Sump/Overflow questions

[vorlx]

Ok, so I recently built my sump and got every plumbed and operational the other day. Due to how my tank is setup (Oceanic w/ a wide glass center brace) I have the 600 gph overflow on the left. I have the retun on the right side. I was thinking about purchasing another 600 gph overflow on the right. The main thing I am going for is a higher overall flow rate into the sump. Any pros/cons to this setup?

[Reefscape]

personaly i think that is too mch flow going into a sump and will not allow the system to run as it should. If the flow is too fast going the sump/fuge, large particluate matter will simply be kept circulation straight through the sump and back to the display. What we need is a slower flo so this matter is collected in the fuge, broken down and cleaner water sent back to the display tank. Also, we need a slow flow so it gives the water a long contact time with the fuge to allow nitrient export.

Of course, if there is no fuge in the sump, then ignore what i said above..

Niko

[vorlx]

Yes there is a fuge in the sump, its not fully populated with macro algae/lighting just yet, but I have the Live Sand from my old established 12g tank in there. So, from your view, I am good with what I got or what I currently have should be toned down a bit? It seems to work out.

[fsn77]

What size tank is this for? The 75g?
What size is the sump?
What pump are you using in the sump?
It's hard to estimate how much flow there is through the sump without this information.

[rsw686]

If you need more flow than that for the 75gal then purchase some power heads or install a closed loop. You want the sump flow slow for the reasons above and also to keep micro bubbles out of the display.

[archer772]

I know many feel that 3-5 times total water volume is what the flow should be thru a fuge with ideal amount being at the lower end

[Sploke]

I made the mistake of trying to get almost all the flow accomplished with my return pump. I have about 700gph running through a 20long tank, as the sump for my 55. I have it split so I get much less than that through the fuge, but no matter what I do, I still get a fair amount of microbubbles in the main tank. I would like to get a smaller return pump and upgrade my powerheads.

[vorlx]

What size tank is this for? The 75g?
What size is the sump?
What pump are you using in the sump?
It's hard to estimate how much flow there is through the sump without this information.

Its for the 75g, the sump is a 20L.

I am using a 1200 gph submersible pump, I currently have it restricted via a ball valve. The pump is designed for upward flow up to 20' so the restricter shouldn't hurt it. It's restricted to about half which is what the overflow is rated for.


If you need more flow than that for the 75gal then purchase some power heads or install a closed loop. You want the sump flow slow for the reasons above and also to keep micro bubbles out of the display.

I have plenty of flow in the tank (2 Koralia 4's) I just was curious if more flow through the sump/fuge would be beneficial. Due to the amount of flow in the tank some of the leftover junk floating around the tank wasn't always making it to the overflow. I thought maybe one on each side would be beneficial.


I made the mistake of trying to get almost all the flow accomplished with my return pump. I have about 700gph running through a 20long tank, as the sump for my 55. I have it split so I get much less than that through the fuge, but no matter what I do, I still get a fair amount of microbubbles in the main tank. I would like to get a smaller return pump and upgrade my powerheads.

The way mine is designed is the intake comes into the sump area which is about 11" high and 8" wide dividing the fuge area witha high baffle. The water then flows over that into my fuge and there is a small 4" ish baffle and then eggcrate on top of that to secure sand/macro from entering the return area. The flow in the fuge is relatively low.

I appreciate all the comments, it sounds like that I should stick with the 1 overflow.