Designing a sump - Aquarium Advice

robertfah · 03-10-2006, 12:13 PM

I need to know how to design my own sump. The Wet/Dry filter I have now is too small for my tank and I need a larger one, about 50-55g.

I have a 155g, not drilled, with FO in my tank. I do plan to have a ton of LR in it so I will be getting rid of the bio-media in the wet/dry. But as far as sections/drilled holes for pumps, I'm not too sure how that would (or should) work. Can I just get a 55g tank and turn that into a sump?

I checked the articles on this site, but didn't find anything on creating one from scratch.

afilter · 03-10-2006, 03:22 PM

This one worked great for me when building my 30g sump:

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=53046

Yes you can use a 55g, just change the divider dimensions to suite your equipment needs. One caution if you are planning on putting the sump under your existing setup make sure it will fit. This was an issue for me and the reason I built my 30g when I upgraded to my 90g setup. There is no moving it without taking down the main.

Good luck,

Aaron

03-10-2006, 04:27 PM

I dont know if you found this website but this had got to be the best site for designing your own acrylic sump from scratch. I used his methods and found that I was able to build a prototype one for practice relatively easy. And I'm currantly designing one for the new reef tank that will hopefully be up and running by the end of summer.

This sight is great.
http://www.melevsreef.com/

jasno999 · 03-10-2006, 05:34 PM

What about the sump refrigium combination tanks?

afilter · 03-10-2006, 05:37 PM

That is what the link I provided is. IMO, it works great! Super cheap as well. Cost of tank, silicone, glass dividers, pump, and plumping.

03-10-2006, 06:46 PM

The sump refugium combo is pretty much just for the avid reef tank keeper who wants an area he can put live rock in and supply light to when the main display if off. This allows the Macroalgea that you growing in the fuge to filter the chemicals in the water so that it makes it harder for nuicance microalgea to get a foothold, and it also makes a great area for pods to grow and feed the main tank. If you do reef then sump/fuge combo's are great but for just a fowlr it may be a bit overkill. The reef site just lets you know how to go about designing an acrylic sump from scratch. The design and size are all up to you.
And yes the sumps that are made from smaller aquariums are great asswell and very affordable. I've made 3 of them myself for a 75 gal cichlid tank, 20 gal nanareef, and a 210 gal cichlid tank. The one for the 210 was an old 30gal tank that I siliconed sheets of glass in for the deviders and plumbed with a magdrive 1800. I never had a problem with out of wack water parameters. That was with a severly overpopulated amount of cichlids.

jasno999 · 03-11-2006, 12:28 AM

What I mean is a combination of fuge and sump al li nthe same box.

cal91666 · 03-11-2006, 12:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lemonheadmech

This sight is great.
http://www.melevsreef.com/

I agree. I've used this site for reference when building all 3 of my sumps/fuges. Melev is also very active on another board and has always responded to questions ask.

03-10-2006, 12:13 PM	#1 (permalink)
robertfah Aquarium Advice Activist Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Orlando Posts: 191	Designing a sump I need to know how to design my own sump. The Wet/Dry filter I have now is too small for my tank and I need a larger one, about 50-55g. I have a 155g, not drilled, with FO in my tank. I do plan to have a ton of LR in it so I will be getting rid of the bio-media in the wet/dry. But as far as sections/drilled holes for pumps, I'm not too sure how that would (or should) work. Can I just get a 55g tank and turn that into a sump? I checked the articles on this site, but didn't find anything on creating one from scratch. __________________ 155 gallon, bow-front tank. 3 Yellow Tangs, 2 Perc. Clowns, 1 6 Line Wrasse and 1 Citrine Yellow Goby

03-10-2006, 03:22 PM	#2 (permalink)
afilter Aquarium Advice Addict Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 1,290 Images: 19	This one worked great for me when building my 30g sump: http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=53046 Yes you can use a 55g, just change the divider dimensions to suite your equipment needs. One caution if you are planning on putting the sump under your existing setup make sure it will fit. This was an issue for me and the reason I built my 30g when I upgraded to my 90g setup. There is no moving it without taking down the main. Good luck, Aaron __________________ Aaron Tank: 90 Gal SW Reef in the making See my info for setup and inhabitant details:

03-10-2006, 05:37 PM	#5 (permalink)
afilter Aquarium Advice Addict Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 1,290 Images: 19	That is what the link I provided is. IMO, it works great! Super cheap as well. Cost of tank, silicone, glass dividers, pump, and plumping. __________________ Aaron Tank: 90 Gal SW Reef in the making See my info for setup and inhabitant details:

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03-10-2006, 04:27 PM	#3 (permalink)
Guest Posts: n/a	I dont know if you found this website but this had got to be the best site for designing your own acrylic sump from scratch. I used his methods and found that I was able to build a prototype one for practice relatively easy. And I'm currantly designing one for the new reef tank that will hopefully be up and running by the end of summer. This sight is great. http://www.melevsreef.com/

03-10-2006, 05:34 PM	#4 (permalink)
jasno999 Aquarium Advice FINatic Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: King of Prussia, PA Posts: 527	What about the sump refrigium combination tanks?

03-10-2006, 06:46 PM	#6 (permalink)
Guest Posts: n/a	The sump refugium combo is pretty much just for the avid reef tank keeper who wants an area he can put live rock in and supply light to when the main display if off. This allows the Macroalgea that you growing in the fuge to filter the chemicals in the water so that it makes it harder for nuicance microalgea to get a foothold, and it also makes a great area for pods to grow and feed the main tank. If you do reef then sump/fuge combo's are great but for just a fowlr it may be a bit overkill. The reef site just lets you know how to go about designing an acrylic sump from scratch. The design and size are all up to you. And yes the sumps that are made from smaller aquariums are great asswell and very affordable. I've made 3 of them myself for a 75 gal cichlid tank, 20 gal nanareef, and a 210 gal cichlid tank. The one for the 210 was an old 30gal tank that I siliconed sheets of glass in for the deviders and plumbed with a magdrive 1800. I never had a problem with out of wack water parameters. That was with a severly overpopulated amount of cichlids.

03-11-2006, 12:28 AM	#7 (permalink)
jasno999 Aquarium Advice FINatic Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: King of Prussia, PA Posts: 527	What I mean is a combination of fuge and sump al li nthe same box.