Want to build my own Sump . I was told that you should not have your Sump water level any deeper then 12 inches. I want to do 16 inches and make a stand for my protein skimmer to keep it running around the 8 inch mark. I am also going to do a deep sand bed does this need to be raised closer to the top of the water aswell. Don't understand why the Sump water level should not be any higher then 12 inches please clarify. Thanks Jason
DIY Acrlic Sump
- Thread starter JasonCass
- Start date
uncleof6
Active member
Re: DIY Acrlic Sump
When your pump stops running, due to power faliure, heart failure, a sale at wall mart, all the water in the return system, drain system, overflow, skimmer and part of your tank will drain into the sump. Should not be deeper than 12"? Bad info. There is no minimum or maximum. What counts is how much room you got for drain down. Or whether you, or your spouse-- or mother goose, minds if you ruin the new carpet. If your sump is 20" high, 16" water level MIGHT work, in one section. Safe is running your sump ~ half full.
Regards,
Jim
When your pump stops running, due to power faliure, heart failure, a sale at wall mart, all the water in the return system, drain system, overflow, skimmer and part of your tank will drain into the sump. Should not be deeper than 12"? Bad info. There is no minimum or maximum. What counts is how much room you got for drain down. Or whether you, or your spouse-- or mother goose, minds if you ruin the new carpet. If your sump is 20" high, 16" water level MIGHT work, in one section. Safe is running your sump ~ half full.
Regards,
Jim
There is no valid reason to say the sump water level should not be higher than 12 inches in a general statement, but there are lots of valid reasons in specific cases.
As jim says you need to leave enough room for drain back, so you need a few inches from the top of the sump.
As you know, your skimmer might not work under 20 inches of water, but that just means you need a platform.
If you sump is not built strong enough it might not be safe to hold more than 12 inches of water. But other than these specifics you can have a sump that is feet deep, not inches deep. Lots of people use watering troughs for basement sumps that are 2 feet deep and run them way over 12 inches of water.
As to running your sump half full, that is just about as bad of a suggestion as 12 inches. You need to make sure you have enough room for all the drain back. In some situations that means you need more than 1/2 the sump for drain back, in others you only need 1/10 of the sump for drain back. This is determined by the setup, the size of the return pipe, the depth of the water over the overflow, the length of the return pipe, etc. If you have minimal drainback in your design, you can run your sump 3/4 full without any problems as long as it is large enough. Even with minimal drainback if you have a small sump, 1/2 full could still mean an overflow.
Kim
As jim says you need to leave enough room for drain back, so you need a few inches from the top of the sump.
As you know, your skimmer might not work under 20 inches of water, but that just means you need a platform.
If you sump is not built strong enough it might not be safe to hold more than 12 inches of water. But other than these specifics you can have a sump that is feet deep, not inches deep. Lots of people use watering troughs for basement sumps that are 2 feet deep and run them way over 12 inches of water.
As to running your sump half full, that is just about as bad of a suggestion as 12 inches. You need to make sure you have enough room for all the drain back. In some situations that means you need more than 1/2 the sump for drain back, in others you only need 1/10 of the sump for drain back. This is determined by the setup, the size of the return pipe, the depth of the water over the overflow, the length of the return pipe, etc. If you have minimal drainback in your design, you can run your sump 3/4 full without any problems as long as it is large enough. Even with minimal drainback if you have a small sump, 1/2 full could still mean an overflow.
Kim
MrSpiffy
Premium Member
Yeah, but again, "half full" isn't exactly accurate. You just need to make sure any drain-back will be contained in the sump. If the sump is 100 gallons and there's only 1 gallon of drain-back you can run your sump at near-full capacity without worry of overflow. Granted, that's an extreme example, but the point is the same.
As long as you can handle the drainage from the plumbing, skimmer, and overflow, without overflowing your sump, you should be fine. But many times that's a bit of a guessing game. Just be a little generous in your estimation and you'll be fine.
If you're really worried about the sump overflowing, just put the main body of the sump (empty box with no dividers) under the tank and install your plumbing setup and try it out to see how much water the tank will overflow. It's not always practical, but it'd work.
As long as you can handle the drainage from the plumbing, skimmer, and overflow, without overflowing your sump, you should be fine. But many times that's a bit of a guessing game. Just be a little generous in your estimation and you'll be fine.
If you're really worried about the sump overflowing, just put the main body of the sump (empty box with no dividers) under the tank and install your plumbing setup and try it out to see how much water the tank will overflow. It's not always practical, but it'd work.
Thanks everyone for your input. I have just built the stand for the sump and have all the pieces cut to assemble this Friday. Wish me luck the plastic set me back 950 canadian which is a steal for 3 4x8 1/2 thick pieces. I will post pics for you guys when I am done. If it turns out the way I want it to I think it will deserve bragging rights. Talk to you soon thanks Jason
My sump is insane in size. It will measure 59x36x24. Do you have any tips to gluing or assembling this acrylic project. I have a squirt bottle with 25cc tip as well as a syringe with a 25cc tip. Solvent is weld on 4 and I also have weld on 16 to make sure sump is water tight. Is it very importent to wet sand the edges to be glued so thes are 100 percent.
troylee
In Memoriam
no dont wet sand them a rougher surface is better imo.....smooth but not shiny i mean.......to be honest i have had more and more luck doing it old school just saw cuts and running a razor blade down them like scraping a run in paint to smooth them out a tad......i personnaly use razor blades for shims let it soak 30sec with weld on3 since its a bit faster and pull the blades.....and wala your good to go.....you might get an ocassanial bubble here or there but no biggie on a sump.....and i personnaly use the squirt bottle myself....thats a nice size sump you got going i just built a 220gal sump for myself 96x24x24 its insane with media drawers that pull out for changing stuff ind. while its in operation i love it....cant wait to build my 300 or 500 gal tank to go with it.....
Thank you so much for your advise. It is very appreciated. Tommorow is the big day I am a little nevervous since it will be my first time. But hope all goes well. Since what I eventually want to do is build a big tank for my basement out of acrylic as well. I promise I will post picks of my accomplishments. Thanks again Jason
troylee
In Memoriam
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1558710
here ya go.........hope it helps........im sure i made it look easyier than it is because i do it everyday........ but if you had the confidence to get thus far you can pull it off......i see people on here scaring many people away from acrylic but it is very easy to work with and fun
here ya go.........hope it helps........im sure i made it look easyier than it is because i do it everyday........ but if you had the confidence to get thus far you can pull it off......i see people on here scaring many people away from acrylic but it is very easy to work with and fun
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