Thinking about replacing my sump and refugium setup

[maelstrom79]

Right now my setup takes up more room in the stand than I'd like and I am considering combining them into one system - either acrylic or glass - to make things easier. I am not a "crafty" person although I could probably manage some glass baffles with a good bit of guidance (and uggetions on where to get them cut!).

I would appreciate everyones thoughts on this as well as the eBay posting I located.... This sump combo would be a Perfect fit for my stand with extra room for other stuff. Thoughts?

 

[maelstrom79]

Just wondering if that's too expensive compared to other sumps

 

[cedzaquaddiction]

What are you running now?

 

[rdnelson]

Maelstrom79;824372 wrote: Just wondering if that's too expensive compared to other sumps

Well since mine is a 40 gal tank I got for free and the baffles are made with left over acrylic I had I would have to say that for me the answer would be "Yes that is too expensive". LOL. But then I am cheap. .

 

[maelstrom79]

I am too RD, so I posted for opinions like urs cedz,I am running a 10 gal sump with a connected (jury rigged really) fuge that was recycling another piece of equipment! How hard is it to take a tank and make baffles? I've read posts but they "baffle" me!! . The 10 gal sump is not high enough/big enough volume for the 72 bow I have.... I need more wiggle room!

 

[rdnelson]

I have decent pics in my build thread. Search for "Rich's 125".

 

[grouper therapy]

Quite honestly for a new acrylic sump that is too cheap. Red flag for me.

 

[jennm]

There's no inlet or drip tray/filter sock holder on that sump on eBay, it's incomplete.

For a few dollars more you can get brand new, complete. Very few dollars.

What size tank do you have?

 

[reeferman]

grouper therapy;824473 wrote: Quite honestly for a new acrylic sump that is too cheap. Red flag for me.

+1^ thats a pretty cheap price.a sheet of 1/4" acrylic is close to that.
that being said,the site looks exactly like one ive ordered from under a different name,maybe theyve changed names but the text and pics are the exact same.i was happy with the product they delivered[ato, w/c container].it didnt have all the bells and whistles but it was very functionable.

 

[eagle9252]

Probably more info than you wanted or needed but…

The return area is too small for me; a min of 8" is what i like and depending on your PS it does not leave you much room in there either for a filter sock. Depending on the size pump you use it would be almost touching the side walls. Also this is where your ato goes and your water level would be going up and down a lot and this would cause your floats to cycle a lot.


The easier question is what equipment do you have now? How much area do you have in the stand? You can get (ds) double strength (1/8") glass cut anywhere (hd, lowes, ace hardware) I prefer thicker glass (triple strength 3/16") but this means you have to go to a glass shop. Whether you use glass or acrylic (lexan) you need to cut the sideways measurement and 1/8” short. This allows it to move around some. And put a good bead of silicone on both sides.

People say don’t use acrylic (lexan) as the silicone wont bond. I say they are whack jobs. Here are the reasons. Acrylic (lexan) will bow when it has the weight of water on onside. This causes it to move and put side pulling pressure on the silicone which causes it to pull out of it. When you use a good bead say ½” wide it allows more silicone on the acrylic. It needs to be evenly supported and you need to have a good bead of silicone on both sides also you need to use much thicker than you would think to keep the bow out.

I have some ¼ in my sump and it does have a small bow but it is 18” wide. On a 20L is only 12” so the bow would be much less and a 10 is even smaller. You could get away with ds glass in a 10 or 20 but I would not go anything bigger as I think it would stress the glass out. You can take a med to fine grit sanding block and sand the top edge of the glass so it won’t cut you as you do maintenance on the sump or you can put a light coat of silicone on it. I have done both and now I just use a sanding bock as its easier and faster.

People will tell you that you can use this and that for silicone from all the stores but make sure it is only 100% silicone and no mold inhibiters in it. I use only FDA approved silicone. I was on a tank manufacture website and I can’t remember which one but they said they use Momentive Rtv108. When I did a search for this I found out the McMaster Carr has it which is only 15min from me. I also get the cartridge that goes in a caulking gun. It’s much cheaper for the amount you get verses the squeeze tube. Hd does sell a tiny squeeze tube that has a fish on it and says it fish safe but you need like 3 of them.

http://www.mcmaster.com/#rtv-sealants/=ho8qzs">http://www.mcmaster.com/#rtv-sealants/=ho8qzs</a>
GE108
10.1-oz. Cartridge
Translucent
7545A472
8.24

Other lfs places sell this but double the price but they are not so local to me. no matter what you use I let the silicone cure for a min of 3 days but prefer 5 to 7 days. And after getting everything done I fill the system with house water and leak test it. This does several things. You check for leaks and it washes all the nasty’s of the silicone and rinses out all of the pipes and if you used pvc it was out the residue left from the glues and removes some of the trapped vapors. And then you completely drain this water and then replace with sw or if it’s from scratch and you are using all dead stuff you can fill with rodi and then mix the salt in the tank as the water is moving thru the system and after it’s up to sg and temp then you can add your lr and ls you’re going to seed it with.

 

[maelstrom79]

So , I have to leave room for error (it's a 72 gallon bow front) but I think the max I can fit in there is a 20 gallon aquarium. The tank is 48 inches long but that means nothing with the bow and you have to leave a little wiggle room. I have a 10 gallon tank as a sump and the fuge is a connected aquaclear aquatics acrylic setup that used to have bioballs in it at some point (I bought it as part of the set up, used). The link I posted left me enough room to fit some equipment in the stand (like my ato bucket lol).

Thank you to everyone for your responses, very helpful. Jenn, is this enough info?

 

[jennm]

Eshopps makes a Refugium sump and a regular Reef Sump that will fit under your tank.

Refugium style: http://eshopps.com/?page=R_100">http://eshopps.com/?page=R_100</a>

Sump style: [IMG]http://eshopps.com/?page=RS_100">http://eshopps.com/?page=RS_100</a>

Either of those will fit - we've put them under your size of tank.

Jenn

 

[maelstrom79]

Jenn, those look tiny in the pics.... I need room for my return (mag 7 pump), skimmer (reef octopus nwb-150), and a skimmer section. Thoughts?

Edit: My 10 gallon sump now always almost overflows nd I wnt more wiggle room

 

[jennm]

I know they fit a Reef Octopus 110 NW (next size down), for a fact. Not sure about the 150 I'd have to check the footprint. Fits a Mag 7 no problem. I have an RS-75 in the shop in a frag setup for sale (smaller sump) and it fits the 110 skimmer.

The biggest issue with the 72 (or 90) BF is that it narrows to 13" at either end, so the 12" width of that model, fits underneath. The next size up, RS-200, is also 12" wide, but it's 30" long. It might fit, you'd have to measure. I have a 200 in stock, you're welcome to look at it if you like.

Jenn

 

[maelstrom79]

Skimmer Section = fuge. All in one would be optimal.

 

[jennm]

The refugium models have less space for a skimmer. If you look at the pages I referenced, it shows the dimensions of the skimmer chamber on the refugium models, you'd just have to check the footprint of your skimmer to see if it will fit.

The 200 model refugium would be too wide, I think - it's 14" wide... that might be too narrow. The apex of your bowfront is 18" but it narrows to 13" so I think it would be too snug for the length of the refugium to fit.

 

[maelstrom79]

Yes too snug. The skimmer is is 12.6x8.7 in footprint....

http://coralvue.com/nwb150/">http://coralvue.com/nwb150/</a>

Most of it is the pump!! The bow oes narrow to 13" I believe, your memory is spot on!!!

Edit: Thank you for ll the guidance!!

 

[jennm]

Yeah that limits your refugium style option with that brand.

The RS 100 Reef Sump has a 12x11 skimmer section - a bit too snug. The 200 Reef Sump is also 12" wide... 18x11 skimmer section - plenty large enough. It has 2 inlets, which is no biggie, you just need to use one.

That or go with a smaller skimmer - the 150 is overkill, IMO.

Jenn

 

[maelstrom79]

Yeah, I just don't think I can maneuver the 200 into my stand, lol!! I thought I'd read that 2 times your tank size is ideal for skimmers? I've always had a hard time getting a good skim. Appreciate your thoughts around that. Do you think I could customize a basic 20 gallon tank? Cut acrylic baffles and silicone them in (I have seen a lot of threads regarding glass and acrylic baffles).....

 

[jennm]

It would be snug - not 100% sure it would fit, would have to measure inside your stand for sure.

I suppose you could fashion one out of a tank. 20 long is 30x12 though - same size as the RS 200...

Jenn