Anovack 40B/20L sump build

[Anovack]

Hello,

I figured for my first build head to toe I would put together a log as something to look back on in my early learning stages. I have done planted freshwater and have had a mixed reef biocube 29 for a year and had the itch to upgrade.



This is the stand I built last night and plan on sealing it all and wrapping it in 1/4in plywood and staining that. Drilling the tank this week along with the doing the staining and plumbing.

I have 50 pounds of reef saver rock already. Looking into sump design now. I have eshopps pk 75-100 hob skimmer but want to throw in a vertex 150 and possible use for an upgrade. Light I am looking into radions G3 because I like the features.

I have gotten a lot of help on this site and I am sure I will be reaching out more! Follow along!

 

[Adamski]

I think this will be interesting so I'll be following this


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[Anovack]

Here is my sump design I am aiming to get done this week. I would appreciate anyone's input on how to make it matter.

Using a 20L as a sump I measured it 29.5" of workable area. 1/4"thick baffles and 8" high with 1" between. 6" return area.

First sketch so nothing permanent...

 

[Anovack]

I have seen other builds with these power strips with individual outlet switches and though it was good idea. Just picked up 2 of these babies to put under the stand along the top. Thought I would share.

 

[Flaxon-Waxon]

Personally I would scrap the very first baffle all the way to the left, as there's really no need for a bubble trap there, you just need 1 baffle to separate the chambers. I would also scrap the baffle all the way to the right. An over/under with 2 baffles should do a fine job with trapping bubbles.

 

[Sniperhank]

View attachment 260758

I have seen other builds with these power strips with individual outlet switches and though it was good idea. Just picked up 2 of these babies to put under the stand along the top. Thought I would share.

How are these powerstrips? Expensive?

 

[Flaxon-Waxon]

I looked them up as soon as I saw them... Can't attest for quality, but par on price.

http://i1295.photobucket.com/albums...9-B079-4190-BC90-3FAB9B6CC7BA_zpszmdwwrq5.png

 

[Anovack]

Those are the ones and exact price and website. Reviews sounded alright...what sold me is I had a $50 Amazon gift card so I pulled the trigger....

As for the baffles, if I just went with 1 on the left by the skimmer should I make it taller than 8" and have it waterfall into the fuge? And if I went with 2 baffles on the right as you suggested should I keep them same size?

Thank!

 

[Flaxon-Waxon]

8" should be fine, I think mine are 7.5". And yes, going left to right, the first and second baffles will be the same height (whatever your desired water level) and then the third and last baffle should also be the same height, but it will sit an inch higher as to allow water to flow underneath it. Here's what I did. I did a media tray for live rock in the first chamber, and skimmer in the middle chamber. Just picture the first baffle touching the bottom of the sump...

http://i1295.photobucket.com/albums...B-0206-47A0-A4F0-6E9356AC85FD_zpsygflu65x.jpg

 

[Anovack]

Minor miscalculation on the stand. The sump will not fit underneath the stand because the inside legs are too wide by 1/8". In order to correct and not build a new stand I will take a detailing tool and take off 1/8" off each inside corner of the 4 legs about a foot up so the 20L sump will fit. This should not effect the structural integrity of the stand because they are not the load baring legs.

 

[Anovack]

Question....with this miscalculation, once the sump is in I will not be able to take it out. Is this much of a concern? Obviously ideally you would want to take it in and out if possible. If I ever want a new sump I can just break it and put one that fits the dimensions better. Really don't want to build a new stand....

 

[Anovack]

Sniper.....got the power strips the other day. Seem durable. The individual switches are sturdy as well. In previous blogs I've heard people coat their power strips under the tank with something. Kind of like a barrier over the outlets to help against moisture. Does this ring a bell with anyone?

 

[Flaxon-Waxon]

Haven't heard of that, no. But I actually keep all my power strips in a cabinet next to my tank. Under my tank is poor ventilation and the sump generates a lot of humidity and salt creep, so I felt more comfortable relocating everything...

 

[Anovack]

So I have been calling around for glass baffles to be made. I am looking for 4 baffles and surprisingly it seems high around me. Looking for 1/4 thick by 11.75w x 8.25L and one place said 22.50 a baffle which is rough. Local store said they can do it for half that but only 5/32 with "super tough" glass as they call it. I think it's a brand or something. 8/32 is a quarter inch so do you think 5/32 would be strong enough baffles being that thin but with so called extra strength glass?

Thanks,

 

[Flaxon-Waxon]

I did 1/4" baffles and was actually surprised with how thick/heavy they were. I would imagine they'd be ok. If the shop is close to you, you can stop in and ask them to show you the thickness difference...

 

[Anovack]

I ended up getting 4-- 1/4 in thick baffles that are 11.75" x 8.25" with the corners radius a bit for a snug fit. I will have one baffle in the skimmer section to set the water level and have 3 for a bubble trap after the fuge to the return.

Now I have a couple questions about equipment.
-I'm torn between the vertex omega 130 and 150...the 130 rated for 100gal the 150 rated for a 150 gallon. Difference is about 80 bucks. Both skimmer pumps have a dial to increase or decrease. I know I'll want to upgrade down the road so I'm leaning towards the omega 150. Do you think this is overkill even if I turn the skimmer pump down? Looking at about 50-60 total water volume with the 40b and 20L sumps.

Lastly, for powerheads, I first wanted the mp10, but those are 285 and now the mp40 is 299. Again looking in the future I rather have equipment that's good quality and will last instead of spending a couple hundred bucks twice. Do you think I'll be good with a mp40 just running it at low speeds?

Thanks,

 

[Anovack]

Not sure if anyone's following along but I'm doing this as something to look back on.

The good news, I drilled my tank tonight. Overall I think I did a good job. Only question is if the lil pieces that chipped along the rim are going to be a problem? There not bad just a couple

 

[Anovack]

 

[Flaxon-Waxon]

Those chips should be nothing to worry about, as the bulkheads will cover them... Nice work.

 

[Flaxon-Waxon]

In terms of the skimmer- if any thoughts of a bigger tank down the road are in question, get the bigger one. If it's not completely overkill, get the bigger one anyways.

For the powerheads, I run 2 MP10's on my 40, and get great water movement. You could get 1 MP40, again with upgrade in mind. However, I like the 2 MP10's over 1 MP40, as there is 2 sources of water movement as opposed to 1, this is just my preference as I'm sure other people could agree/disagree and that's ok. I run mine on short pulse at about 60% power, anti-sync mode.