Sump questions

[Cjohnson2]

My wife has given me permission to dump our canister filters and get a sump. I have a 120 gallon (24×24×48) . The tank isn't drilled.

What overflow box can i use so i don't have issues with flooding my house?

What's a good sump for the money? Is there one I can put a protein skimmer in and potentially cheato?

What's a high quality pump?

Thanks in advance for the help!

 

[carrots]

Is this tank up and running now? If so you will need to measure how much space you have behind the tank as well as under the tank to see what you can fit. My biggest problem was finding a big enough sump to fit in the cabinet of a 125 gallon 72x18 that was already up and running. I would have needed to drop it in the cabinet before placing the tank on it. Most overflow boxes need about 4" of room behind the tank.

 

[A sea K]

A 40 breeder is a great size and will fit under the stand easy enough but as carrots mentioned, some situation will require the sump to go in from the top. My tank is the same footprint as your 120 but the door layout prevented me from fitting the sump through the cabinet doors. I had to remove the center brace and slide the sump in from the top.

BTW, my DIY 40 breeder sump has 2 x filter socks, skimmer compartment, fuge (has chaeto) and then a return area.

 

[Cjohnson2]

The tank is up and running currently. I didn't think about how to get it in place. That definitely complicates things

 

[BranchingHammer]

I used the crystal 30 from trigger systems on my 65g, but you may want a bigger one. There are pretty affordable, got mine for 180ish new. Your best bet may be an overflow box if the tank is already up and running... Otherwise you would have to drill and you would have to empty the whole tank.

 

[BranchingHammer]

I also had to fit my sump in by removing the center brace, I have a marineland corner flow. I used rubber mallets to get it out, then removed staples with needlenose pliers. Then used nails to put in place. Tip, when hammering in the nails (if you do this) use a smaller hammer so you don't bang up the wood. If you do, just use shoe polish.

 

[BranchingHammer]

You can put charts in the second compartment and skimmer in first. Haven't tried it yet, but it seems that it will fit.

 

[JDWells]

I hate external overflow boxes. They always seem to cause more problems than they solve. I would definitely recommend drilling it for a proper overflow even though this would be a much bigger undertaking. I think it would be worth it if you can temporarily house the livestock in a separate container/s. This would also allow you to move the tank and drop whatever size sump you want in from the top and give you more space behind the tank if needed.