Sump in Basement?

C

Chalu

New member
So I am in the planning stage for a 180G ...this will be in the living room on the main floor. We have been going back & forth about where the sump/fuge would go... in Stand or in basement. The wife thinks the basement is the way to go; her big reason is its less likely the carpet will see water (from past experience :love2:) & it will be easier to keep the inquisitive little minds at bay. :p

The pluses for me to take it to the basement -
1. Obviously everything - skimmer, fuge, sump water changes, salts, chemicals are safely out of reach for the kids
2. Everything can be larger.... larger than the display itself; but would cost more :fun2:
3. Since its my home...less load on the structure :jester:

Minuses -
1. Humidity from a lot of open water bodies
2. Anything else?

To go this route, I will need
1. A pressure rated pump - I'm thinking Reeflo Tarpon...what would you recommend
2. Additional heating - The basement is not heated so I'm guessing it will take more heaters to maintain water temps.

Question for those who have their setup in this manner...how much increase in energy costs did you notice...this will help me determine if its worth it to drill those holes :idea:
 
I have a basement setup and it was the smartest decision I made. Add a laundry tub/sink if you can. I run the drains from my skimmers right into the drain for the sink. Other than the pump the energy cost is minimal. Depending where your at you may need extra heaters. My tank gets pretty chilly with the water going down into a cool basement. Which is nice in the summer, never any need for chiller.
 
klviper said:
I have a basement setup and it was the smartest decision I made. Add a laundry tub/sink if you can. I run the drains from my skimmers right into the drain for the sink. Other than the pump the energy cost is minimal. Depending where your at you may need extra heaters. My tank gets pretty chilly with the water going down into a cool basement. Which is nice in the summer, never any need for chiller.
Click to expand...

+1 300g DT in living room, 150g sump in (heated) basement, using Iwaki md100rlt 5 straight years, NO problems...skimmer and overflows plumbed into house drains, will never go back to in-stand sump! with a/c energy savings in summer, winter heating does not add much to electric costs
 
Chalu said:
What about humidity? I've read that it can become a huge issue...
Click to expand...
I run a dehumidifier at nite (cheaper electric rates) in the fall/winter, in the summer I have window fans exchanging air. My total system is just under 500g and evaporates about 3g a day, a little more in summer...I don't think it's any worse than if system was upstairs
 
I keep the fans on my furnaces to circulate the more moist air though out the house. Last winter I never saw anything over 35-38%. During the summer the central air units take the moisture out of the air. I made add a fan directly to the outside attached to a humidistat when I get time.
 
I'm in the middle of doing my basement sump room and I've finally gotten everything plumbed just got to cut a hole in the floor now. I'm getting a little nerves and questioning if the root i went was worth it or over kill. I'm only in this mood cause I was up till 3am trying to get my existing skimmer pump working and that was after I spent 2 hrs removing the silicone from my prop tank that I was linking into the new system. Heres the link to what i get going on now need to update the pics a little from last weeks work.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1713494

I'm upgrading from a 105 to 120 Only 15 Gal gain in the display
I'm upgrading the sump from a 15 gal to a 75 gal plus 20 gal fuge and 70 gal prop tank (if i can get the 70 not to leak) Is going to beneficial? Not sure but its been fun to build.lol
 
Trust me its worth it. The first time you spill something on the concrete floor and just have to mop it up you be glad you did. Not to mention water changes are a breeze. I didn't cut a hole in the floor. I snuck into the wall with 1.5dia flex line then out into the basement between the floor joists. If I ever take the tank down all I have to fix is some drywall.
 
Spilling is second nature to me :D; so yes it will save me hours of grief trying to make stories when the wife asks ;) ....I considered going the same route as you...running a flex line... but It appears to me that I still need to drill holes through the floor boards.. ..Am I missing something?

Also thats useful info about the humidity...we use humidifiers in winter so if the central system can pick up the humidity that would be good coz we keep it upto 50% sometimes or we get a bloody nose. Next time I go down I will check how to benefit from the sump. Any issues with rusting etc?
 
By the way a local reefer is trading a Reeflo Tarpon & I guess I have no more excuses left. Gotta love friends, patrners in crime :D
 
klviper said:
Trust me its worth it. The first time you spill something on the concrete floor and just have to mop it up you be glad you did. Not to mention water changes are a breeze. I didn't cut a hole in the floor. I snuck into the wall with 1.5dia flex line then out into the basement between the floor joists. If I ever take the tank down all I have to fix is some drywall.
Click to expand...

Im going to put it down the wall also. I have a carpeted basement so spills will still be a issue. But i made it so i never have to lift a bucket (hopfully). All water changes will be made with a series of valves.
 
da5speed - Thats an excellent thread, thanks for sharing thats a lot of thought provoking pics :p now only if someone could post a pic :fun2: of how they run their plumbin through the floor...I dont see how it could be done without drilling through the floor.... maybe I will post a pic later...
 
+1 basement. Yep, my sump is in down in the garage...I've got a garage heater in there for the really cold winter nights! I saved money buying a REALLY noisy Reeflo barracuda (non Gold edition) and regret it. Spend the extra $100 on a Gold edition barracuda for the quietness.
 
Basment!!! More water volume, Less causes for spills, easy to access and maintain the tank, less noise where DT is located, and finally less added weight to the floor where the tank would be located.
I myself am currently working on setting up my main sump for two tank within the basement.
 
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