Building sump

[M-pire]

I've decided to start working on changing my 135 over to salt. I am wanting to have a sump in the cabinet below the tank for all the filtering, heating, and such. The tank's footprint is 36x24 and the stand is 36" tall. I think the best sized sump to leave me room to work would b e abou t 18" tall and a footprint of 24 x 24. I don't know of any tanks this size so I'm going to have to build one.

I don't mind scratches in a sump so would acrylic be the best bet?

How thick do the walls need to be for a tank this size (for acrylic and for glass)?

Do acrylic tanks need a rim like glass does to prevent bowing?

Where can I buy the glass or acrylic? (hopefully Home Depot)

Thanks!

[MisterFixIt]

Hey M-Pire,

Home depot carries 1/4 inch acrylic.I've built a sump for my 90 gallon.I'll try to send u some pics.The sump is 24x15x18 high.

Mr Fix It
aka Marc

[M-pire]

Hey! Thanks for the reply!
Did u use the .25" from Home Depot? Did you use a rim?
Pictures would be great!

[MisterFixIt]

I'll try to load some pix,if not--- e-mail me and I'll send them.
Mr Fix It
Marc

Marcusmlc@aol.com

[M-pire]

Thanks for the pics! Your sump looks great! Did you not have anyproblems with bowing or anything? Do I need to ask for anything special at HD or is it just that acrylic they have in the racks?

Thanks again!

[MisterFixIt]

Hey M-pire,

I've got more pics but I didn't want to load u up too much!
The 1/4 inch acrylic at HD is in the racks.I had no bowing because I put in baffles, you'll need some too!Baffles keep the bubbles down going to the tank on the return.Have you got all of your equipment together?Skimmer/return pump/tank plumbing.Is the tank drilled for an overflow or will you be using a hang on overflow?If you have any ???? I'll be glad to help all I can.You need to plan a bit for filter material/return pump size/and how your water flows and how much you can flow.U have a 135 gal That would take quite a flow to keep the tank circulated and clean,may need some pwr heads too !
Marc
AKA Mr Fix IT

[M-pire]

I was planning on the baffles to try and keep the flow not so harsh in the sump. Good to know that they will prevent bowing.

I don't have any of the materials, just kind of researching it and planning on what to do. The tank is not predrilled, but I was gonna try drilling it, I asked a few questions on this in a previous thread.

I do have a few spare powerheads I was going to throw in the tank for circulation.

I haven't really looked into the return pump or anything beyond what I mentioned so far. What is a good flow rate to/from the sump that I should achieve?

Thanks for the help!

[MisterFixIt]

I've got a 55 gal I'm flowing about 1300 gals p/hr w/pwr heads and a filter and skimmer/hang on type!My 90 gal i'm flowing about the same with a custom return system,no pwr heads and my home made sump.I would suggest about 7 times the tank capacity per hour for circulation or more,not filtration but circulation.You can move a lot of water and filter efficiently.Filtration can be a large part of that,just watch for dead flow spots.I'm not the expert but I know what has worked for me.Filtering is easy if you have the flow in the tank to move the stuff around.Patience my son,get a plan.Know what you want and how to get there.

Marc
aka Mr fix it