Sump Help

Hi everyone, I'm new here. I just recently converted my 46g BF tank from freshwater to saltwater. I would like to build a sump but the stand for my 46g has barely any space at all. Dimensions would be 16"L x 14"H x 11"W. 10 gallons or close to that.
I'm wondering, would this be big enough for my tank?? I have a canister filter I would still to use. I want a sump so I can hide my protein skimmer, and heater from the main tank.
Also, what is the best way of getting water from the tank into the sump?? Since i have a canister, i was thinking using the intake from that filter to get the water and the return line would go to the sump. The skimmer would skim whats in the sump and have a pump return the water back to the main tank. Does this sound ok??? Or is it better to add an overflow. Sorry for all the questions . Thanx for the help

 

Hello and welcome to 3reef!
As for the questions you brought up, I would go with an overflow with the gravity feed to your sump and have the two pumps to work both your return and skimmer.
As for the skimmer and sump size...if you are having trouble getting a sump bigger under your tank in the stand, a 10 gallon is fine as any size increases your water volume and bacteria population as well. You will have to make sure that you can accompany a skimmer underneath, though, as skimmers are usually very tall, and if you can't take the skimmate cup off easily or at all, it won't work. Then you may be forced to use a hang-on skimmer!
The other thing is that I am not to big a fan of cannisters used for saltwater! Freshwater is a different thing but, for salt, if I do use a cannister, it is just to house carbon or phosphate remover and water flow increase! Other than that, maybe add live rock to it for increased biological filtration!
Best of luck!

 

Thank you for the help. I would've gone straight with a wet/dry filter if i didnt start with freshwater, but the canister is doing good so far. The skimmer is tall but it will fit underneath, its a corallife superskimmer, the dimensions for the height could be increased for the sump, but thats the only one. Wish i got the later stands that came out for this tank. My stand has more shelf space on the outside for things to display than to put into the cabinet. As for biological filtration, i have biomax in the filter, 40lbs of live sand, and 55lbs of live rock. The canister holds the biomax, carbon, and some phosphate/nitrate/ammonia remover.

So the overflow method is the best, I figured it would have to be that so nothing would overflow lol. So how would i setup the small sump?? Would i need dividers even though its only 15/16" long?? overflow goes into the first compartment and skimmer skims that section, 2nd compartment w/ the return pump??? Does that sound right??
Sorry for the long post

 

You may want to check out this sight for how a sump works and has plans for DIY custom sump projects. Melevsreef.com - What is a Sump?

Good Luck!!8)