How many tanks for sump/fuge

[LGB76]

So I'm about to restart my 125gallon build. I finally have the room to do just about anything I want (nothing under the stand). For my sump/fugue I ran a 55 gallon tank. I was wondering...

Can I use 1 tank for my skimmer. And another tank for my fuge. Say 30 gallon tanks each... Or should I just do it all in a 55 gallon again?

How would I go about this if it's possible or a good idea?

 

[ca1ore]

I tend to be of the view, with space not a constraint, that all filtration/pumps go in the lowest and largest sump, and things like the refugium, remote deep sand bed, frag tank, etc., go in intermediate sumps. One thing to keep in mind is that the more intermediate sumps you have, the bigger the lowest one will have to be to handle all the overflow water.

 

[guserto4]

If you've got the space I think it's a great idea. Make sure to keep the amount water potentially available to the lowest tank from all the others in mind when planning, as stated above, and post some pics!

 

[nmbeg]

Since there's no return pump for intermediate sumps, are they all simply gravity fed in and out?

 

[Themonsterisme]

Since there's no return pump for intermediate sumps, are they all simply gravity fed in and out?

If each glass tank isn't tempered you could run horizontal bulkheads and connect them together that way

 

[nmbeg]

That makes sense. I recently added an intermediate sump to hold my skimmer (the stand is very low and I couldnt get the skimmer head in and out easily). The intermediate is vertically between the DT and and the main sump. Some of the overflow from the DT goes into each sump, and the intermediate is gravity fed to the main sump. It's just not very elegant for me. Keep needing to adjust flow. The horizontal design is much more appealing. Water height across all sumps (except the return chamber) would then be the height of the highest baffle, right?

 

[ca1ore]

I have run multiple 'intermediate height' sumps and they gravity overflow just like the display does. Trick is to have at least a foot of height differential. I always have dual drains though, just in case.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I use 3 x 44 gallon Brute cans for my refugia and 2 x 44 gallon Brute cans for my sump. The last sump can is at the lowest level, where the ATO measurement of water level takes place.