So, its been slow going, but here's an update. Picked up a standard Aqueon 120, and it's sitting in the basement waiting to be drilled. Still have to work out how I'm going to move it up the stairs...
I've made some progress building the sump. Because I'm not going to spend $500 on a sump, I'm using a 40 breeder and fitting it with acrylic baffles. The acrylic baffles are be bonded to each other with acrylic cement, and bonded to tank with GE silicone I. I'm still coming up to speed on acrylic routing, bending, bonding, etc, so bear with me...
The picture shows the inlet portion. Beananimal full siphon and trickle line enter on the right through two 1" bulkheads. Water will overflow the black baffle and enter the filter sock section. Water flows down through the socks, and out through the slot on the bottom into the skimmer section. If the socks get plugged, water rises and flows out the slot at the top. I'll post more pics tonight. At the opposite end of the sump, I'll drill for an external return pump (Blue line 40). Still need to work out the anti-bubble section.