Frag Tank Height

[giulianom]

I'm planning on putting a Frag tank next to my sump in the basement, connected to the sump and at the same level.

Logic would say that the Frag tank should be the same height as the sump, yes?

Sump is 48x20x20, so the Frag tank will probably be the same.

 

[ripped tide]

You'll probably need the frag tank to be above the sump depending on how you configure the drain.

 

[schwaggs]

You definitely want the top rim of the frag tank to be at least as high as the sump so water doesn't overflow the frag tank when the power goes out. That doesn't mean you need to make your frag tank 20" deep, you could build a platform under it to raise it up. I would concentrate on figuring out how deep you want it based on the frags you want to grow.

 

[giulianom]

So, here's how I have the design laid out so far.

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The tank on the right is the sump + fuge, the tank on the left would be the frag tank.

The red line is the feed from the return pump, and the orange/yellow line would be the drain between the frag tank and the sump.


I am not sure if the drain would be a straight pipe with just a bulkhead and strainer, or if it would be a 90 degree vertical standpipe inside the frag tank.



As it is, the top of the sump would sit right at about 60" (5'), with the sump being 20" tall.

I could just as easily make the top of the frag tank the same 60", but raise the bottom up so that it's only a 10 or 12" deep frag tank instead of 20".

 

[skriz]

Make the frag tank shallow. It's a waste to make it 20" deep.

 

[giulianom]

Got it... I will plan on a frag tank height of 12", probably with a standpipe drain set at 10-11".

 

[wannabeeareefkeeper]

Nice design layout! Can I borrow your idea on a future build?


Wannabee

 

[giulianom]

WannabeeaReefKeeper;835186 wrote: Nice design layout! Can I borrow your idea on a future build?

Wannabee

Sure!

I'm going to call the vertical piping a "plumbing tree" - e.g, it will have a lot of branches.


I predict a build thread for this design by the end of the month...

 

[rdnelson]

First off....I will believe it when I see a bud thread. Hehehehe

Second.....that is some fine liking electrical work. Must have been a Pro that installed it.

 

[giulianom]

rdnelson99;835197 wrote: First off....I will believe it when I see a bud thread. Hehehehe

Second.....that is some fine liking electrical work. Must have been a Pro that installed it.

Oh, yes, some fine electrical work... Though I think there's a few traces of mustard on the conduit...

I will probably have to relocate the first few sockets up higher on the wall, easy enough to do.


Revised layout:

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48x20x12" frag tank on the left, raised about 8" higher now.

The red tube will essentially become a spray bar, with 3 or 4 3/4" fittings for nozzles.

The flow would ideally be from the top rear, down and forward to the bottom, and back up to the drain standpipe (not drawn yet).

Recent changes are:

<ul>
<li>Addition of a 1.5" inlet, 8 x 1" outlet manifold against the wall, to feed the fuge, skimmer, reactor, etc..</li>
<li>UV tube orientation changed to horizontal - this is the recommended orientation, it makes sure the UV tube is full of water in the event of a pump loss.</li>
</ul>


And I will have a smaller build thread soon - I'm finally</em> ready to spray the plywood stand that RedEdge2k1 built for me a year+ ago.


I'm going to spray it with a dye stain, from a spray gun.




And I'm going to be doing it inside</em>, in my living room where the tank will go... The garage is too cold and the humidity is too low outside.

 

[schwaggs]

60" top to a frag tank is not ideal. You will need a step stool to work in it which is a pain... I see why you want to do that (the water storage beneath) but I just thought I would point that out.

Also, you need a valve on your return line between the inlet and outlet of the UV unit (If that is what the grey tube is). The way you have it plumbed now, you have no way to force water through the UV unit. Also, don't you want the inlet to the frag tank to be after the UV?

Are the baffles in your sump drawn the way you are planning on building them?

 

[fidofence]

Your computer drawings are impressive, I can even tell brands of pumps and equipment

 

[snowmansnow]

I'm sure this is a probably a no no, but why not put the frag tank in line first.. make it a bit higher than the sump (which would the be on the left) and then drill the frag tank so that the overflow just goes out the top and side and into the sump.....

just a silly idea :")

 

[giulianom]

Schwaggs;835218 wrote: 60" top to a frag tank is not ideal. You will need a step stool to work in it which is a pain... I see why you want to do that (the water storage beneath) but I just thought I would point that out.

Also, you need a valve on your return line between the inlet and outlet of the UV unit (If that is what the grey tube is). The way you have it plumbed now, you have no way to force water through the UV unit. Also, don't you want the inlet to the frag tank to be after the UV?

Are the baffles in your sump drawn the way you are planning on building them?

The 60" height does come from the stands having to be tall enough to hold the 30 gallon containers underneath. 55 Gallon drums are at least 24" in diameter, and I needed something no wider/deeper than 20" - the room is 36" deep, so I need the extra 16" to get inside..

The area is enclosed, so the rectangular tab on the "floor" represents where the doorway is.


I have a http://us.wernerco.com/view/Products/Climbing-Equipment/Portable-Scaffold/AP-20">Werner AP-20 Work Platform</a> portable scaffold that I can use to lift myself up a good 18" off the floor to compensate. Best $40 I spent ever, it's great for working on the ceilings...

It's about 4' long and 16" wide at the feet (12" at the platform), so it should fit perfectly.


The gray tube is a model of my Emperor Aquatics 80 Watt HO-UV - it's a simple model for estimating sizes and available space. It's about the size of a bazooka.

I moved the gate valve in between the inlet (left side of the tube) and the outlet (right).

I may decide to put the return for the frag tank after the UV - the design should be modular enough where I can adjust for that...


The baffles on the sump are only partially drawn - the part in the middle is the divider that forces the water to go around in a U-shaped channel. There are actual baffles in place that I didn't draw..

The sump is a MRC Hi-Flow Sump and Fuge, based on their 48" long model but with the width and height 20" instead of 24". The Fuge section is on the right, underneath and to the left of the skimmer.

[QUOTE=][B]Fidofence;835219 wrote:[/B] Your computer drawings are impressive, I can even tell brands of pumps and equipment[/QUOTE]

Thank you.

I made the following components, the others are ones I grabbed from the Sketchup 3D library:

<ul>
<li>Plywood 2x4 sheets for the wall.</li>
<li>Equipment stands, 2x4 lumber and plywood sheets.</li>
<li>UV - the gray tube, modeled on an Emperor Aquatics 80 Watt HO UV.</li>
<li>Skimmer, modeled on an MRC MR-2R (box and chamber). I also modeled an MRC 1-gallon skimmate waste container (not shown).</li>
<li>Skimmer Recirc pump, modeled on an Blueline BL-55 pump that I got with the skimmer... took it apart to clean it and measured out points with a digital caliper.</li>
<li>150 Gallon Acrylic tank, with external "BeanAnimal" overflow. Designed by me, custom built by MRC.</li>
<li>Tank stand and canopy, modeled by me for my references, actual stand designed and built by RedEdge2k1.</li>
<li>The LED light box in the canopy, containing 6 x 50 Watt LED array chips. Designed by me, box custom built by MRC. Soon to be replaced with 3 x 180 Watt (100-LED, max 252 Watts) Dream Chip LEDs...</li>
<li>Etc, etc... plenty of others.</li>
</ul>


The other bits, like the PVC tubing, fittings, valves, etc, are based on existing models so I wouldn't have to re-create the wheel.


[QUOTE=][B]SnowManSnow;835227 wrote:[/B] I'm sure this is a probably a no no, but why not put the frag tank in line first.. make it a bit higher than the sump (which would the be on the left) and then drill the frag tank so that the overflow just goes out the top and side and into the sump.....

just a silly idea :")[/QUOTE]

No ideas are silly... unless you're talking about actual silly things. :)

The sump has to be on the right side, due to where the return line and the 3 x drain lines (green) come from across the room, 20' away.

They're aligned so that the 20' span of PVC piping will be straight, and that the ends of those pipes come up and out of the far wall in between a pair of studs that are centered in the room...

If you were talking about putting one of the drains so that it empties out into the frag tank first, then yes, I could do that and had thought about it in the past.


This diagram shows a bit more of the whole picture:

[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/MgPHXyY.png>

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