Sump Beginner

[newland]

Hi All

I'm looking to set up a 30 gallon REEF + Fish tank.

Now a Sump has been mentioned as the best form of filtration to go with.

I don't know anything about sumps apart from they are a staged filtration unit which could host the heating too. Am i right?

Well basically i want to have a 30 Gallon tank with a 15 gallon sump. First of all

would this 15 gallon sump be ok?
Would this mean i would have the equilivent to a 45 gallon tank without a sump?
Can the sump be put underneeth the main tank?

The sump i want to use is an old fish tank that i've got spare.
I assume i would have to split the tank into about 5 compartments. 3 for filtration, 1 for heating 1 for pumping back up to the tank.

Am i right in thinking to do this i would need an overflow in my main tank with flows into my 15 Gallon sump. Then it would go through 3 stages of filtration and then pass over a heater and then get pumped back ito the tank.

Is this bad as the water would be taken from the top and put back in the top?
Should the pump be putting the water back in at the bottom?

Thank you to everyone that helps me.
Andy

 

[andywg]

Ok

A sump is basically an extra tank that is usually kept underneath the main (or display) tank. It is often used to house filtration and other things that you don't want in the main tank.

A 15 gallon on a 30 tank would be extremely good (there are some people who have like 500 gallon sumps made out of hot water feeder tanks for 120 gallon tank)

It would be a little like having a 45 gallon tank (except that you wouldn't have the sump tank full up - I'll explain below) in that the water volume is increased and the are for gas echange will be increased, but for safety's sake (particuliarly when stocking your tank) try to remember that it is a 30 gallon tank incase something goes wrong in the sump system and leaves you badly overstocked.

How you divide up the tank would depend on what filtration you go for. Often you will need around three compartments, one for mechanical filtration (I believe bioballs are favourable to sponges as the sponges can become nitrate factories), one for biological filtration and one for the pump (assuming the pump is in the tank). The biological filtration will generally be either a mud fed algae area or an extra amount of live rock (over and above what is in the main tank). I believe heaters will often be placed in here.

Getting water down to the sump and back up again safely is the real challenge with sumps. I myself always advocate a drilled aproach (drilling a hole in the bottom or side of your tank and having a pipe that runs straight down to the sump).

The other method is to use an overflow box. This is essentially a box that can siphon water over the edge of the tank and down to the sump but thich will maiintain a syphon when the pump is turned off but will not drain the whole tank into the sump (I'm sure you realise putting 30 gallons of water into a 15 gallon tank is not good )

It is better to take the water from the top of the tank (by using a weir if the tank is drilled) as this will take the filmy layer of protein off the top of the water. Don't worry about returning it to the top as you will probably have other powerheads in the tank to move the water around. Otherwise you can return the water to the bottom but make a hole in the return pipe at the water level to prevent back syphon when the pump is turned off (again you get the 30 into 15 problem).

I think that's the real basics. I know I've probably confused you more than you were, sorry! If you have a quick search through these sections you should find better explained help. If you can't, just ask any further questions and I'll do my best on the individual elements.

 

[Navarre]

I wont re-itterate what andy has said as its pretty comprehensive, however i have included a diagram of a mud sump below.

And this is a sump with a crypto filter built in. Basically a crypto filter is a darkend area that will provide refuge for creatures that prefer darkness. Seasquirts, sponges etc This adds tothe diversity of the filtration system and helps to make the tank cleaner

Hpe these picys help

 

[newland]

Wow Thanks for the pics they look great and really help clarify things for me.

Would a skimmer be needed/recommended in this envouriment.

Also would more compartments be better for things such as heater,more live rock,

 

[andywg]

Ok, just one thing I feel I should add to my original post is about getting the water from the main tank to the sump as this is what causes most of the headaches and accidents.

You can see how my tank manages this here:

The water flows over the weir and into the space beyond. Once it reaches the correct level the water flows down th pipe into the tank below. If for any reason the pump stops pumping (power cut, maintenance etc.) then the water will continue to drain only to the lowest point of the weir. that allows water through (the slits). This is to stop the entire tank draining down. The plastic standpipe is to stop the gurgling water noise you can get.

An overflow works on a similar principle in that the water flows over a lip into another area so that if the pump stops, the water only drains for a little while. The Overflow just uses a syphon tube to get the water to another box on the outside of the tank, from where it can drain to the sump tank.

One last point for now is to remember that you will need to make allowances for drainage once the pump has stopped pumping. you will need to calculate how much water will be in your pipes and above the point the weir stops draining and make sure there is at least that much space unused in the sump so that if the pump stops there is adequate space to drain into.

I hope I haven't completely confused you.

 

[newland]

thanks for the plumbing info.

I'm very clear on how i would set up the plumbing system.

I'm basically thinking of adding water into the main tank till it fills up the sump. When the sump is at its max level, then and only then can start pumping as this would mean no more than that amount of water will flow through my system.

i will mark the 2 values on the sump box so i know what the max levels are for both when the pump is on and when the pump is off thesefore making water changes easier and to check for evurapation.

thank you all.

 

[andywg]

That's exactly how I do mine (should have said that really, it makes it simpler...)