Need help Sump Design, Will this work?

[Sploke]

I used 1" gaps in my baffles, with higher flow you might want to go that large or even larger to keep bubbles from getting sucked through. I get lots of microbubbles in my tank. Don't know anything about that particular skimmer, but I would probably skip a HOB model and go for something nice, after having a crappy experience with a cheap coralife model.

 

[kcress]

Well your new yellow line is being fought with your 1500gph line 'wasting' back to the first chamber. You are just burning electricity needlessly heating your water and again blasting the water thru your fuge area.

I too would work for 300 ~ 600gph thru your sump with the correct pump and crank up the tank's flow with a closed loop.

 

[masterkaw]

Ok, I did it with the return in the middle. Will this work? I could adjust the flow thru the fuge. What do you guys think?

 

[jones57742]

Sp:

As you are aware I am not a SW creature so please forgive me if some of what I am asking/saying is silly.

I do not understand the pump in the inflow chamber.
If the weir underflow plates were drilled near the surface (dimension from the surface based on the possible outflow volume from the tank) why would this not function for overflow.
Hence the first diagram would be employed.

I do not understand why coarse mechanical filtration is not deployed in the first chamber of the sump.

This is way off the wall thinking but if the sand were 8" deep and an under-weir wall (with like a 2" dimension from the bottom of the wall to the bottom of the sump) installed at the midpoint of the sand chamber would this not significantly reduce possible bypass of a significant portion of sand bed?

TR

 

[Sploke]

Jones - the pump in the inflow chamber is used to supply the skimmer.

I think what you are trying to say is put holes near the top of the middle baffle in the bubble traps? That would defeat the purpose of the bubble traps. The design is to force the water (and bubbles) into a thin layer at the surface, giving the microbubbles time to pop before the flow reaches the return pump so these bubbles are not conveyed to the display tank.

Most SW tanks don't use mechanical filtration. Any detritus in the tank is usually taken care of by microorganisms, clean-up crew, and other small sandbed or liverock-dwelling creatures. With mech pads, the stuff gets trapped where these organisms cannot consume it, so it breaks down and contributes to the nitrate level, which in a reef tank, we strive for zero nitrates so this is problematic.

masterkaw - your second drawing is the design i'm using now. I'm using a 20 long tank, and have approx 850gph going through it. I get a lot of microbubbles, but you're right, you can adjust the flow through the fuge. With a larger tank you may have better luck with the design than I have.

 

[jones57742]

Sp:

For my edification please bear with me here.

Is this a closed system?

The remora description indicates that it has a MaxiJet 1200 pump so why is another pump needed?

In the last diagram I do not understand what causes the water to run through the sand bed, ie. the inflow is near the surface of the right chamber as well as the outflow?

TR

 

[masterkaw]

Sp:

For my edification please bear with me here.

Is this a closed system?

The remora description indicates that it has a MaxiJet 1200 pump so why is another pump needed?

In the last diagram I do not understand what causes the water to run through the sand bed, ie. the inflow is near the surface of the right chamber as well as the outflow?

TR

Jones, I don't understand how a closed system works. This remora doesn't use the MaxiJet 1200 pump, instead it uses the Mag 3 pump.

I don't think the water has to go thru the sand bed. Maybe sploke or someone else could explain it better.

 

[masterkaw]

Jones - the pump in the inflow chamber is used to supply the skimmer.

I think what you are trying to say is put holes near the top of the middle baffle in the bubble traps? That would defeat the purpose of the bubble traps. The design is to force the water (and bubbles) into a thin layer at the surface, giving the microbubbles time to pop before the flow reaches the return pump so these bubbles are not conveyed to the display tank.

Most SW tanks don't use mechanical filtration. Any detritus in the tank is usually taken care of by microorganisms, clean-up crew, and other small sandbed or liverock-dwelling creatures. With mech pads, the stuff gets trapped where these organisms cannot consume it, so it breaks down and contributes to the nitrate level, which in a reef tank, we strive for zero nitrates so this is problematic.

masterkaw - your second drawing is the design i'm using now. I'm using a 20 long tank, and have approx 850gph going through it. I get a lot of microbubbles, but you're right, you can adjust the flow through the fuge. With a larger tank you may have better luck with the design than I have.

Sploke, other than the microbubbles, does this design work good for you?
Can you also answer these other questions;
1. How deep is your sand bed?
2. What kind of skimmer are you using?
3. How big is the space for the skimmer, return, and fuge?
4. Are you using the same amount of baffles?
5. Do you have a diagram of your sump?

 

[j_chicago]

A closed system basically pulls water from the display tank, via a pvc pipe, directly into a in-line (non-submerged) pump. The pump then puts that water back into the display tank in another area. Increases water flow, without using powerheads and less motors in the water to prevent increase in water temps.

 

[Sploke]

Sploke, other than the microbubbles, does this design work good for you?
Can you also answer these other questions;
1. How deep is your sand bed?
2. What kind of skimmer are you using?
3. How big is the space for the skimmer, return, and fuge?
4. Are you using the same amount of baffles?
5. Do you have a diagram of your sump?

1. 6" in the fuge, 4" in the tank (avg)
2. Coralife 65gal Superskimmer (i don't like it)
3. I have about 4" for skimmer, 9" each for fuge and return pump
4. I have a bubble trap between the skimmer and return pump, just a single baffle between fuge and return pump
5. I'll take some pictures tonight so you can see it. I'm going to be changing it around this summer at some point though, since I'm not completely happy with how its working.