Sump Help

[tropicalfishguy]

Hi all, I have a sump question. I have a 125g with a 50 g sump, 3/4 flexible tubing and gate valves on drain/return. My question is how
does everyone keep the water level in the sump stable, does it require hours of fine tuning? I don't want my sump to run dry and flood the tank. I am running a Quiet One 6000 as the return, does it matter if my drain line is submerged in the sump(its quieter that way)?
I just can't seem to match what the tank is draining to what the pump is putting back out. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Sea Ninja]

It sounds like your pump is over powering your drain. If your display tank is filling with water to quickly then that is the reason. Either get a new overflow box or if your tank is drilled then you will need to get a new return pump. Having your drain tube under water is fine. Use the calculator on the left hand side to figure out what you are draining.

 

[IPT]

doesnt matter if the drain is submerged in the sump. Never had a problem with keeping things stable myself. As long as your overflow (in tank or external) is set at a height to maintain the level of water you want in the tank, and your drains are able to accomodate the volume of water (or preferably more) that your pump is sending from the sump to the tank it should stay in equilibrium. The sump level will only drop as water evaporates.

 

[muzz]

if i am not mistaken, a 1 inch hole can only drain 600 gallons per hour, so if your pump is pumping more than that, then your tank wont drain fast enough to the sump, and it will overflow. you have to use your gatevalves to adjust the output from your pump until you find a happy medium to where you want it.

i am doing the same thing right now using a 75g sump on a 125g display tank. i have finally got water moving through it, but i made a manifold off of the pump to return some of the water back to the sump and some to the tank to equal out the system. i have two drains drilled in the back of my tank, but i do not have my closed loop system running yet. i have two of the set up though. i am glad i put ball valves everywhere, as that is how you adjust your flow(or gatevalves).

my problem is the gurgle where the water drains, as i have my sump in the basement, do you know how to get rid of the gurgle? i have two T's attatched to the bulkheads, so air enters from teh top, but it keeps "gurgling" and i can not figure out how to stop it form doing that and flowing more smoothly.

 

[tropicalfishguy]

My tank is drilled, I have the drain set about 2 inches from the top. If I restrict the flow of my pump that will lower the level in the tank, raising the sump level. I don't want the water level 2 inches down, so If I raised the drain to say 1/5 inch from the top of the tank, then if the pump isn't pumping as much as its draining it will always be 1/2 lower correct. But by having the drains that high won't it be noisy, like a slurping sound?

 

[muzz]

that slurping sound is what i am having a problem with, do you know how to fix it?

my drains are also drilled about 2 inches formt he top also, but my water level is just past the black trim edge. i have just fine tuned the pump, so the water in the sump and the tank stay the same. i had to build a manifold thoughm, like i said before in the return line from the pump. it just has a T in it with a line going back to the sump and also going to the tank upstairs, then just adjusted the flow between the two till it stayed level. took about 15 minutes of timkering, now it is ok though.