Finally got my new tank! First DIY sump

[Mr. D]

I decided not to go and get the Craigslist tank and ordered a 75gl reef ready with plumbing included from my Lfs but I don't have the money to drop 600 for the skimmer and sump at once my question is, I have an old 30gl tank that I would like to make one from...... How do I do this, please share any info,links, and $$$$ I will have to spend

 

[herp_mommy]

You can look up sump designs on google images to figure out what you want to do first. Lay it all out in a drawing. Then, what I did, was I found a plastics company that could cut me pieces of 1/4" acrylic to the sizes I needed to make the separate chambers. One sheet will run you about $100. I used 100% silicone to attach them in place. It takes about 48 hours to cure. You'll need a pond pump (~$50) to pump the water back into the tank, and the optional plumbing equipment.

 

[Mr. D]

Okay, thanks

 

[Mr. D]

I decided I don't want to bother with making the sump and will be going to buy the Aquion sump but my question is, how much flow should a return pump provide? I will be using a refudgium in the middle section

 

[Terrance]

Are you considering the Proflex? It looks like a really nice sump, but very expensive. I dont like the fact that the skimmer can only be placed in the last chamber.

 

[Sniperhank]

I have the proflex running on my 36. It is a really nice setup, but there were some things I didn't like. There is a door that folds down between the first and second sections, it might have been that I didn't recieve a piece to it, but there is no way to keep it closed.

It has a really nice middle section for a fuge. It has a nice lid over this section with a clear middle for fuge lighting. I picked up a JBJ nano glow light that fit PERFECTLY.

I do really like this unit, but in hindsight I wish I had something larger so I could get more things out of my tank and into the sump, like my heater and HOB filter.

 

[Mr. D]

Yea, I was not too into only putting the skimmer last but i am not sure how to make a sump properly and I don't want to ruin my 30gl tank if I mess up.... For heater I would probably buy a titanium one and lay it sidewayd... Does it matter how fast my return pump feeds into my tank???... I never had a sump and new to saltwater

 

[Sniperhank]

That depends. Is your tank drilled or will you be using a HOB overflow? If you are doing an overflow, I'd recommend CPR overflows and an aqualifter. Then based on the overflow, you can then choose the pump with the correct GPH. If you will be using it as a fuge as well, you will want slower water movement.

 

[Mr. D]

I have a drilled tank with the built in overflow, I was going to get a tunze and flow 4x or an ehime and flow 2x plus I plan on two korelli evolutions 1050's

 

[Terrance]

Get measurement of your equipment (skimmer, reactor, heater, etc).
Then make sure they all fit.
Copy the design of someone else sump. Change the measurement and tweak the design to make it fit your setup. My first design was a copy of eshopp's refugium unit lol.

If you draw it, then post here to get feedback. Hard to mess up that way.

 

[Sniperhank]

The 1050s are powerheads and don't have anything to do with the GPH for your sump's return pump. It revolves around the overflow and the GPH of the pump. You don't want more than the overflow can handle or it'll go dry. You don't want to little either.

 

[Mr. D]

So is it a trial and error thing, I will draw a pic and post as well

 

[Mr. D]

Here would be the plan if I made it.... Would I need an overflow on it or just a pipe into the system

 

[Sniperhank]

The overflow is for on an undrilled tank, not on the sump.

 

[Mr. D]

How do you determine return pump size?

 

[Sniperhank]

http://reefcentral.com/calc/hlc2.php

 

[spoonman]

I used one additional baffle in my 40 gallon sump. I made it so that if my skimmer produced microbubbles, they would have to go over/under/over baffles to get through the refugium and to the return pump. Here is my drawing. It is exactly how I built it.

 

[Mr. D]

Yeah, that is a great idea, I'll price everything and try to price it with mistakes in mind to... About 150 if I make some mistakes right?

 

[Reefnoob84]

With a 75 you'll have a 1" bulkhead that's capable of 800 gph. I have a mag 9.5 tuned down with 3' of head pressure and it's perfect. If I was you I'd get something around 6-700 gph at 0 head pressure

 

[kjboer7]

I just built my sump it was super easy just cut your plexi to the size you want and silicon it in place check your flow and install under your tank.