Just for kicks, I'm thinking of drilling a 30 gal I have lying around

[deynon09]

I want to try drilling (yeah, I know I've only been at this for a month or so, but hey, I'm hooked) a 30 gal I have down in the basement. I have read the Reef Keeping article about overflows and sumps and I figured, heck, I won't loose anything if I break the tank, it's been sitting in my basement for a couple of years. I want 1200 gph flow, so according to the calculator in the article, I'd need ~1.5" piping, and 18" of linear overflow box. Is there a thread/link that has a parts list/instructions on how to do it? I was thinking of getting a cheap 20 gal and using that as a sump, and maybe even baffling that. I have seen plans for a sump configuration and could use those or does anyone have a favorite config that they use? If I have the choice of drilling the back or bottom, which is better?

 

[JohnK]

There are a lot of options about how you can do it.

What specific questions do you have? What do you need to see pics of? There are so many potential questions and answers, IMO it's easier to make this a discussion. Throw out a couple of questions, and the answers will lead to more questions, eventually leading to a nice design .

-You can drill the back or the bottom (as long as neither is tempered glass).
-There are a ton of ways to set up a sump. Search through this forum and you'll find several sump build threads.

 

[deynon09]

Let's see. Questions...

1. If neither back nor bottom makes any difference, I think I would prefer bottom. No real reason, but may be a little easier to drill. More support while I drill.

2. Probably a center overflow chamber w/ 2 - 1.25" overflows, and a 1.25" outlet producing 1200 gph flow.

3. Sump w/ wet/dry (LR) (what size tank should I get for such a small system knowing I'm going to upgrade to a 75 or 90 gallon, 30 gal?), couple of baffles (for micro bubble control?), refugium, but I'm not sure where the skimmer would go and what size pump, I don't know...

Other than that, I don't know what else to do... I'll check out the sump threads too.

Thanx for your input

 

[nichols]

Like John sais tons of options. Just depend what you want to do. Here's a picture of a 20long sump/fuge I used on my 75.

 

[MikeG]

I would not run 1200 gph through a basement sump especially if it is a 20 or 30 gallon tank to supply a small tank upstairs. If you want a sump in the basement to hold equipment, pump enough water to circulate through the skimmer. For example if the skimmer pumps 400gph, then shoot for just over that. Much more and you are just pumping water through the tank and this is the least efficient way to do it. If you want to add more flow to the display use powerheads or a closed loop.

As far as size of the sump in the basement, you can go as big as you want reguardless of the size of the display. It will only help. The one downside most people find is it can be costly to heat a llarge basement sump in the winter if not insulated and off the floor.

 

[nichols]

Missed the 1200 gph. I'm only running 800 gph from a 210 gal display. It's split between 2 skimmers, a 55 gal fuge, a 30 gal fuge and a 150 gal sump.
Much cheaper to run power heads or a closed loop for in tank flow.

 

[deynon09]

Okay, I confused the tank circulation with the gph of the overflow. How much overflow do you think I would need? I don't have a skimmer yet, but I hear the octopus skimmers are the ones that most people go with. or maybe I'm misinterpreting. Thoughts there would be appreciated too.

I looked at the glass-holes.com site that Joel asked about. Those overflows do look pretty slick and pretty easy. Plus, when I want to upgrade to a larger tank, if I want to, I can just take it off and put it on the new tank. Then again, I'm getting a stand from BrokeReefAddict, and can just get a RR 75 tank from somewhere. Might cost more, but I know it'll be at least more secure than what I could do...

That is also a nice sump config, Bill. Thanx for the look-see