sand in the sump

The refugium can be part of the sump (it is usually one of the sections of the sump. For instance in my sump the water comes from the tank and goes into a section where my skimmer is. From there it goes through a bubble trap into the refugium section which contains live rock, live sand, and caulerpa algae (most like chaeto better). From there it goes into a third chamber which contains the return pump. and goes back to the tank. I have a 75-watt bulb for the refugium section and have to constantly prune the algae as it grows quite quickly.

Others prefer the return pump in the middle section, after the water goes through the skimmer section. They then put an elbow in from the return tubing to dump into the refugium section and one to return the water to the tank.
 
The refugium can be part of the sump (it is usually one of the sections of the sump. For instance in my sump the water comes from the tank and goes into a section where my skimmer is. From there it goes through a bubble trap into the refugium section which contains live rock, live sand, and caulerpa algae (most like chaeto better). From there it goes into a third chamber which contains the return pump. and goes back to the tank. I have a 75-watt bulb for the refugium section and have to constantly prune the algae as it grows quite quickly.

This is how mine is set up too. But I do run chaeto in mine.

scotbehot explained it well. A sump is usually just the area used to add water volume to the tank and to keep unsightly equipment like skimmers and heaters and such, so they are not in your display tank. A refugium is usually just a section of the sump, but there are folks that are lucky enough to have the extra room and can run a seperate refugium and sump.
 
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