Tell or show me your sumpless tanks

[ATM]

Im up all night thinking if I should drill holes in my acrylic tank or keep the hang on filter running on my 80G FOWLR w/ some xenia.

I know its less of a hassle not to have one which is weighing in on my decsion. but...

tell me your experiences if you dont have a sump and please tell me the equipment you have on.

thanks

 

[®eefer]

I used to have a sumpless tank...I would never go back to that style. There are just WAY too many benifits to a sump...mainly the equipment factor...skimmer, heaters, REFUGIUM.

 

[Bebo77]

here is one.. its not mine but here is the thread...

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=700454&perpage=25&pagenumber=1

 

[cozmo1]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8152719#post8152719 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by ®eefer
I used to have a sumpless tank...I would never go back to that style. There are just WAY too many benifits to a sump...mainly the equipment factor...skimmer, heaters, REFUGIUM.

Plus the fact that you increase the total water volume of the system :thumbsup:

 

[GTR]

For all but the most basic systems I'd demand a sump. But I wouldn't add one just to add volume. The smaller the system the more you can expect from a small water change.

Something to be said for a low power demand system.

SteveU

 

[Project Reef]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8152860#post8152860 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by gtrestoration
But I wouldn't add one just to add volume. The smaller the system the more you can expect from a small water change.

Something to be said for a low power demand system.

SteveU

Boom. Exactomundo.

 

[Wilafur]

boom sha lak lak boom!

 

[laverda]

A sump does not have to use a lot of power. No reason it should really. If mounted at the same height as the tank it would require no more then a small power head to run it. The JBJ nano cube is a good example of this. Granted that is not where most people have their sumps.

 

[hpasternak]

I have a 65 gallon tank without a sump. See picture in my gallery.

I use an Aqua C and a HOB filter and change the pad weekly. The reason I do not want a sump is the noise issues and the flood disasters you hear about. I do a five gallon water change weekly, but I also do not have anything exotic.

Nitrates are usually around 10 great for softies, RBTA and no fish issues. Blue Tang got too large and had to find him a new home.

Harvey

 

[ATM]

where are all the reefers w/out sumps!!!!

 

[NicoleC]

Just downsized to a 15g. No sump, no skimmer, no reactor, no dosing or dripping, nothing but water changes. Dead quiet. Max power draw is less than 60 watts and that's with a heater running and 20x turnover, plus 65w of lighting. My corals are super happy and no pH problems - I planned for good surface agitation, which is key to oxygenation.

In the past few years I let myself get caught up in gear and forget that good husbandry doesn't need gear. I'm much happier with a small, simple tank than I was with the big boy, although it is tough to pass up free frags I don't have room for!

 

[beefjerkygood]

Nicole, how do you keeps your temp down with such a small tank when its hot? I tried keeping a fan on my 20G Q tank but had problems keeping salinity stable b/c of the rapid evaporation.

 

[NicoleC]

Well, the only heat sources are 1) the lights and 2) the Tunze powerhead (other than the actual heater). So except for hot hot days, it's not really an issue. I leave my AC on 80 and that room is very well protected against afternoon heat with the high tech new windows I put in and fancy cellular blinds.

So while I see 82-83F in the tank on hot days, it's not a big deal for me. If it hits 83 when I come home, I turn off the lights for the evening. Temp drops back to 80F at night. A couple of days it was so hot at night I had to stick some ice cubes in ziplock bags to pull the temp down in the early AM before the lights came on.

Is a 2-3F swing in a day bad? Yes, sort of. But I have a lagoon biotype, and my inhabitants can take much, much more than 2-3 degrees. Compared to the inhabitants of my last tank, these guys don't even react to the change. On the old tank, I could tell the temp based on the reaction of the inhabitants. And the swing is very predictabe in it's extremes, so the corals have a change to adapt. Corals are very adaptable, as long as they have a target to meet. It no doubt helps that the corals have evolved to handle the vagueries of an inner reef slope/lagoonal area.

I don't use fans, so evaporation is about a 8-10 ounces per day, which isn't much. Again, since it's a lagoon I just dump it in pretty quickly. Everything there can handle it.

Personally, I wouldn't attempt to keep sensitive deep water acros in a nano without lots of gadgets to stabalize water quality, but that just doesn't apply to me and this tank.

 

[firerock]

Sorry, it is late and I am just too lazy to post all the photos again.

You can click on the following link and scroll down to see my tank photos. It is a 46 gallons bowfront sumpless, mixed reef tank, there is no fish at this moment. I always have 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and 0 nitrate.

Equipments:
CPR HOB refugium with cheto
AquaC Remora HOB skimmer
Fluval 304 (run carbon & Phosban)
1 Seio 620
1 Maxijet 1200
Tek Light 6 X 39W T5s with splash guard
2 self-made 80mm used computer fans (for cooling)

Evaporation is about 1 gallon per day in hot summer, I just top off everynight when I add CAL & ALK (Randy's receipe, no calcium reactor here). 20% WC are done every 3-4 weeks.

Probably the least high-tech and virtually no plumbing system you can find for a reef tank, but still visually appelling and all the inhabitants are happy. Most of corals have at least doubled their sizes in the past few month. I did consider adding a sump, but the trouble and possible negative outcomes (noise & flood) outweight its benefits for me.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=912592&highlight=t5

 

[firerock]

I also have a 16 gallon bowfront FOWLR that's also sumpless, and even refugiumless and skimmerless. All it has is Fluval 304 (run carbon only), and lighted by a 15W NO aquarium light that came with the tank. It also has a 80mm computer fan for cooling, but rearly needed. The tank inhabitants are 2 clowns, 1 lemonpeel butterfly angel, and a cleaner shrimp.

I think one of the key factors in keeping a sumpless tank successful is to make sure you don't overstock so you can easily maintain the water quality with WC alone.

Hope this helps.

 

[GinaSofia]

I know I'm going against the grain but I will never go sumpless again.It's just so much easier to have the heater,phos. reactor,skimmer,chiller, & macroalgae nutrient export, running via a sump.
Yeah, you can run a system that's much more simple but if it interferes with your leaving on vacation for a few days &/or your peace of mind it just isn't worth it.

 

[firerock]

Sump or not cannot prevent mechanical malfunctions. We have all heard of storeis where chiller fails, heater stucks, flood of various kinds due to plumbing failure or others, etc., and that happens mostly when reefers are away, weather at work or on vacation for a week.

I agree a sump is needed if calcium reactor and chiller are employed, or if the tank is getting really cluttered. However, I don't have the need for calcium reactor nor do I need the chiller. In fact, adding a sump will most likely increase heat in my tank due to the pump needed for return, no to mention rising electricity cost in this days. Without a sump and added heat I really saved a lot more.

I also do agree it is a little more work. It is nice to have calcium reactor, auto-top off, and other gagets to do all the works. So it is up to the reefer to decide. I am just sharing what has worked for me.

I have to admit that I also shy away from plumbing because I lack the knowlege and skill in that area, and I am pretty sure that I am not alone. I will not hesitate to employ someone to install it for me, but from the horror stories I have read I realize that plumbing DO fail, and it is difficult to tell WHEN, especially for an inexperienced reefer like myself. Not to mention when it does fail, it is likely to cause a disaster in a carpeted living room. That potential disadvantage alone outweights its benefits for me.

A very successful reefer, also a RC member had plumbing failure recently, lost a great quantity of water, and his tank suffered a major setback. I believe as skillful and knowlegable he is (he's in aquarium trade, and is an active trader), if he can have plumbing problems, plumbing is for sure something that I don't want to deal with.

Then again, to each his/her own. I just shared what has worked for me. It might not be the best setup, for sure not the most eye catching and lacks the WOW factor, but a setup as simple as this CAN work.

So no vacations for me. Actually, I think it is even easier for me to leave for vacation. All I have to do is mark a line on the tank where the water level should be for top-off, and have someone add Cal and Alk while I was away, and feed the fish. It'll be more difficult to figure out just what went wrong and instruct someone to solve the problem while he/she is standing on soaking wet carpet yelling and panicking on the other end of the phoneline.

Just my $0.02

Happy reefing.

 

[sinned]

Here's my KISS Tank: SUMPLESS, REACTORLESS, SKIMMERLESS tank.

<img src="http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/500/10088July_2006-2.jpg">

 

[ATM]

Nice tank Fish2223, what do you use for filtration?

firerock, thanks for the advice. do you have any pic of the refugium?

thanks

 

[fantastic4]

fish2223, can you provide details on how you achieved your success, looks sweet. Current euipmnet, weekely/monthly maintenance. Age of tank. More pictures.

Wilafur is that you in your avatar?

firerock, simply awesome. Can you post pictures of your equipment setup? and same questions as above.

You guys inspire me!