sump?

[focus]

can i put a sump in my fw tank like they use on reef tanks?
not that important just thinking a way to my all my gump etc fillter, heater

 

[CFC]

In short, yes you can. In effect it will give you a greater surface area which allows for more gas exchange so you can stock more fish into your tank, water parameters will be more stable and nitrates will take longer to build up.

 

[Alien Anna]

In short, yes you can. In effect it will give you a greater surface area which allows for more gas exchange so you can stock more fish into your tank, water parameters will be more stable and nitrates will take longer to build up.

Cool! Sounds good. Now all I have to do is work exactly how to plumb a sump in and I'll be away. I'm planning a planted sump, with spider plants or bog lillies or something like that, but engineering is not my forte.

 

[CFC]

The best way is to have the tank drilled. Find a local proffesional glazer to drill two 1 1/2 inch holes just below where the water line sits, then using elbow fittings and 1 1/2" piping (available from any good lfs with a good marine department, if you have trouble obtaining them PM me and i should be able to post them to you) plumb the tank into the sump (if you are using a glass sump tank this will need to be drilled by the glazer too). Then put a suitable sized pump (gph depends on want you want) in the sump tank to return the water to the tank via some 3/4" filter hose, make a small hole in the hose 3" below the water line of the sump to act as a cut off should anything become blocked. Fill the sump tank 3/4 full with tank water and switch on the pump, the holes drilled in the tank act like a overflow on a bath delivering water to the sump which is pumped back up to the tank in a continuous cycle. You can fill the sump with whatever media you like, heaters can be placed in the sump too.