To sump or not to sump that is the question

[shaner]

So the 180 is coming in the end of march for my fahaka puffer and as alot if not all of us know they can and do put out a lot of bio load, especcially when they get bigger.

I have looked at some larger can's and hob's and have found some great DIY sumps over on another sight, I did not get this tank drilled or overflowed because i was really not sure what i wanted to do, i have no problem with DIY stuff, i just dont know which way would be the best for the fish.

I like the idea of being able to really load the sump with the heaters, filters, extra bio media etc.......the main reason is it just gives him more space, i thought of a sump with a spray bar across the top for the return, or even on one end pushing the water one way creating a so called river for him....

I dont know, what do some of you folks do with the larger tanks, do you sump or not sump

many thanks in advance for ideas or concerns

[J-P]

are you comfortable with the set up and drilling an existing tank? I have a drilled tank and it always makes me nervous when I have to change the sponge on the pump. The PVC sways and I am so scared of sprining a leak.

[shaner]

are you comfortable with the set up and drilling an existing tank? I have a drilled tank and it always makes me nervous when I have to change the sponge on the pump. The PVC sways and I am so scared of sprining a leak.

im not real comfortable drilling a very expensive tank, i guess that is why i was looking at setting up a PVC overflow system and then dumping into a sump, then pump it back up.....glass, drills, holes, yikes........yeah that scares me.....

[J-P]

Here is a shot of my over flow / inlet.

Mistake #1 I shortened the inlet so that it is below the over flow by a few inches. In a power failure that inlet will flood the bottom tank buy the water volume from the inlet to the tank top. That has to be carefully measured and accounted for.

Mistake #2 going through the bottom of the tank as opposed to the sides (90 degree PVC elbows). If we had gone through the sides and there was a sealant failure the water volume on the floor would be much less.

Mistake #3 The pipes are too close to the tank walls which makes cleaning a PITA .. the pipes shake and I am so nervous of a sealant crack.

[J-P]

Sorry I kept saying "we" when in actual fact I purchased the tank as is

[JaxPuffer]

http://www.3reef.com/forums/i-made/nice ... 396-2.html

If you look at the above link a fellow named Covey can up with a PVC overflow and there is about 16 pages worth of posts on it. Many people have tried his design and even with power outages had no overflows. I am currently building a sump/refug and will be incorporating his design. I should have mine done this weekend and I will let you know how it goes.

There is also the weir style box. I have just made one of these. Took about 3 hours besides waiting for the caulk to cure. I am planning on trying both to see which works better. The thing about the weir box is that it seems to skim the surface better. Here is a good link to a DIY for that.

http://www.melevsreef.com/acrylics/overflow.html

[shaner]

Jaxpuffer- i saw that post and another on MFK both using a pvc type hanging over the tank, post your results when you finish.

J-P, i can see where you would be very worried about some of those issues, that makes alot of sense, and things i will certainly keep in mind,

it a sump really worth it for freshwater set up? money wise i know i could build one for cheaper then the can's i would need to filter it, but is it really worth it?

That is what i am trying to figure out........ benifit vs cost and ease....

Im not really worried about the cost, if a person can afford a 180 they should be able to get the filtration for it right?? yeah that is what i thought........


hmmmmm

[J-P]

depends on what you are keeping in the main.

A Fuge with heavy plants will help purify the water and can be a snail breeder tank for any puffers that come your way.

[DarkStorm]

id just drill a hole. its actually easy and put a bulkhead in there so your guaranteed no leaks, plus itll look cleaner

[shaner]

depends on what you are keeping in the main.

A Fuge with heavy plants will help purify the water and can be a snail breeder tank for any puffers that come your way.

it will be my Fahaka and nothing else, just a tidy little tank for him, i do like the idea of keeping plants in the bottom to help even more, hmmmm..might be on to something there....

[RTR]

I am quite habituated to sumps - my first was back in the late 1960s as a 15-gallon sump on a 10 gallon invert tank. Currently all of my tanks are FW, but I still use sumps wherever I can make the room for such. They do not all serve the same purposes, but they are endlessly useful to me. If I get the tank room rebuild done that I want, there will be fewer tanks, but more will have sumps. I want all of the tanks excepting some "retirement home" tanks (all way understocked) will be sump-equipped.

However, I did away with all the drilled tanks when I moved to this house over 20 years ago. I do not miss those a bit. That is a personal choice item in my book, and I opt out.

FWIW

[J-P]

I agree with RTR on a portion ... drill the sides and not the bottom.... keeping in mind that that silicone on the side will fail eventually. Have a back up.

Sumps are great, setting them up from the start are difficult at best. You will may pull alot of hair out of your head on the set up but once you have a balanced tank.. they are easy.

Here comes another difficult point:
Matching vegetation to your fish vs lighting vs ferts.

RTR is can advise you / guide you better than most

[RTR]

How did you know that I am bald,or very nearly so? But it was not the sumps, I started losing it in undergraduate school.

Several of mine are veggie filters - the FW version of live rock, but not quite as broad-spectrum.

[shaner]

RTR- honered to have your help again, you helped me with heavy metal issues over on badmans last year, you will be happy to know that i have 11 tanks now and now this big one that is coming, i have learned alot from you, and your readings, your knowledge is always welcome.

Well from what i have been getting, i guess i will be going with a sump, i have found lots of plans and directions, ideas, things that work and dont work, so will start with a drawing and get it figured out, i understand the philosphy behind them and think i could handle building one.

I will not be drilling the tank however, i will be going with a PVC overflow setup, run them to a sump, then a spray bar across the top or maybe perhaps the end of the tank to try and recreate a river flow. I have time to play with it and the good thing is i can set up the big tank play with it, get it perfected then drain it, set the tank up for the fish and restart it, that way i can get all the bugs worked out before the fish is even in tank.....

sounds like fun, thanks for the input, keep this post going i would like to see how Jaxpuffer's works out....

[J-P]

How did you know that I am bald,or very nearly so?

LOL!! if I mentioned bald I was talking about myself, or that is my internet ESP again .... anyway ... we are in the same boat... but you are the captain