how to clean out sump?

[Mrbeachbum2]

There's a lot of debris in the sump. It's on the floor so I can't siphon. How do you clean these areas out?

 

[spamreefnew]

i taped a 1/2" tubing to the end of my wet/dry shop vac

 

[samstersam]

i taped a 1/2" tubing to the end of my wet/dry shop vac

Dust like debris is easily sucked out with the Eheim vac. Anything heavier won't work.

http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=3895

 

[putitang]

A wet vac.

 

[PROTECHAUTO1]

A wet vac.

x2

 

[99sf]

If you don't want to empty your entire sump, you can attach a short piece of flexible tubing to a small pump (I use a Maxijet) and pump the detritus into your filter sock. Just takes a couple of minutes to scrape off most of the detritus and suck it into the sock.

 

[Mrbeachbum2]

How do you guys make the half inch connection to the wet vac?


99sf, so does the the debris go through your maxi jet?

 

[cloak]

I just use a powerhead to get everything up into the water column. Hook up a filter sock for a few hours and catch it on the way back down. The corals really seem to like it, I get a great feeding response when this is done.

 

[TripleT]

During a water change, I put a powerhead in my sump to stir it up.

A second powerhead and hose to pump it all out.

 

[zigzag1]

I use a BucketMax shopvac. The unit is made to fit on a 5gal bucket and only $20 at Lowes. It’s my newest reef maintenance tool. Plus, I don't have to use/clean/go through filters ($12 ea) on the 'household' shopvac. I've used it a couple of times and have found it perfect; really love this thing and recommend it for sump cleaning!

 

[mfinn]

I use a python water change system. Sucks everything out of the sump.

 

[ttlee858]

Great idea. I'll have to stop by Lowes tomorrow.

 

[OckMed]

Maxi jet old pump with flex clear hose and suck it stuff out

 

[extreme5450]

Shop Vac

 

[dzhuo]

I use a BucketMax shopvac. The unit is made to fit on a 5gal bucket and only $20 at Lowes. It's my newest reef maintenance tool. Plus, I don't have to use/clean/go through filters ($12 ea) on the 'household' shopvac. I've used it a couple of times and have found it perfect; really love this thing and recommend it for sump cleaning!

That seems like an excellent idea. How does it actually work? There is a inlet hose you can put into the sump and an outlet hose that goes to the 5g bucket? When you turn the thing on, it sucks up the water, filter them and the clean water goes out to the 5g bucket? Once you are done, you put the water from the 5g bucket back to the tank? The unit is completely out of the water and does not require priming?

Thx!

 

[waldomas]

This "bucket-vac" is like a lid for the 5 gal. bucket. When it becomes full, simply remove the "lid" and pour out the bucket. You can actually use the bucket to modify a larger container that can be plumbed to a drain w/ a ball valve, so no lifting is required! It would have to be air-tight to maintain suction.

After using a shop-vac for years, this may be exactly what I was looking for!

 

[dzhuo]

Hmm... so this BucketMax covers the entire lid of a 5g bucket because it needs to be air-tight in order to start the sucking water? It holds the aquarium water in itself until full which you then dump into a 5g bucket below?

 

[waldomas]

The 5 gallon bucket is the vacuum reservoir. The "BucketMax" is the vacuum lid (or the electric part of the wet/dry vac) that replaces the lid on a 5 gallon bucket!
Its a "5 gallon" sized shop-vac!

 

[dzhuo]

LOL. Any 5g bucket will work? I suppose the bucket will have to have the right lid size or something for the air tight?

 

[Keyvan S]

+1..I've been using the BucketMax shopvac for almost 7 months now to clean my sump