Refugium/sump overflowing..

So with my recent purchase of a new skimmer, i didnt put into consideration of the water volume the skimmer will hold, it holds about 5 gallons of water, and i have an aqeon pro-flex 2 sump, when my tank drains, it goes about 1/2 from the top till she spills on my floor, SO.. with my new skimmer it would be a for sure spill, i can build a bigger sump, but how big should i go?? i need to get this done before winter just incase i lose power, i dont want to be soaking my floors yet again... HELP

 

1/2" from the top?? Why do you have your sump filled up so high?? And how far down from your DT's normal water level do you have the drain/siphon break?

 

Its just how it is, the sump is designed to run at a higher point, if i run it lower i lose more water, and it swings more, so id rather run it a bit higher so im not constantly refilling.. i dont trust my ATO anymore since it ruined my last stand.. check out aqeons website im running the one with the refugium.. you'll understand its right past the blue sponge maybe 1/2 inch, and thats it.. if i unplug my main pump it fills that high always has..
not sure about the siphon break... i didnt build my tank when i bought it, so i have no idea on the plumbing side?

 

drill your siphon break hole closer to the water line. that will prevent so much water from back flowing into your sump

 

Hmm....I understand why you dont want parameter swings but, flooding your floor may not work out well. I would look into lowering the sump/fuge level to an amount your system can handle if the power goes out. if the power goes out and is out for all day while you are at work your sump could lose lots of water. In return if you have an ATO, once the power kicks back in the ATO will replace the lost water. Not expecially good to have all that stright water dumping into your system.

 

I have my siphon break drilled out of the water so none of the DT water drains down to the sump. Just whatever is in the pipes. Water just trickles out of the hole. Nothing to worry about.

 

Bottom line, your sump has to be large enough to absorb your drain down. That determines the minimum size your sump needs to be. Either redo the current one or get a larger one that meets this need.

Jeff

 

Depending on how your sump is designed, chances are you can increase the height/capacity by cutting some lengths of glass or acrylic and gluing them on top of the existing sides (basically creating a box on top of a box). I did this once, and increased the capacity of the sump by around 3 gallons. It's definitely cheaper and easier than replacing the whole sump. If you have a siphon break and the skimmer is draining down causing your overflow, this may be a cheap quick fix.

 

Agree

 

That is what i did for my set up and it works perfectly with the same sump... We made sure our return lines are at the same level as the overflow box so as to not overflow the sump when the limit is reached no more water will back flows into the sump......


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