DIY Sump questions

[Osaka-san]

I FINALLY got the RO/DI up and running tonight. I hate plumbing. I figure to run a couple of barrels thorugh before I start storing water in earnest. Anyway, after a clean up day tomorrow its on the the sump! I will be looking for ~ 20 - 30 lb of live rock soon, about half of it rubble or smaller peices... keep me in mind if you are thinking of selling some.

I am planning on using a slightly raised peice of egg crate to improve circulation around the live rock rubble in the refrugium section. Any value in this? Or just taking up valuable space.

I am also thinking that a second short shelf of egg crate above the base could do a good job of holding up some mangroves in the same area. Thoughts?

Last - there is no requirement to plumb your ATO into the output section is there? Seems like where ever you dump it in the sump it will have the same effect. Level sensors go in the output though - right?

 

[bhelne01]

i believe that it does not make a difference if you sit your live rock on an egg crate in your sump, i believe you want to use the live rock as a biological filter in your sump. the truth is that the filtering is performed by the bacteria that grows and dwells in your sand bed and live rock all you need is a good amount of sand bed, LR and micro algae in your sump.

your sump should have a good sand bed, so you don't need the second egg crate, just bury the roots and base of the mangrove into the sand bed

it would be a good idea to have the inlet for your ATO in a high water flow area of the sump to ensure proper mixing. since RO water has a lower Specific gravity and may sit in the upper portion of your sump water and take a longer time to mix in.