Advice on building a sump room

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Brad

Aquarium Advice FINatic
Joined
Jan 22, 2004
Messages
754
Location
British Columbia
It would seem that I'm going to get my opportunity to move to a new home and install the tank of my dreams. It won't be too huge...maybe in the 200-300 gallon range.

I would like to create a separate room to house all the filtration equipment, including sump. Does anyone have (or know of) some designs for a filtration room?

I'm thinking...sump (obviously); FW holding tank; SW holding tank; SW mixing tank; assorted pump arrangements to push water in different directions; Electrical considerations....
 
Are you putting the tank in a wall? will the room be next to the tank or below it?

I'm thinking that the room would be behind the tank, with three sides of the tank visible outside. I just don't think I can fit all that I need underneath the tank.
 
Color me envious. The most difficult part of this hobby for me is the constant water making and topping off and having to do it manually. I dream of a room behind the tank that houses a hospital tank, large enuf refugium, small fridge, fresh water holding tub, sink and drain, etc, etc.

In my dream, the RO/DI unit has a float that makes water automatically in the holding tub/trash can when it runs low, then the float in the sump/refugium that determines it needs the fresh water from the holding tub/trash can. And of course the needed pump in the holding tub that the float controls.

How much room you got to work with behind the tank. Not that I can help ya with any plans, I just want you to add to my envy a bit more :mrgreen: .

Good luck and have fun!
 
In my dream, the RO/DI unit has a float that makes water automatically in the holding tub/trash can when it runs low, then the float in the sump/refugium that determines it needs the fresh water from the holding tub/trash can. And of course the needed pump in the holding tub that the float controls.
.....

Exactly..yes, I've been having the same dream for a lot of years and now I get to do it.

How much space do I have...? (this will really kill you...) I have as much as I want. My first draft has the room at about 7' x 7'. I think that is a decent sized space if it is well planned out.
 
We just took our sump out of the stand and went through the floor into the basement below. It was one heck of a weekend getting it all plumbed through but it is running great *yawn*. Right now the space we have is probably 17x7. I have a 6' work bench, a 150g rubbermaid (grow out tank), a 100g rubbermaid (sump) and some shelving. We're not using all of the space yet, but being able to use rubbermaid sumps requires a lot of space because of their shape (4'x 2.5-3' wide). Our equipment alone takes up a 4x6 area.

The planning was definitely a critical step. My husband had done drawings upon drawings of the plans and had everything down to a science before we drilled the first hole. That kept the process very streamlined as there was very little to think about during the change over. Good luck and have fun with it!
 
i wish i was building a 200-300g reef:( Good luck dude. Make sure you give us pictures on your project.
 
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