Sump/fuge build with PICS!

Thanks for moving the thread. This doesnt sound too terrible. you think drain a lil less than half?

 

just until you can move it to give it space, now you might have to move your corals and fishes into your buckets where your going to save water from the WC, and do put back most of the water you took out, you dont want to cause a new cycle

 

most everything in my tank is in the lower half right now. i just have 4 corals at the moment, and only one in epoxy'd in, so this shouldnt be too bad. I think the hardest part will be making sure im not leaving any of my snail friends above water line. lol silly snails

 

i do have a large brute trashcan i use for water changes anyways, so storage space is not an issue

 

Ok guys, so i got the tank moved with no problem. I also got my skimmer today. its an aquaC urchin pro. I have a question for anyone that knows... Is the large SQUARE hole in this pic where the water exits from the skimmer? Thanks, i think i have to slightly mod my design if this is the case...

 

Ok, so it has been a less than great last few days.
To start with, i used WAY too fine of sand. There was sand EVERYWHERE! My pumps kept sucking it up and all. . . to make matters worse... My baffle between the fuge and the rest of the sump failed. So, even more sand everywhere. So, i got the sand out of the fuge/sump. It took forever to get all the sand out.
I got some better sand today, and re-did the baffle. I cut it slightly larger to get a tighter fit, thinking that was all i needed. I got some chaeto, and thought i was good to go. This was when things got bad. . .
So, after i got the sump/fuge running well, i decided to try to move my heater from my DT to the sump. I forgot to unplug it, took it out of the water, and ZAP!! It shocked the crap outta me. I ran around the living room, fell on the floor, and cried for a few minutes. Luckily, i do have a ground probe, and it did its job. I did not get shocked until the heater was OUT of the water. I did drop it back in, but thanks to the grounding probe, all is well, except for my hand.
So, i needed a new heater, and all that was open was walmart, yay. So i went to buy a cheap temp heater. I came home, and my baffle FAILED AGAIN!!!!
So, now i am more than frustrated. I have spent every day and night working on this thing and its not going to work.
SO, for all of you that are wondering, the Pressure fitted baffle idea DOES NOT WORK!!!! I do not reccommend it and tomorrow i will be buying another 10 gal aquarium and using glass+silicone like I should have in the first place.
So, i got to scoop sand out again......

Anyways, here are some pics before all went wrong.

 

Aww honey, I'm sorry you are having problems! Karma to ya and think of it as lesson learned. You'll get it going, I know you will!

 

thanks.. yeah its going to get done! i'm just glad i didnt fry my tank today.

 

;D Its Done! Finally! I went the old fashioned way and just had some glass cut. I used silicone and used my same design as before. So, it is done and so far so good. My media chamber made from the PVC is working great, although that i can only fill it about half full of media for the water to be able to flow through fairly quickly. Thats ok though cause all i really need it for is carbon, and it still leaves room for some phosban or something if i need it. So, it took a week longer than i expected. I was shocked by a faulty heater sunday, and today i sliced open a finger on the new glass baffles. But, now that its done it all seems worth it!