high flow sumps

[Ron Popeil]

who has a sump with the most flow through it?

i know that conventional wisdom is to have a slower flow rate through the sump, but what if you want to push the envelope a bit?

anyone have over 2000 gph through theirs? more? if so, how do you contain microbubbles? how do you have your overflow pipes oriented? any extra effective baffle designs?

pictures?

 

[GSMguy]

The question is why?

 

[Ron Popeil]

well, to be honest, i have a dart as my sump return and it feeds both my 60 gallon and 45 gallon. i would like to utilize more of the flow from it than what i am currently. and pull the korallias out of my tanks.

 

[Rouselb]

I used to run 3000gph through my fuge. I was running the ecosystem miracle mud. Once the macro grows it will stop all the bubbles. Until then, i hung a piece of plexiglass that extended into the water 2" and was able to move (just use zip ties to hold it to the top of the tank). If this is a sump, you want to slow down the water so the skimmer can work, and the debris settles and does not get pumped back to the display. Back to the fuge, if you have a fuge, some add a PH to increase flow and prevent stagnate water and algae. Hope this helps.

 

[Ron Popeil]

thanks for the suggestions larry!

my sump is merely an acrylic box. roughly 40 x 18 x 15. ill have to get the real measurements when i get home.

but i have my overflow returns combine to one 2" pipe in the far right of the sump. then my asm g4 skimmer, then my calcium reactor and then on the far left the intake for my dart.

if there were any more ideas on how to make baffles to be the most efficient bubble traps, as well as any ideas for how to handle the water coming back in from my tanks....id greatly appreciate the ideas!

 

[Rouselb]

Your setup seems fine. Are you using 1.5" pipe all the way back up into the tank? If you are, you have a few options, you can put a valve into the return pipe to restrict flow, or you can just Tee off the flow and let it return back into the sump. Do you already have the pump? If not, you could go with a smaller pump like the Uno. I like pressure rated pumps because you can run one return pipe and then have multiple outlets without loosing allot of pressure. I personally use a GenX PCX55 for my return pump, im pushing 900gph with it. My skimmer is rated for 800 gph throughput. I always try to get close to the skimmer throughput after head loss.

 

[Ron Popeil]

larry, thanks again for your help. so i can put a valve underneath my overflow? expand on that a bit if you would.

i have somewhat of a unique set up, my dart feeds two tanks side by side. each cube tank has one corner overflow 2" in diameter. these combine under the stand and currently drain into a single 2" pipe into a micron bag into the sump.

my dart is currently throttled way back, and i have no microbubbles. but the flow out of my return is very subtle and slow. but if i allow just a bit more flow, suddenly there is a flurry of microbubbles. i cant explain it.

but i imagine if there was someway to remove the air via some piping method before the water gets to the sump, i could increase flow in the tanks and through the sump successfully. is this what you mean by "T off the flow and let it return back into the sump"?

keep the ideas coming!

 

[Rouselb]

Put the valve on the return pipe not the overflow pipe. You want to restrict the flow of water going into the tank, not draining. What type of valve do you have installed? The tee off method would be to put a tee into the return line just after the pump and run that over to the same area in your sump that your overflows drain. This way, you can continue to use a large pump. It sounds like this may be your best option to achieve what you want. Maybe sketch up something in powerpoint or paint and post it, then we know what you have, and can help you make the best decision.

 

[das75]

Used to push 2000gph through my 75g sump and was micro-bubble free using a bubble-trap and filter socket and the usual over/under/over baffles. Feel the filter sock helped the most.

My reason for the high flow was my return pump was contributing to the overall turnover in the display. Dropped back to 1000gph as changed pumps to a Barracuda to reduce noise and power consumption.

 

[ehutchby]

interesting thread...

 

[ehutchby]

cool thread

 

[Ron Popeil]

i have union ball valves on the intake and out port of my dart.

ill try to work on a schematic or even some pictures tonight so it will make more sense.

again, appreciative help.

das, tell me about your baffles...distances, heights, etc...

 

[das75]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14511653#post14511653 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Ron Popeil


das, tell me about your baffles...distances, heights, etc...

Sump is divided into two sections by the baffles, the skimmer/bubble trap part is about 16x17", remainder is basically pump return.

3 baffles each 17x10" high spaced 4" apart, centre baffle is held off the floor of the sump by a double row of egg-crating by about 1.5". The spacing could be tighter but was built that I could place in 4" foam blocks for mechanical filtration (which 'm not using).

 

[ridetheducati]

No need to run more than 500-700gph thru any sump. Keep in mind, the dirtiest water needs to be available for your skimmer to work optimally.

 

[Ron Popeil]

yeah, i know. i just wanted to not have powerheads in the tanks, and the tank design is not really conducive for closed loop...hence my reasons for wanting to put as much flow through the sump as possible. if nothing else, id like to eke out just a bit more flow from the pump, so any creative ideas are very much appreciated.

 

[sjm817]

How about using eductors/penductors? They will increase the flow in the display while actually decreasing the flow through the sump.

 

[Rouselb]

Heres an idea, you have (2) 2" pipes that "y" together into (1) 2" that feeds the sump, correct? You could run split them apart, so each tank has its own 2" pipe that runs back into the sump (dont combine the two). Then you could use a reverse durso design on each one. Adding a Filter sock and some live rock rubble will also help. It may be a combination of these.

http://stockmanreef.com/reverse_durso.htm

The general consensus is always been sumps need low flow (usually similar to the skimmer capacity), and fuges need more flow.