Starting a 65 Gallon with Sump...

[raven312]

So I've barely had my Biocube 29 up and running and someone gave me a 65 gallon with sump. I was going to wait a few months to set it up but kept looking at it and... Well, you know. So I've got most of what I'm going to do figured out but I'm concerned about one thing (right now... I'm sure there will be more) - the sump configuration. It's a 20 tall with a funky layout. I thought about pulling out the baffles and starting over but was talked into giving it a go as-is since the previous owner obviously made it work. I'm trying to figure out where to place everything in the sump. I'm thinking my pump should go in the middle section with the baffle and the drain / refugium should be in the left side, protein skimmer in the large section that flows into the return area. Does this make sense?
So what's bothering me is that the walls on this thing are 12" where the yellow arrow is and the first wall of the baffle is 13". This seems to give me very little room for overflow if the pumps are off, but I guess I won't know until I fill it and turn the pump off. Should I try to live with it or reconfigure / have the baffles cut down?



(And I'm going to clean it before I set it up!)

THANKS for any guidance.

 

[shifty51008]

Looks like the section with the red arrow has the shortest baffle, if thats correct then thsts where the return pump goes

 

[Ron Reefman]

+1

If you do it your way the water will be well over the top of the red baffle as the water level in the bigger segment will be at the height of the yellow baffle.

And you are right about the limited room for water if the pump shuts off (no matter how you set it up. You'll need to break the siphon very quickly in the 65g.

 

[raven312]

Thank you. That's where I originally had it but thought it was supposed to go where the baffle is, so I moved it. So then, should the skimmer go in that area?

 

[shifty51008]

if there is room I would put the skimmer in the section where the black cords are which will be your drain also. the bigger section I am guessing was the fuge

 

[raven312]

Excellent! That's what I thought but I started over thinking it, the more I read. My ato sensor would go on with the skimmer, yes?

 

[shifty51008]

The ato sensor goes with the return pump

 

[raven312]

The ato sensor goes with the return pump

Thank you, Shifty51008. I'm going to start my plumbing this weekend. I'm sure I'll have more questions, as I don't believe I have everything I need. I have a Wye check valve for my return. Is it alright to have a Gate valve also? I am also planning to put a ball valve on my drain. The bulkhead to return will use reinforced pvc tubing and I'll use regular pvc everywhere else (that's the plan right now, though I may change my mind and use tubing on the drain also (just below the tank). I'm going to use regular pvc in the overflow. Does all of this sound like it will work?

 

[shifty51008]

Always here to help when i can.

I dont trust check valves, they clog way to easily. Dont use a ball valve on a drain, only use a gate valve on the output of the return pump and control your drain with that. Otherwise everything looks good.

 

[raven312]

That saves me some time and expense (and complexity). I'll try that. You're a great help.