New to the "sump ". Question:

[joeyswife]

I just set up a Red Sea Reefer 170 2 days ago, and the stock ATO doesn't work, really ....doesn't work at all, no water comes out when float is down.
I want to buy a Tunze Nano 3132 to use as my ATO.
Question is , when I put my hand in the tank to arrange things or flip back over stupid snails the water level gets real unstable for a while , rear overflow water level goes high, return pump sump area goes low , so the ATO would begin pumping water in , right ?
How do you guys deal with surface disturbance that causes water level swings , turn off power to the ATO?
It also seems that my return pump sump and the overflow box water level fluctuate during the day at random, is this due to evaporation ? I am adding about a quart of RO in the morning and again at night trying to keep the silencer in the overflow box about at the right water level to avoid noise and bubbles , which coincides with the level in the return pump sump .
One more question , can I mount the magnet that holds the ATO sensor in place in an adjacent sump area ,under water , the manual says nothing about that . It would be easier with the location of my pump and cabinet set up, as it's pretty tight under there and I have a good spot on the far right of the pump sump area.
Thanks in advance, just learning this sump thing
Joey

 

[PB_Smith]

I just set up a Red Sea Reefer 170 2 days ago, and the stock ATO doesn't work, really ....doesn't work at all, no water comes out when float is down.
I want to buy a Tunze Nano 3132 to use as my ATO.
Question is , when I put my hand in the tank to arrange things or flip back over stupid snails the water level gets real unstable for a while , rear overflow water level goes high, return pump sump area goes low , so the ATO would begin pumping water in , right ?
How do you guys deal with surface disturbance that causes water level swings , turn off power to the ATO?
It also seems that my return pump sump and the overflow box water level fluctuate during the day at random, is this due to evaporation ? I am adding about a quart of RO in the morning and again at night trying to keep the silencer in the overflow box about at the right water level to avoid noise and bubbles , which coincides with the level in the return pump sump .
One more question , can I mount the magnet that holds the ATO sensor in place in an adjacent sump area ,under water , the manual says nothing about that . It would be easier with the location of my pump and cabinet set up, as it's pretty tight under there and I have a good spot on the far right of the pump sump area.
Thanks in advance, just learning this sump thing
Joey

you should be mounting the float switch in the sump in a section that the water level only changes do to lower water volume and stays relatively calm.

 

[joeyfromlawrenceville]

Thanks, I what have learned over the last 3 days that the water level only rises and falls in the return pump section of the sump as evaporation happens. When I disturb the surface of the water, or put my arm in the tank, the displacement of water causes excessive overflow into the rear compartment of the tank , then the overfull rear compartment takes a while to settle back into its set level , all the while the return pump area water level goes very low. My ATO would then recognize a low level and run my RO-DI container pump until the float switch tells the controller its full. How do you guys overcome this unneeded top-off ?, or does it really even matter?
Am I overly concerned for nothing?
thanks,
Joey

 

[PB_Smith]

They show it being in the return pump section on the website.

What is happening is odd, the only reason the return section should get lower like that is if the water flow to the sump is decreased or stopped, the opposite of what should be happening with what your saying.
Plus they have that emergency overflow drain line that should handle the excess water in the overflow box.
Is all the stuff working properly in the overflow box and drains?


Have you tried contacting them?

 

[joeyfromlawrenceville]

"Is all the stuff working properly in the overflow box and drains?", sort of , but not exactly. I am waiting on a replacement ATO float switch that is not working. Maybe that's going to have an effect, but I really think splashing water over the back is causing the water level to change, will just wait until I get the ATO working and see how its doing.
Just learning the do and dont's with a sump. Thanks,
Joey