sump under a 55 gallon..... 5 gallon sump?

Hey guys. I ran into a little problem today. I have a 55 HOB system with a phosban reactor running rowaphos, an AquaC Remora Pro skimmer, and aqueon HOB filter with a nag of chemipure in it (no fiilter pads).

Ive been planning to add a 10 gallon sump with another seperate 10 gallon refugium being fed by a maxijet and gravity feeding water back into the sump and running a reef octopus skimmer and adding another reactor . I finally went to buy the 10 gallon tanks today to get started, and the tens will not fit under my standard AGA stand due to the center braces :-/. Tearing the tank down to modify the stand is not an option at the moment.

So now what? Two 5 Gallon tanks? Im pretty sure they will fit. But Im wondering if the 5 gallon tanks will be enough, or if anyone has any other ideas. I would really like to add a sump, and get the equipment out of view, and quiet down the system a bit, along with upgrading the skimmer. Any help would ne greatly appreciated.

 

With a 5 gal tank you will not have much room for water to drain to when power goes out. Any way you can drill a hole into the wall and put it on the other side of the wall or next to the tank?

 

drilling a hole in the wall is not an option ( I rent ) ..... and the tank sits in the living room, so the wife says the setup must have a clean look so putting a sump next to the tank is also out of the question. What if i install a check valve on the return line, would that stop the water from draining back down during a power outage?

 

Thank you for the reply by the way

 

IMO I would tear the tank down and get another stand made. May as well do it right then do it half ass. Just saying.

 

Could you build a short little stand that matches yours and put it next to your tank? Then, you could put a 10 gallon (or even a 20 gallon) tank in it.

 

I agree.

 

This setup will actually get taken down within the 6-8 months. All of the equipment will be moved to a 40 breeder/29 sump setup that im currently building, and the 55 is being replaced with a 125 build. Im looking for a DECENT temporary solution that allows me to upgrade my skimmer and get all of these pumps out of the display.

Ive been doing some measuring, and a 5 gallon will not hold the skimmer that I was looking at getting and the return pump and allow for a bubble trap. SO im thinking maybe two five gallons side by side, one sitting a little higher than the other. Display drains into the lower 5 gallon tank, with a filter sock, baffles to stop bubbles and a return pump. And a MJ1200 feeding the higher 5 gallon which houses the skimmer, and gravity feeds back into the sump. I dont see why it wouldnt work, as long as im successful at drilling the 5 gallon for the overflow.

Building a small stand beside the 55 may be a possibility, but like I said, this is temporary so i hate to build a stand for just a few months of use.

Any reason why the dual 5 gallon setup wouldnt work?

 

Out of curiosity, why will it be 6-8 months before the new system is setup? Is there a possibility of doing it now (since you're wanting to buy equipment for it already)?

 

You could make a really simple stand and put the tank in it.

I wouldn't do the dual 5 gallon tanks because of size and space. It would be hard to fit everything, and it would include more plumbing. IMO, it would be a lot more work that way