Sump Layout Help!

[FlyinggFish]

I'm going to start making my sump this week and next. This is the first time ever and I can't really find the best DIY. If you have any advice, please give me some.

I have a 65 gallon tank, the sump is 20 gallons w/ a Mag 5 and an ASM 1. I would like to add cheato and baffles (and whatever else) to the sump.

If you could provide pictures of your sumps that would be awesome, too!

 

[FlyinggFish]

...please?

 

[Michael]

i havent got a normal sump, its a weird shape and different, but this link might help

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1207729

 

[OceanDweller]

You may want to check meleeve's website out. If its an acrylic sump you can get some acrylic bonding material and cut it to specs, if its glass you can get some glass sheets cut to what you want, just make sure you get the corners rounded so they don't cut you.

 

[FlyinggFish]

Yeah, the tank is glass. I just am really unsure about how to place my baffles and bubble stoppers (those 3 dividers) because I heard that you can mess up your whole biological system easily if you don't plan it out correctly. SO far, I know that you need to have very low current for your culerpa. What I need to find out is that when the water enters the tank, does it go through the skimmer first, or does the skimmer come after the culerpa and what not but before the return pump? From what I've seen in some sumps is that the skimmer comes before the plants.

 

[FlyinggFish]

This is the tank and pump:

 

[Toddrtrex]

I have a 20 ( high ) as my sump for my 58, have an ASM 1GX as my skimmer, a small fuge, then the return section. The return section also has a PVC shelf for a bag O carbon.

Here is a picture of it.

 

[FlyinggFish]

Awesome! Your sump layout is something like what that I had in mind! Thanks so much for the pic!

 

[afex]

might be hard to make out, but my old 30g sump had skimmer->fuge->return. i used a single row of eggcrate underneath the raised baffles to block snails as well as help me hold the pane in place while i glued it.

 

[Toddrtrex]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13537834#post13537834 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FlyinggFish
Awesome! Your sump layout is something like what that I had in mind! Thanks so much for the pic!

Glad I could help.

Here is another one I made ( a 30 for my 75, which might be closer to the size you are using, since yours looks like a 20 Long )

I used an external pump, but that layout would be the same for an internal pump. The PCV is blocking some of the baffles, I used three b/t the skimmer and fuge section. Between the fuge and return I just used one, with slots. These pictures were taken right when I was setting it up, hence the reason it looks so clean.

Can see the slots better in this picture,

 

[FlyinggFish]

Thank you so much! I was just wondering if this would also be good to add to my sump's layout: I want to put a black foam filter on an eggcrate in the "compartment" of the sump where the water enters. Would that be OK?

 

[FlyinggFish]

...and Todd, do you have mushrooms in that sump?!

 

[Toddrtrex]

Would the foam be for maniacal filtration? It might work, but you would have to stay on top of rinsing it out.

Yep, that is the last remaining mushrooms for me. I sold them all off, but wanted to put some rocks in the fuge, so I put that piece in there. That is the closest that they will ever get to my display tank again.

 

[FlyinggFish]

Why? You don't like mushroom?

 

[Toddrtrex]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13537970#post13537970 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FlyinggFish
Why? You don't like mushroom?

They are devil spawn. They just spread too much and had taken over my 75, every single rock had them on them.

 

[Tswifty]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13537985#post13537985 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Toddrtrex
They are devil spawn. They just spread too much and had taken over my 75, every single rock had them on them.

+1

I'm about to pull out one of the rocks in my DT and kalk paste the heck out of it. If that doesn't finally kill them off... the bleach bucket is next. :lol:

Oh and to keep on topic... here's the 20g long sump I run under my 30g tank. Eventually I'll pick up an in-sump skimmer to drop in the first compartment, but for now the HOB Remora does the trick.

 

[FlyinggFish]

Wow! Well then can I ask you a ques. about mushrooms? I have mushrooms in my 8 gal, I just did a 2 gallon water change (on accident) and my mushrooms are open but they are a little wrinkly. Usually when I do a water change they open up beautifully. What do you think? The saltwater I use is from the ocean, far out where it's crystal clear.

 

[FlyinggFish]

Love the sump tswiffty, you made it yourself? Is it hard to glue the glass in?

 

[FlyinggFish]

Swifty, what light do you use for the plants?

 

[Tswifty]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13538050#post13538050 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by FlyinggFish
Love the sump tswiffty, you made it yourself? Is it hard to glue the glass in?

Thanks, that was the first sump I ever made... about 2 years or so ago. I used one of melev's sumps as a blueprint. Seams are a little sloppy, but it does the trick. The sump I made for my 90g is much nicer though. :lol:

Not difficult at all to do.

Here's my 30g long sump: