Yes agreed if setup right these can look very clean and professional vs a DIY mess of wires and everything.
Aqueon Modular ProFlex Sump Filtration
- Thread starter MrGoodbar
- Start date
Yes agreed if setup right these can look very clean and professional vs a DIY mess of wires and everything.
scarface70706
New member
well i sent him a pm and i hope he will get in here and show us his sump and set up. im really curios on how great his sump is. im not saying DYI sucks (ive seen great custom sumps) but its hard to listen to a random guy stating negative theories about our sumps an calling us noobs but cant even give us a single intellectual defense on his behalf.
Aqueon Sump not be designed to accomodate refugium and Skimmer?
Aqueon Sump not be designed to accomodate refugium and Skimmer?
I'm just setting up my new tank and have the Aqueon Model 2 sump. I was confused by the design, since I could not figure out how to set up the sump for both a fuge and a skimmer. The only way to do this appears to be to put the skimmer and return in the same chamber (the third). Although this might work okay if you have ATO, it's a poor design. Not only do you risk more bubbles in the return, but you invite problems with your skimmer since water level will fluctuate. No ATO? forget it. You'll be refilling water all the time with so much space taken up in the pump chamber.
This is especially frustrating for me since I bought this sump because my LFS told me specifically it would allow a fuge and a skimmer. Not only that, the pump and skimmer (NAC7) my LFS sold me wont even both fit in the third chamber. :furious:
If anyone is aware of a way to set this sump up with both, without an ATO, I'd love to hear it. Thanks.
Aqueon Sump not be designed to accomodate refugium and Skimmer?
I'm just setting up my new tank and have the Aqueon Model 2 sump. I was confused by the design, since I could not figure out how to set up the sump for both a fuge and a skimmer. The only way to do this appears to be to put the skimmer and return in the same chamber (the third). Although this might work okay if you have ATO, it's a poor design. Not only do you risk more bubbles in the return, but you invite problems with your skimmer since water level will fluctuate. No ATO? forget it. You'll be refilling water all the time with so much space taken up in the pump chamber.
This is especially frustrating for me since I bought this sump because my LFS told me specifically it would allow a fuge and a skimmer. Not only that, the pump and skimmer (NAC7) my LFS sold me wont even both fit in the third chamber. :furious:
If anyone is aware of a way to set this sump up with both, without an ATO, I'd love to hear it. Thanks.
jcw
Active member
I run a fuge and a skimmer, but on a 4. I switched the second and third compartments and divided the third compartment with an eggcrate to separate the macroalgae and live rock from the pump. I did not use a dsb.
I used the removable wall meant for the first compartment, cut the lip slightly on either side and fit it between the two walls between the 2 and 3 compartments. Keeps the level at a steady 8.5". Perfect for my ATB 840.
If your skimmer won't even fit, return the sump.(or consider an ATO)
I had to modify my 72g bowfront stand to fit the sump, but I'm glad I did. I've got so much crammed in there it looks like it was custom made and maximized my sump volume.
MrGoodbar
Member
Congrats on your first post and welcome to the family. To be honest with you i would return the sump and get a model 3 or 4 no matter what size tank you have. The smaller models seem to just be too small to do anything with them and seem to be the models that get all the complaints. This sump is great and i love mine so dont give up on the sump just yet. I have a model 3 with a reef octopus skimmer in the third chamber and it fits in just fine and i have the center set up as the refugium and works great. I dont have an ato yet i dont mind replacing the water everyday i like to work on my tank, but there is plenty of room to add one. Good luck with your decision. Any ?s just let us know, we are more than happy to help you out.
Thanks for the replies and the welcome. Really appreciate it.
jcw, I can't fit the 4, since my stand measures 33" on the inside. I could fit the 3, but I don't think that will solve my problem. If there were enough room to separate the third compartment into a fuge/dedicated pump space, that might work, but there definitley is not on the 2, and not really on the 3 either. The fuge would be too small to be worthwhile.
MrGoodbar, are you not having any skimmer issues having the skimmer in the same compartment as the return pump? Your water level wont be constant, unless you are really in there every day, and fluctuating water level is a headache for skimmers isn't it?
Also, even if I swapped my skimmer so i could fit the skimmer and pump in the third compartment, adn even if I were willing to deal with adding water every day, it seems that setup means you are limiting how much return flow you can have, because you're getting the full flow of the DT drain running over the fuge. Since, as I understand it, you don't want too much flow over the fuge, you have to stick with a relatively small return pump (which means adding more pumps in the tank for circulation). The designs Iv'e seen here that limit flow to the fuge seem better. Do you have any thoughts on that?
One final thing that bothers me about the Aqueon as I stare at it: It's cut lower on the last compartment, meant to be the return pump compartment. That means it's going to be able to hold less overflow in the event of a power failure. It's only 14" tall at that end of the sump. That doesn't leave much room for overflow - not enough for my 57g anyway. Why on earth would they have cut it down and taken away another 5" of overflow space?
jcw, I can't fit the 4, since my stand measures 33" on the inside. I could fit the 3, but I don't think that will solve my problem. If there were enough room to separate the third compartment into a fuge/dedicated pump space, that might work, but there definitley is not on the 2, and not really on the 3 either. The fuge would be too small to be worthwhile.
MrGoodbar, are you not having any skimmer issues having the skimmer in the same compartment as the return pump? Your water level wont be constant, unless you are really in there every day, and fluctuating water level is a headache for skimmers isn't it?
Also, even if I swapped my skimmer so i could fit the skimmer and pump in the third compartment, adn even if I were willing to deal with adding water every day, it seems that setup means you are limiting how much return flow you can have, because you're getting the full flow of the DT drain running over the fuge. Since, as I understand it, you don't want too much flow over the fuge, you have to stick with a relatively small return pump (which means adding more pumps in the tank for circulation). The designs Iv'e seen here that limit flow to the fuge seem better. Do you have any thoughts on that?
One final thing that bothers me about the Aqueon as I stare at it: It's cut lower on the last compartment, meant to be the return pump compartment. That means it's going to be able to hold less overflow in the event of a power failure. It's only 14" tall at that end of the sump. That doesn't leave much room for overflow - not enough for my 57g anyway. Why on earth would they have cut it down and taken away another 5" of overflow space?
scarface70706
New member
good question on the cutting the last chamber down. beats me but i run the model 3 and when i have a power outage on my 90 gallon its holds all my water in. maybe so you can pull your skimmer in and out without the hassle of moving the sump every time you want to pull out equipment. if i was you id get the model 3 and try goodbar and my setups. (i kinda stole his set up idea) 
the xs 160 and the mag 9.5 fit in the third chamber perfectly. you should def. call your LFS and let him know the stuff he told you to buy that would fit doesnt and work something out. yes our sump has some flaws but i have to say model 3 and 4 are the best, also these sumps are very quite compared to most peoples ive seen in their stand. if you can go up a model and change out your skimmer for a better one those nac skimmers to me seam like a knock off. just measure out the third chamber and look around online for skimmers with a foot print that would work best for you. the mag drives fit in these real nice as well. i dont have a ATO but imo if you leave your tank unattended so long to the point where your 3rd chamber's water lvl gets really low and cause abnormal wear to your skimmer you shouldn't have a tank. just pay attention to it and fill accordingly and you'll be fine. besides i find myself looking at my fuge and watch all the little bugs crawling around in the chaeto
the xs 160 and the mag 9.5 fit in the third chamber perfectly. you should def. call your LFS and let him know the stuff he told you to buy that would fit doesnt and work something out. yes our sump has some flaws but i have to say model 3 and 4 are the best, also these sumps are very quite compared to most peoples ive seen in their stand. if you can go up a model and change out your skimmer for a better one those nac skimmers to me seam like a knock off. just measure out the third chamber and look around online for skimmers with a foot print that would work best for you. the mag drives fit in these real nice as well. i dont have a ATO but imo if you leave your tank unattended so long to the point where your 3rd chamber's water lvl gets really low and cause abnormal wear to your skimmer you shouldn't have a tank. just pay attention to it and fill accordingly and you'll be fine. besides i find myself looking at my fuge and watch all the little bugs crawling around in the chaeto
MrGoodbar
Member
I have not had any skimmer problems at all. I had micro bubbles for a while in the beginning but that has gone away now and it all runs great. I think that was just due to the skimmer breaking in. The fuge water doesnt seem to effect the return water. I have a mag 9.5 and have it dialed down because it is too much flow in the DT which is 75g. I wouldnt worry too much about the volume of water in your refugium. mine stays pretty slow no matter how much flow i have. I have had the power out a couple times and never had it overflow. When i set up the system i tested it and cut all the power just to make sure it wouldnt overflow then just marked the sump so i knew what the max water level was so it wouldnt overflow. The third chamber can only have so much water in it because you need the water to flow over the wall onto the sponge and that breaks up micro bubbles then into the third chamber. Its tough to explain everything clearly you will learn so much once you get it set up and fiddle with stuff.
jcw
Active member
agree wth above, my skimmer body will only come out of my aga stand through the last compartment. Hence the cutout.
i understand what you mean about flow through a fuge, but if it's just macro and LR, I don't think it matters much. A DSB on the other hand is another story.
There are other things I don't like. Like the fact you can't clean in and behind those bubble towers, and the whole thing flexes a liittle too much for my tastes.
But having built my own sump and fuge as well for my 125g, this one really hit the main points and is great (not perfect) for my 72g.
i understand what you mean about flow through a fuge, but if it's just macro and LR, I don't think it matters much. A DSB on the other hand is another story.
There are other things I don't like. Like the fact you can't clean in and behind those bubble towers, and the whole thing flexes a liittle too much for my tastes.
But having built my own sump and fuge as well for my 125g, this one really hit the main points and is great (not perfect) for my 72g.
jcw
Active member
looking up the size of the 2, a super reef octopus SSS would fit that middle compartment fine.
You could put an eggcrate to divide the last section in two width-wise rather than length wise.
Put live rock rubble and macro in the last section. It's not big, but neither is the sump itself.
You could put an eggcrate to divide the last section in two width-wise rather than length wise.
Put live rock rubble and macro in the last section. It's not big, but neither is the sump itself.
jcw
Active member
from the factory, the water level isn't determined by a wall but the rate the water is pumped back to the display by the pump in the third chamber.
Not ideal as you can see that with evaporation, the level in the second and third chambers will drop.
Any ATO will help minimize the water level changes.
What I did to keep the second compartment at a steady level was to move the movable wall from between the 1st and 2nd chambers to between the 2nd and 3rd chambers. This meant cutting the removable wall a little to fit. But this way, water level is rock steady with or without the ATO. The height of the removable wall just happened to be about 8-9 inches which was perfect for my small ATB.
Not ideal as you can see that with evaporation, the level in the second and third chambers will drop.
Any ATO will help minimize the water level changes.
What I did to keep the second compartment at a steady level was to move the movable wall from between the 1st and 2nd chambers to between the 2nd and 3rd chambers. This meant cutting the removable wall a little to fit. But this way, water level is rock steady with or without the ATO. The height of the removable wall just happened to be about 8-9 inches which was perfect for my small ATB.
MrGoodbar
Member
Ok guys i need help. I just hooked up the carbon gfo dual reactor from brs and i am having trouble deciding where it should go. Right now i have a mj1200 pump in the center chamber and the return of the reactor going into the 3rd chamber. So my problem is since i have the pump in the 2nd chamber i cant have the top on the refugium because the line from the pump is really hard and you cant really bend it to put the top back on. Anyone have the same reactor hooked up with this sump?
scarface70706
New member
hey im going to buy the sane duel reactors and i was looking at my set up and trying to figure that out as well. see great minds think alike i tried posting a pic to show you how similar our set ups are lol. can the tubes be replaced with a more flexible tube or does it have to be the hard white ones?
scarface70706
New member
ok here ya go!
MrGoodbar
Member
ya we do have exact setups lol. I didnt think about changing the lines. I was thinking about just drilling a hole in the top of the cover so that way i can have the cover where its supposed to go. Is that your ato reservoir next to your sump? I need to get one bad i hate adding water everyday. How did you do it?
scarface70706
New member
tunze osmolator. works great. i highly recommend it for our sumps. at first i was having issues with it but once i washed the eye in hot soapy water it works fine. its small too so it fits in our sumps perfect.
if i was you id see if you can swap out the fittings with some flex tubing. i was looking at this duel reactor and i was thinking about putting the mj1200 in the filter sock area with the rest of my rubble rock and feed the tube over the adjustable and out were you have your reactor placed and then the return right into the fuge or skimmer inlet. keep me posted on it so we can work together on this since im buying mine in a week or so. good luck.
if i was you id see if you can swap out the fittings with some flex tubing. i was looking at this duel reactor and i was thinking about putting the mj1200 in the filter sock area with the rest of my rubble rock and feed the tube over the adjustable and out were you have your reactor placed and then the return right into the fuge or skimmer inlet. keep me posted on it so we can work together on this since im buying mine in a week or so. good luck.
jimrawr
New member
After using this sump for a while, I gotta say I agree with Gudhjem. The skimmer/return both having to be located in the last chamber is a bad design. Water level will fluctuate and your skimmer wont stay constant. Even if you have a ATO like I do (osmolator), when you turn off your turn pump you will need to also shut off the skimmer. If you return pump fails, get ready for a flood since your skimmer will start to skim so much it will overflow the cup and start to spill out side of the return chamber.
All I know is that next time I buy a sump, the skimmer and return wont be in the same chamber.
All I know is that next time I buy a sump, the skimmer and return wont be in the same chamber.
