New Refugium Build

chatyak

chatyak

New member
Hello,

Just a quick question on my new refugium build.

I'm not sure what type of light to get. I was planning to get a 36" coralife 2x 96W but then I said no... macroalgae prefers kelvin spectrums between 5-10K. with 5100K being the best right?

I have a couple lights now that I use but I'm not sure what their rating is... would I be better off just hanging a couple floodlights over the refugium? I don't want them to fall into the water on accident.

Here are some 3D models I made of it (being built in glass)

Fuge part is 36 inches long... return is 17 inches... intake is about 12.. whole thing is 6 feet long, 24 " high. Baffles 1/4" with 1 inch spacing.

sump1.jpg

sump2.jpg

sump3.jpg

sump4.jpg

sump5.jpg


Thanks!
 
Looks good. i did my baffles under/over/under. Scientifically bubbles should want to rise therefore it made more sense for the first baffle to be under. Opinions vary and both seem to work fine. Its all up to the builder

Why is the first compartment cut in half? Is that a bubble catch?

As for a bulb I use the one at the end of this page and it works great
http://melevsreef.com/fuge_bulb.html
 
I have the same fuge light as fireman, off Melv's site. Cheap and work's like a charm. This thing grows chaeto fast! I highly recommend it. Only difference is, I'm using this bulb (GE Indoor Floodlight, Soft White R40. 26w, 1300 lumens) I bought at HD. Have had this single bulb on a timer for 12 hours off cycle of my display lighting and my chaeto has to be culled every 2 weeks or sooner! I've run this bulb for 8 months and still going strong!
 
The first compartment is cut in half yea as a bubble trap.. I will put live rock rubble in there and then it comes out the bottom 1 inch space to fill up the skimmer area. I will also have a GFO/Phosban reactor too.

Hmm is that light available in Canada? I think I went to HD once and could not find it for the life of me.

Also, I have a question about pod culturing in the fuge.

If the baffles leading to the return section are the same height as the baffles leading to the fuge section... that will mean the water level in the fugue is almost flat with the top of the baffle.

Is that enough space for pods to flow into the main tank? Or should I make the baffles leading to the return 1 inch lower?
 
Last edited:
I have a couple clamp sockets I can use... will just pick up another.. then just hang them from under my stand... to prevent them from hitting the water.. I can just use chicken wire netting.. forgot all about it!
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14288076#post14288076 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by kraze3
www.lightbulbsdirect.com

1P3816 5100K
Click to expand...

Yea I have them in my "cart" as we speak :0)


One other thing... is the flow through my fuge going to be too much or too little? I'm going to use SeaFloor Carib Sea sand 1 - 1.7mm size.. about 2 inches deep with some LR for pods and of course chaeto.

My return pump is a Mag 7 currently... I also have two Koralia 4's and 1 Koralia 3.

So that's
1200gph
1200gph
800gph
700gph
--------
3900gph

Water volume total will be about 185 gallons..

So that's 21x total water flow.

Or did I do that wrong...
 
Ok I made an adjustment.

Could someone please tell me if, by having this baffle lower ( the first baffle in the set leading to the return ), would the water level would still be up where I have the line drawn or would it only go as high as that lower baffle?

sump6.jpg


I like that a bit better, as it will help pods move into the tank easier. I will use eggcrate the rest of the way up to prevent other things from getting through.
 
You should be able to get a CF spiral or CF flood @ Home Depot. That's where I got mine. Usually in small print is the kelvin rating. You want a "daylight" bulb. Those are generally 5000-6500k. If you can't find the rating then you can also look the bulb up online to verify it's kelvin rating.

Also, if this is also your sump, make sure to leave the level low enough for the tank to drain some if the return pump is turned off.
 
Thanks Rook,

Yep no worries, can't forget the drainage.

Any thoughts on my question about the one baffle being lower? Does it matter?
 
The lower baffle will have no impact. The higher baffle on the right side will determine the level in the sump. With only an 1" from the top, or what seems to be an 1" might not be enough excess capacity for when the power is off and tank drains. Also, I went the route of oolethic sand in my fuge with sim setup to yours and it became a nutrient sink over time. I know leave the bottom clear so I can vaccume out from time to time. Also the live rock in the supply side, will also trap deterious with in the rocks. Also noticed your were remoting your skimmer? Why not sit it down in the supply side? The maz 7 return pump will depend on the vol of your display and how much flow you want through the sump. Usually 2 x turnover. Might want to look at a different return pump. mags run hot and loud! All just my opnions and experience from use and building my own sump.
 
Thanks bbehring. All good info to consider. This tank is behind a wall and has it's own fish room. Plus I run a dehumidier in there as well and it's a lot louder than any pump.. but noise is still minimal :0) Will take pics soon when I start the build.
 
Chatyak, sounds like a good build. Can't wait to see the pics! I often dream of having my own "fish room". I replaced my mag return with an oceanrunner. Less watts. Have been real happy with the OR pump. I was having restart issues with my mag after a year of use. The OR has worked flawlessly (knock on wood), tap tap! I was wondering why you have your skimmer remote, mounted off the side of the sump? That seems to be a lot of weight placed on that side panel?

I have a remote recirc Octo (that I love). It's nice to be able to fiddle without being down in the sump.

I think the mag 7 should be fine on the return flow through the sump/fuge. The flow in your display may be another issue.

I didn't even consider the the return flow in my calcs. I have a 55 with a Closed Loop, Panworld 50 Px-x (1100 gph) with OM Squirt w/ 4 returns, plus a Tunze 6055 w/ controllers running full tilt, plus 2 nano corallias. Depends on what your gonna keep in the tank coral wise.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14300820#post14300820 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bbehring
Chatyak, sounds like a good build. Can't wait to see the pics! I often dream of having my own "fish room". I replaced my mag return with an oceanrunner. Less watts. Have been real happy with the OR pump. I was having restart issues with my mag after a year of use. The OR has worked flawlessly (knock on wood), tap tap! I was wondering why you have your skimmer remote, mounted off the side of the sump? That seems to be a lot of weight placed on that side panel?

I have a remote recirc Octo (that I love). It's nice to be able to fiddle without being down in the sump.

I think the mag 7 should be fine on the return flow through the sump/fuge. The flow in your display may be another issue.

I didn't even consider the the return flow in my calcs. I have a 55 with a Closed Loop, Panworld 50 Px-x (1100 gph) with OM Squirt w/ 4 returns, plus a Tunze 6055 w/ controllers running full tilt, plus 2 nano corallias. Depends on what your gonna keep in the tank coral wise.
Click to expand...

Good stuff. Well I am going to place the skimmer off to the side and just sit it on a table. It's a LifeReef so I can run it out of the water (venturi).

If I placed it in the sump, I would have to make the baffles shorter and I'm trying to give myself as much water volume as possible.

Hope that makes sense. I still get confused on things and I've been in this hobby for 6 months :rollface:

On a side note, what do you think of using PVC for the return plumbing instead of vinyl tubing? I have tubing now but it got algae inside of it, because the fuge light was shining on it.

I'm just wondering if the weight of the PVC leading back to the tank will make the Mag pump lean on on an angle in the sump.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14288755#post14288755 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Henryreef
I think it would work great and you would be fine.

Great job on the 3d computer models :)
Click to expand...

Thank you
 
I think rigid PVC would be better and help eliminate the growth of algae. You could also take your vinyl tubing and paint it black or white with krylon fusion paint. This is a special paint that sticks to vinyl and plastics. I have all the pvc and vinly lines on my tank (well most of them anyway) painted black. Vinly tubing does allow for better sweeps and flow though. Avoid hard 90's in rigid tubing if possible.
 
I have a tape that I wrap around the threads in pvc to prevent water leak.. I think this would be sufficient without that purple stuff to glue the pvc together.

What is that purple glue called again?
 
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