How do I prevent the sump from overflowing if power or pump fails?

[Scottedontknow]

Also.... you should have plumed in check valves then all your problems are solved lol


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[ericarenee]

I am thinking another benefit of check valve is u dont have to turn off skimmer if u turn off return pump for feeding.

For this i have the first chamber on my sump the deepest. This chamber is where the water is dropped into from the over flow on the back of the tank.. Its it has a baffle that is 16 inches tall and 12 inches wide .and my skimmer is on a 9 inch stand made of acrylic.. This chamber is always consist water level..

Then there is 28 inch chamber with a bubble trap at baffle system at the end then the return chamber after that.. The water level in there runs about 10 inches deep. when the power goes down my sump and refugium drains back to about 14 inches.. just below the skimmer chamber... the 28 inch middle chamber has my Carbon reactor and so on ...

the sump is 70 gallon tank

 

[James77]

They are made of plastic and I've seen people use them. I'm not saying you have to. There is no right or wrong way.

Problem with them is that they can be blocked pretty easily, and would then fail. Simple buildup, a snail, a small chunk of rock, etc...any of them could cause a nightmare if you rely on one of those.

The best way is to make sure there is enough room in your sump for the return outlet to break siphon if the power goes out. If your return goes halfway the depth of the tank, you will have problems. My return sits just below the surface of the water and is a 3/4 inch outlet. It only drains about 2-3 gallons when power goes out.

Some people drill a hole on the side of the return to accomplish the same thing. But same problem with a snail. The one time a snail decides to sleep there is the time your power will fail.