Sump/Fuge Questions

[Adnuces]

Okay I have been thinking of doing this and would like some feedback or advice and I haven't been able to find much on this believe it or not. I want to make a sump/refuge for my 75g. I want to use a rubbermaid storage box about 15 to 20 g and inside the big one I want to put a smaller one that will be the fuge. I would drill or cut holes in the ends of the smaller one for water flow through the fuge. One end would contain the skimmer and inflow the other end would be the pump and heater etc. I would need to have an outside overflow as my tank is not drilled. I would try for a 600 gph overflow with a 1" drain. Is this sufficient? also I would have a return pump rated at 850gph with a ball valve on the return with a 1" return. Am I on the right track here or am I lunched?

[leebca]

All I have is about $0.02's worth.

The general purpose of a refugium is to provide sanctuary for things that would not live in the display. It seems that the proposed setup covers this aspect.

The general purpose of a sump is room/volume/space to fill with the system water should pumps fail or be turned off. I think there be an issue with the proposal on this point.

The refugium inside the sump arrangement has the refugium taking up the volume needed by the sump to contain the system water. Although your setup may work, you had better make sure that:
1) The refugium volume is not needed by the sump container; and
2) The sump container will still be about 20+% unfilled when all the water from the system drains into it.

A possible downside to the proposed arrangement is that when the display pump goes out, the refugium no longer has circulation in it (it is sunken inside the now stagnant sump water). In my system, when the system pump goes out or turned off, the sumps takes up the water of the system but the pump that pushes water into my refugium will still circulate water through the refugium. This may not be a concern to you, however. ;;

Can't help you on the other flow/pipe questions. I know there is a formula to determine what diameter of pipe is needed for certain flow, but I'm not into that aspect.

[The R/C Man]

Hey there!

To add to what Lee mentioned. The fuge is also great for nitrate reduction and helping to maintain PH during the night. You just need to run the fuge light opposite the display tank. A digital timer works great for this.

A 1" drain should be plenty addiquate for the flow you mentioned. I currently use a MAG 7 from the sump to the display on my 25 gallon tank. As of right now the return line is 1/2" with the drain being 1". However I am planning to up the return to 3/4" to reduce head pressure. CPR overflows seem to be the way to go. You will need to run a vacuum pump to draw out any entrapped air in the siphon but it has been working well for me.

Although some people may disagree, I believe you can increase the flow through the sump without any adverse effects. With that said, the sump should be as large as you can fit under the stand if that is where you plan to keep it. The more water volume you have the more stable the system. If money isn't a huge issue maybe you should look into a custom acrylic sump to maximize its use..... Hope that helped some....

[Adnuces]

Okay to give some clarification to the plan. The sump would be a 35g rubbermaid tub with a 10g set inside raised from the bottom with holes drilled in the sides to allow water to flow through, the purpose would be to slow the flow through the fuge within the sump. The sump would contain the protein skimmer and heaters etc.

[The R/C Man]

You shouldn't have to worry about the flow all that much. I have a 10 gallon tank converted into a sump/fuge with 500GPH flowing through it and the algae grows fine. If I were you I would just partition the 35 gallon rubbermaid.....

[Adnuces]

What would one use to partition it? Would I buy sheet acrylic and silicon it in? Maybe I should just buy a 20L and get the store to cut acrylic to fit? and do it that way???? I just thought I could do it on a shoestring. I have been reading that overflows are a disaster waiting to happen......and that I shouldn't attempt this without a drilled tank.......getting confused by the minute