Plumbing dilemma... what would you do?

[Thinslis]

I woke up this morning laying in bed thinking of how am I going to do water changes on my new setup and also accommodate for auto top off water when my sump tank narrowly fits in the stand....

One potential solution to this problem is to drill through the wall and run the pipes through to the closet behind the tank (which is currently just full of junk) and put the sump on the floor in the closet.

Upsides:
I could get a larger sump with a small fuge section.
I could put a 10g tank of top off water on a stand above the sump.
I could raise the water level in the sump to gain more water volume.
If I were to get creative I could maybe figure out a way for a 20g frag tank.

Downsides:
I lose a junk closet
Possible moisture issues even if the closet door is not closed
There is no power outlets in the closet

Note:
I have no significant other to consult with here so basically I can do what ever I want and the room the closet is in is the room I mix my saltwater in and store all my fish supplies.


So my question is... would you do it? or would you just figure out a way to make it work with the limited room under the stand?

 

[itZme]

Additional benefits you may have not considered... You can run an in-sump skimmer that does not have to fit under a stand, you can have all the louder equipment in the closet where it won't be intrusive, you can have a fuge with reverse lighting without bothering anyone having lights on from ~9pm- 10am.

You will still be sure you have enough room in the sump to catch any water that drains back with power loss so don't raise the level too high.

I say go for it and just put a shelf or two above the sump/fuge tank to store the "junk".

You could easily plumb a 1/4" RO tubing line into the closet and then have your mixing station and auto top off setup inside there too.

If the closet is on the other side of a wall with outlets it is very simple to add an outlet tied in to the other one and have power inside the closet. It would likely be less than $25 in parts (biggest cost would be a GFCI outlet) There are plenty of people on the forums who could help out getting that done.

Good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[CeasarIM]

How many gals. is your tank?

 

[Jeff Trout]

I think being able to access the sump from your fish room would make it easier on you.I would do it!!Go bigg or go home

 

[Thinslis]

The tank is a 40g breeder. Link to my build thread is here http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1536986

itzme: Thank you, my RO/DI unit is currently mounted under the sink in the kitchen and there is no problems leaving it there. As for the skimmer I have a ER RS-80 in sump skimmer, the issue is that it just barely fits under the stand with enough room to take the cup off for disposal.

One of my biggest concerns here is the moisture. I was having mildew issues with my 150g setup that is one of the reasons I broke it down and sold it off. My hope is that I don't have the same issue with my 40g setup, however adding all this extra stuff I'm concerned I might run into the same issue again.

 

[Thinslis]

ttt.... anyone else with an opinion on this here topic?

 

[funkyman]

I would do whatever you want to do before there "is" a significant other.

Empty out that closet, and reef it up!!:thumbsup:

 

[DonDon1]

use the closet as sump room