Garage sump

[bpcardona]

I work in construction so I just brought home the big chipping hammer and blew a 4" hole through my wall for the PVC pipes and low voltage reef keeper cables and then filled with great stuff to seal the air /noise/ or bugs out......my area was solid concrete ..but you might find you have hollow cells in your concrete cynder blocks then you can just use a regular hammer to tap the block you can hear the difference to tell where the hollow area is and then hit it with the hammer to break it open its really simple and just measure the same distance on the other side to meet the holes up.....or you can take a long hammer drill bit and drill a hole through to line up your holes then chip or beat out the rest of the concrete .....I really like this setup the best the noise is almost nothing all the noise is kept in the garage and there is so much more room for expansion out there for larger sump/ refuge/ fans /q tank /frag tank /ato tank /water changing systems / calcium reactor/ect.....and also I never work with any water in my house on the wood floors all the work is done from the garage area so there are some huge advantages to this setup its the only way I will go from now on and the room I built is drywalled and insulated the doors are completely sealed and I ran a duct from my ac to keep it the same temp as the main house so while I make saltwater it always stays the same temp as the main display and being its in the same temp as the house I don't use a chiller just a fan on a temp controller via reef keeper that only turns on during the day ....
I replaced all the doors in my house so I kept 3 doors and cut them to size and made a huge double door setup on the sump side and a single door on the water change side.

This sounds like a very nice setup. I would love to see a picture if you have one.

 

[ganjero]

Well the wall I'm looking to put the pipes through is Drywall, that is why I was asking about sleeves or pipe insulation. Snake, (or anyone with experience) would you mind telling what would be the best way to put the pipes through and seal the opening tight to avoid bugs, carbon monoxide, etc etc?

bpcardona, how did you do your plumbing?


Thank you,

 

[snake1]

You could buy a piece of 4" PVC nothing to big in length chances are the biggest would be a 2x6 wall so with drywall 6 ½" total concrete walls are usally 8" plus foam and fir then drywall ....trace it out and cut it out push in the sleave then put what ever you want through the pipe then fill with great stuff it shouldnt be a problem if you want to add something later just poke a screwdriver through that's pretty much what I did except mine was through concrete ...they even make fire block great stuff spray foam if it would make anyone feel safer .....I was not worried about carbon monoxide because I don't park my car in my garage ....but if I did I would feel fine with the great stuff and maybe some simple caulking around the outside of the PVC to make a nice clean look smooth it out with your finger .....so in the end I would maybe let the PVC hang over each edge about a ¼" so you can finish it with caulking and the caulking should help hold the PVC in place .

 

[bpcardona]

Below is a copy and paste from my build thread. Notice that my plumbing is in the pantry. We have a large shelf at hip level in that pantry, and my plumbing is hidden under that.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



The first post will describe my purposed layout. I will be running the plumbing through my pantry, out into my garage. There I will have the sump and frag tank. These will be part of the same system. Below is the layout of the house.

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/90102096@N03/8364188303/" title="Image002 by elitecoral, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8052/8364188303_4965b2ae4d_z.jpg" width="640" height="536" alt="Image002"></a>​

 

[ganjero]

Bringing this back alive.

I ended up installing my sump, skimmer tank and refugium in the garage. I did not have any major issues with temp but I was pushing the limit on the high side (84 during the day).

I am currently debating between installing a chiller or mini split ac unit for the garage.

The chiller will be cheaper, but from what I read it will make the garage even hotter so it will work more.
The mini split will cool down the entire garage, that also has the laundry room which might be a plus. The garage has ceiling and insulation above it (at least most of it), one wall of cinder blocks, the garage door, a door to the patio and the drywall against the house. I am not sure if this will use a lot more electricity than using a chiller. I was thinking in keeping the garage at 78, and the house at 75.

Any opinions?

 

[risin]

Do you do any active cooling? I have a 100g sump and 35g refugium in the garage and keep my 250 at 79 degrees with just a 8 inch fan. House is set to 78.

I do have the sump partially covered and it's built like a wall with insulation. Are you just using non-insulated glass tanks?

Sounds like the garage is pretty well insulated, so may not be too much to chill. My garage has no insulation and feels hotter than the outside in the summer.

 

[ganjero]

Do you do any active cooling? I have a 100g sump and 35g refugium in the garage and keep my 250 at 79 degrees with just a 8 inch fan. House is set to 78.

I do have the sump partially covered and it's built like a wall with insulation. Are you just using non-insulated glass tanks?

Sounds like the garage is pretty well insulated, so may not be too much to chill. My garage has no insulation and feels hotter than the outside in the summer.

I guess I could start with that. Adding a fan and trying to insulate the tanks.