Pump size/overflow size?

What's the rule of thumb for this?

Looking to go with a 20 gallon tall sump under a 55 gallon tank. I was offered (by another 3reefer) a 950 GPH pump and a 1000 GPH overflow. Would these be sufficient or over kill? Do you foresee any problems?

 

that would be okay i think, if its too much flow then just dial the pump back via a gate valve on the output of the return pump.

 

What ever the pump outlet size is double for overflow size or you will be valveing down your pump.

 

So I need a 2000 gph overflow for a 1000 gph pump?

Wouldn't u want them to be similar?

 

well you dont want them to be too close. nothing wrong with valving back a pump. And with head pressure it will be lower than the 950 anyways. What kind of pump is it?

 

You choose a return pump based on the SUMP not the display. It is suggested to 6~10x of the sump water volume. This allows more time for the skimmer to remove waste.

 

Mag 9.5.

So I would want a 120-200 gph pump. What about over flow?

 

I always heard it was 10x your dt volume. Granted I have a mag 9.5 on my 75gal with 29gal fuge, and it moves water much to quickly.

 

Well which is it lol?

Also, should the heater be rated for the sump or DT?

 

I want the intake to equal the outflow, correct? That would mean that the pump should be rated the same as the overflow. If either are out of balance the sump will overflow or it will run dry.

The question is, what GPH rating is good for a 55 gallon display with a 20 gallon sump.