Plumbing - Again

[ahdonline]

Ok so I picked up a 180 gallon saltwater from someone and he claimed I got all the equipment he used to run it. Im not so sure I follow what the setup he had was. I know what its suppose to be but here is what i have.

Skimmer unit
UV Steryl
water pump
sump.

I know the supposid water flow and how the wet dry works, but what he gave me doesnt add up to what i know it would have. He built the sump with a plastic top cutout to fit in the skimmer, and the water line from the tank. The pictures I included have it hooked up but ignore that i was just testing the pump and plumbing.

So after this ramble, the below is what i have to setup. Can it all work within that sump? Or do i actually need to setup another tank and build in my baffle, ect. If thats the case can i work the sump into it since its already designed around the cabinet?

Thanks for your help

 

[rbell219]

It looks to me everything is there, Couple of things...
The return pump should connect to the bulkhead at the bottom of the sump leading out.
If you want to use the UV sterilizer, it should connect after the pump, then plumb to the return.
Looks like the drain from the tank goes to the "in" on the skimmer, and the out from the skimmer is already connected to the sump. The shut off valve goes in line between the drain and the skimmer to stop the overflow.
Looks like the T connector might have been used to drain to skimmer and the other hole in the lid of the sump. Or---are there two overflows in the tank? If so the "T" is used to spilt the return to both sides.
That little hose that looks like it's going from the skimmer cup to the sump lid---if it is from the skimmer pump, that is for overflow of skimmate. It should NOT drain to the sump. You'd be putting the bad stuff the skimmer takes out right back in, only in a concentrated coffee like form. It should be going to a specimen container or a plastic cup or something you can empty in the toilet.
hth

 

[dorkfish]

Just one more thing: It looks as though the water should go through the bulkhead, then through the UV sterilizer you have sitting on the ground, then to the return pump.

 

[rbell219]

Yeah--I've never used a UV sterilizer so I wasn't sure if it needed to go before or after the Pump. It needs to be last in line though right?
Also, don't they just kill all bacteria, good and bad? I've read a lot of things pro and con about them. I think most people use them only when needed--like in cases of ich or a parasite, etc. I've never seen one on a reef--only on fish only aquariums.
Just my 2 cents--I could be way off.

 

[ahdonline]

Thanks for that information..
So i have attached my paint drawing.

What i dont understand first off is what happens with the skimmer. You can see from the topview it has two hoses coming off of it the one on the right is plugged and the left goes into the top plexi of the sump. So then there is one more outlet on the bottom of the skimmer what happens to that?

Also the sump has nothing in there dividing it out, do i need to divide it up and put filtration in there?

Sorry for some of the new questions, i have several smaller salt but the bigger one kinda fell into my lap and I am determined to get it setup right and play around with it for a while to learn the setup.

 

[rbell219]

you'll have to plug it in and watch it operate to verify, but that's probaly the skimmer intake. Not sure what make and model you have.

Some people don't use mechanical filtration--only live rock and live sand for biological. The cleanup crew provides the mechanical filtration. In this case there's no need to divide the sump. You could use sponges on the overflow pipe to catch debris. The sump is just a place to add volume and house the skimmer.

Or for added mechanical filtration--divide it up and add a tray for a filter pad. It's a matter of preference and what works for you and what you'll keep in the tank.

 

[ahdonline]

Thanks, almost figured it out. I have the berlin 25/250
http://www.marinedepot.com/md_viewItem.asp?idproduct=RS1111

I have been trying to find the manual but all links come up broken, but I also just found a rio 2500 in the bottom of the box that plugs right into that bottom tube and fits with salt stains that match up so that makes more sense.

Currently i run two 55 gallon setups with koran's, clowns, dansils, and about 15 snails and 15 hermits with two aqua 70s 100 pds of live rock and live sand. Its pretty self sufficient but for some reason i thought i needed other filtration. I have the filters on the inside of the take inside the overflow.

So here is another question. After i have the sump up, the location of the return pipe is pretty low which tells me i need to not put sand or such in the sump or it will just flow out the pipe into the pump.

I have about 15 pounds of blue bio balls, yeah thats about 10 boxes i was able to take off some guys hands. Should i use those in there? maybe create a little box that sits under the drain they flow into? Or should i just build out the sump nothing in it except that skimmer, heaters...

 

[rbell219]

You'll get different opinions on the bioballs. Some say with adequate live rock for the biological filtration, the bioballs are simply a nitrate factory. I still use them.
I'm unsure about my life rock poundage as this tank was given to me. If I started from scratch I would make sure I had a deep sand bed and around 2lbs per gallon of rock and I wouldn't do bio-balls.