Sump question

[Deweys Dad]

I'm sorry if this is covered in an older topic, but the search function seems to have been down of late.

I'm not new to the hobby, but I have been out of it for a few years. My now-ex-wife made me sell my 45 gallon reef setup while we were still married, but I'm about ready to jump into reef-keeping again. I'm buying someone else's setup but the guy is running a "sump" that I'm unfamiliar with. I use quotations because it is just a smaller tank underneath that doesn't have any kind of media, powerheads, lighting, filtration...nothing. Maybe this is acceptable, I dunno. I always just used a skimmer. I'm including some bad pics (its not in my posession yet, the partial pics are from the for sale ad).

My question is this: Don't I need to do something for filtration other than just run water down into a smaller tank, then pump it back up into the main tank? Seems kinda silly to me. If it matters I'm planning on keeping some soft corals, mushrooms, polyps, etc along with the usual reef fish.

I don't even know how a sump/refugium operates, what it's function is, etc but I'll address that later. I think I saw a few useful threads on those subjects that I'll keep reading before I ask any questions.

Thanks in advance.

 

[PatMayo]

Typically people use a sump to house the skimmer, the heaters, they have a chamber to grow macra algae for nutrient export. I house a Euro-Reef skimmer in mine along with 2 heaters, cheato macro algae, a chuck of live rock and live rock rubble along with the return pump.

You can see pictures of it here"


http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=780206&perpage=25&pagenumber=4

You can also do water changes from here so as not to disturb the main tank. I also dose limewater into the sump so it is mixed well before entering the main tank. A sump is very, very usefull if set up properly.

Regards,

Pat

 

[poppin_fresh]

yeah...what he said.

It is a good place to hide ugly stuff (heaters, skimmer, etc) and adds water volume to the system. They dont have to be fancy, but a properly thougt out sump can be quite effective. Visit www.melevsreef.com for some good sump info.

 

[fat-tony]

another advantage is you can sneak mechanical filtration in there (filter sock or similar material) on the drain to help pull the bigger pieces of solids first

 

[Deweys Dad]

So will this current setup work for a reef system as-is?

 

[meco65]

Yes looks good and there looks to be room under there for a bigger tank to use as a sump if you need to upgrade for the skimmer and stuff.

 

[Deweys Dad]

So for those of you who run skimmers in a sump, what kind are you using?

 

[Om Seeker]

I have 90gal tank and running an old Tunze Comline DOC skimmer (see website http://www.tunze.com/149.html?&L=1&C=HK&user_tunzeprod_pi1[predid]=-infoxunter027 in my sump. Seems to work okay but I don't have a huge bioload in the tank at the moment.

In terms of skimmers, it all really depends on how much you want to spend. You can spend huge amounts of $$$ or go for something more reasonable. Search for the skimmers discussions in the forums and you'll get all sorts of advice and opinions from the folks here.

My advice would be get the best skimmer you can afford since it is a crucial piece of equipment, especially since you mentioned you want to keep corals. Just my 2 cents. Good luck!

 

[marine_freak]

If you want a good skimmer the MTC mini is awesome... skims like mad and well made.... I didn't notice anybody mention that sumps are a good place to add additives also to dilute before they reach your main tank.... If you are interested in that skimmer just do a search for Marine technical concepts.. they will treat you right.