sump questions

torino06

New member
im in the process of setting up a tank. i would like it to be a reef tank, im going to take everything slow and even debated about just trying to develop the brs dry pukani for awhile and then slowly add coral and fish. i will have a bean animal external overflow. now for the questions... is there any advantage of doing skimmer/return/refugium vs skimmer/refugium/return???? will chaeto benefit my tank? if im not mistaken it helps lower nitrates? and also helps pod production.
 
In my opinion the correct is skimmer/return/refugium. If you let the refugium before return, it will keep several waste and you won´t be able to remove/clean satisfatory.

You are right about chaeto, it will help you to remove nitrates and phosphates, and also increase the pod production!
 
This argument always brings great debate. Whether to have the water enter the skimmer section first then to the refugium and then to the return or to have to drains one leading to the skimmer and the other leading to the fug and then both dumping into the return section is always a debate. Some feel the idea of getting preskimmed water to the fug is the way to go, while others don't see a difference. Having two drains does complicate the plumbing a little more especially since you want to employ a bean animal overflow. I will not say it can't be done it just gets a little more complicated. You can do a search and find people that have done it. I personally don't really by into the preskimmed raw water must enter the fug idea. I say do what ever is easier and makes the most sense for your set up. Putting a fug on the right side might not work for you for reasons like space or equipment placement where ever your sump will be located. So read up on the pros and cons people say and just make an educated guess on what you believe in. I am to in the process of designing a sump and I would seriously go either way. I would rather have a functioning sump rather than constantly tweaking a sump to get it to work right.
 
skimmer -> refugium -> return: simple and effective

skimmer -> return -> refugium: slightly more plumbing, controllable flow to refugium, allows for refugium to be taller than other sections

They both work. It all dials down to personal preference.
 
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