need help

I posted a thread like this a week or so ago, but i couldnt figure out how to get a drawing up.... my problem is i just set up a refuge.. (with my description you will have to make a mental image) and the water from the fuge is going down because it is pumping water too quickly, but if i adjust the flow on the pump it rises... i can not get it to stay at one spot.. my question is are there any type of auto close valves or something i can use to stabilize the water so i do not have to tinker with it twice a day...

the water from the fuge goes up to the tank, from the tank (pre drilled in the bottom) it drains to my sump, in my sump is my protein skimmer, the return water goes to my refuge... so tank is on top of stand, water drains down into sump, which is under my stand, water goes to the right of tank to my refuge... hope that helps....

also someone said why have the water from your skimmer go to refuge, my reason being is only a portion of the water is cleaned, or else i would just run the skimmer once an hour, the return water still has organics in it

any help on the stabilizing would be helpful... sorry for the long post

 

Well you need to rethink just about this whole setup. I knew this was going to rear its head of people prefiltering and skimming their water before allowing it to get to the refugium. Forget that idea .

Now I don't think I follow the part of the refugium water line won't run at a steady level ? You have a pump in the refugium ? If so that won't ever work I think you are trying ti siphon water into the fuge and pump it out and they will never balance out.. To many factors from salinities and temperature will effect the flows.

The refugium should be fed on a drain from the display tank then it should just drain over into the sump close to the main pump so it will send the foods back up to the animals in the display tank. All of this needs to be working off of gravity . No pumps required..

 

Is your tank free draining form the bottom it sounds like it if it does when the electric goes out it would flood your house it sounds liketo me.
I am kind of confused as to how you have it coming out of the tank if this is not how you have it then maybe you dont have to worry.

 

the water line goes at a steady level but it is going to fast, so the water in my fuge is draining, but if i adjust it then it rises too much, i can not get it just right.... i have it set to where if the power goes out, there will be just enough room for the water to fill the sump.... my tank is pre drilled at the bottom, but there is a column in the back of the tank to where the water has to be so hight before it drains....

 

Well with out a picture of how you have it plumbed then all I can say is you have it plumbed wrong. If its gravity fed there is no need for a pump anywhere below the main tank except for the main pump back to tank and if the refugium is being gravity fed from the main tank then the fuge is set up to gravity feed into the sump then you have something wrong. Or it could not overflow or lose siphon or levels could not fluctuate in no manner unless the main pump went out..If you had this set up properley then the onlything that would determin the water flows or levels is the main pump again also. Water seeks its own level and will

 

I dont know of any other way of plumbing it... water is drained from the tank via gravity, then goes to my fuge... the way my sump is set up it has to be where it is, i guess it is designed for the tank and stand

 

ok... what if i got a piece of plumbing that would split the water that comes from the tank to the sump so that it goes to the sump and to the fuge, and have it pump back to the tank from the sump and the refuge... could be a little annoying to do, but i think that would work, and that way both are fed from the tank, not from each other... ?

 

Why can't you go directly from the tanks bulkhead to the sump on 1in pipe and along the way add a 1x1/2x1 tee then between that tee and the main sump as you enter that add a valve to create some back pressure then on the 1/2 in throat of the tee pipe to the fuge adding another valve ? Then I assume the fuge is drilled ? then run drain to sump from the fuge. :-/


There is no need for a pump for the refugium that just drains into the sump the main sump pump does all the heavy lifting

 

You just spoke a whole different language... lol.... neither the sump of the fuge are drilled... thats why i am using extra pumps, to pump from one source to the next

 

Actually,
I am very interested in this discussion as I am going to be setting up a similar set up as this.

Tangter,

If he doesnt use a pump to drain water from Refuge to sump, how do you get water from refuge to Sump? A siphon drain? Like a Utube?
Chubbs