sump design

Discussion in 'I made this!' started by goody, Dec 26, 2007.

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  1. goody

    goody Astrea Snail

    Joined:
    Oct 12, 2007
    Messages:
    27
    I bought a 29 gallon tank that I want to use to build a 3 chamber sump. I plan on using acrylic for the baffles.

    I have looked at several designs, but being so new to the hobby, I want to make sure I do this right. I do like the DIY sump at Melevsreef.com, but he had his fuge in the middle. My thought was to have my return section in the middle with my skimmer on one side and fuge on the other. Any thoughts on this matter?

    I am also not sure how many baffles I should use between my skimmer and return sections? I notice many designs use three with an over-under-over flow, but would 2 baffles be enough? Also, how tall should I make the baffles if my tank is 18" tall?

    Last question-what do you recommend placing in the fuge section (cheato, sand, rock rubble, etc...)?

    Thanks for any advice
     
    goody, Dec 26, 2007
    goody, Dec 26, 2007
    #1

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  2. lunatik_69

    lunatik_69 Giant Squid

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    Jul 10, 2007
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    Miami, FL
    Hey Goody, I hope you had a great X-mas. Everyone has their own personnal thoughts on how it should be made. Do some more research and try to match their system to yours. What I mean by that is, try to closely match your system(tank size, livestock, lighting, filters) to theirs. I hope this helps you, Luna
     
    lunatik_69, Dec 26, 2007
    lunatik_69, Dec 26, 2007
    #2
  3. dragonflylures

    dragonflylures Flamingo Tongue

    Joined:
    Dec 17, 2006
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    Location:
    North Dakota
    The extra baffles are to prevent micro bubbles getting returned back into your tank. I built my sump, I think sump H, off of melevsreef out of plexiglass and happy with it. As far as the design, it's really up to you what you prefer or would be happy with or could accommodate room for in it. There's benefits to all of them, maybe some more than others.
     
    dragonflylures, Dec 26, 2007
    dragonflylures, Dec 26, 2007
    #3
  4. superclouds

    superclouds Flamingo Tongue

    Joined:
    May 5, 2007
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    124
    Location:
    Northern Michigan
    All the above, make sure you make the sump return area as big as possible as dehydration will have you filling it every other day without an auto topoff. My setup is section 1. Entry, live rock rubble and skimmer, Section 2. is the return and Section 3 is the fuge with live sand, cheato and chunk of LR.

    Edit, I have 3 baffles from the entry to return and only one from the fuge to return
     
    superclouds, Dec 26, 2007
    superclouds, Dec 26, 2007
    #4
    1 person likes this.
  5. missionsix

    missionsix Super Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Sep 25, 2007
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    Seems like they should be in stages following each other. You (I) wouldn't want any stagnant water. Good current is a good addition. You'll want that throughout. Things like these take careful planning. I feel that the fuge is the last point of filtration before returning to the main. Allthough, I am not a pro. I have basically no modern filtration in my tank/fuge/sump. No bio- balls, chemical etc.. Just LR, sand , algae and cleaners. I'm fairly new to the customization but, addicted. The sky is the limit. My sump/fuge consists of a CPR AQUATICS sump w/skimmeer simply sitting inside of a 20 long (fuge) prior to returning to the main. Auto drip with RO. Aerated with pump, live rock(also in sump with drip), algae, hemits, live sand, coral banded shrimp (cause I can why not It'll eat my fire and cleaner) plus 100's of feather dusters from sump. All in all, making sumps/refugiums is all up to you. Look around and get the best idea that suits you. Don't rush into it. If you have any Q's feel free to mail me.
     
    missionsix, Dec 26, 2007
    missionsix, Dec 26, 2007
    #5
  6. reef_guru

    reef_guru Humpback Whale

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    i would keep the refugium and sump seperate and depending on how far away the skimmer is to the main pump one baffle may work.
     
    reef_guru, Dec 27, 2007
    reef_guru, Dec 27, 2007
    #6