that feeds the skimmer comes from and the left side of my sump is where my fuge is. My tank has two overflows so one overflow feeds each end of my sump. Between the end compartments, there are baffles and my return area.

Baffles installed, but before connected to system


Sump in use

[NATIVEVAMAN]

I like Mels design "F".I would open up the over under baffles to accept rock rubble and shrink the return section a bit making the fuge larger.But it looks like it works.

[Jeremy0322]

Alright, so if I understand this i will need a 1 inch line coming out of the tank and a 3/4 inch line going back into the tank? I am planning on ordering bulkheads soon(like tonight) and just want to make sure I am 100% right on this... Will it need to be that same size if I am splitting the return line for the fuge? Also, Where should the holes be drilled in the tank. I am more than likely just going to make a single square overflow in the tank and then bring it back into a spray bar.

[plecosword]

Thnats really nice Jeremy, you did all that on paint?

[Jeremy0322]

Yea, im pretty awesome, lol.

[plecosword]

ya you are! lol

[Jeremy0322]

Alright, so If i understand this right I will need a 1" bulkhead for the drain and a 3/4" bulkhead for the return? Also, I assume that i will need 2 overflows(preferably one on each side of the tank) or can I just return the water into the drain overflow. That does not seem like the correct route for some reason. Sorry this is so hard for me to comprehend, doing this stuff is not covered very often in the books, and I have almost NO hands on experience with stuff like this, since this is my first reef tank set up.

[Jeremy0322]

I hate being impatient. Someone needs to pull themselves away from their lives, get on Reef Builders, and answer my questions. Just Kidding, i an wait i guess