Ideas for plumbing 120gal with 20gal sump tank

[theedudenator]

I currently have a 75gal FW and 38gal SW tank
All fish, nothing fancy...

I picked up a used 120gal tank with 20gal sump tank (plain glass tanks)
I have some misc items that came with it, but I need some additional stuff..

I have a skimmer that will sit in the 20gal sump.

Neither of the tanks have holes drilled in them.

What is the best way to plumb the top tank to the bottom tank?
I want something with safety for water draining everywhere...

Any have images of their setup?

I am not sure what my plans are..
Fish.. Maybe live rock? Sand bottom?

I found out the sump is 30 gal
I have some photos of how I plan on starting..

I now have 2 topics posted, and they are now the same subject... Maybe I can delete the other one??

 

[dskidmore]

If you can find a glass company near you that will drill the upper tank, that would be your best bet. Add an overflow box and a durso or stockman standpipe, and you're all set.

Second best would be an overflow box.

Your baffle setup looks reasonable. I might put the bubble baffles right before the pump, and put just a simple baffle seperating the fuge and skimmer areas.

Is that skimmer already plumed in? If not, you may consider swapping the fuge and skimmer chambers, and setting up a lower flow rate in the fuge than in the skimmer chamber.

http://dslinux.dyndns.org/~denise/aquarium/DIYPlumbing/futureindex.html

 

[theedudenator]

Nothing is plumbed yet...

I can move things around without a problem.

How do I maintain the lower flow rate in the refuge?
I plan on using it for seaweed and stuff. I have seen this in someone else's tank. Supposed to help out the tank

I have already found and looking into the overflow box for the rear..

 

[dskidmore]

There are two ways to have reduced flow in the fuge. Either way the fuge must be out of the main flow path. You can split your drain line and send only a portion of the water through the sump, with the rest going straight to the skimmer chamber. Alternatively you can split your return line and recirculate some water back through the fuge. The return line split is easier to do, but some people think that putting the fuge after the skimmer means there won't be enough nutrients for the fuge. I think the return line split if fine for a seaweed fuge as it doesn't matter much which mechinism is removing nutrients, but if you're trying to grow pods, there may be a point to using unskimmed water.

The major point of the seaweed is to reduce nitrates. You'll have to prune out the excess seaweed on a semi-regular basis.

 

[theedudenator]

I will put a tee and a ball valve in my return line. Branching to my skimmer and my refuge.

So the skimmer is now in the center of the sump?
refuge to the left, and pump area to the right.
Baffles between the skimmer and pump area...


Is there anything else in the refuge that I should have?

I planned on seaweed and sand.

Should I have live rock?

I guess I need to have a light?

 

[dskidmore]

Sump layout sounds good.

I will put a tee and a ball valve in my return line. Branching to my skimmer and my refuge.

You're running the skimmer off of the sump pump rather than seperate? I approve, although many people insist on having a seperate pump.

What do you want the fuge for? For Nitrate reduction the sand and seaweed should be fine. You will need a light for the seaweed. If the goal is pod production, then you want alot of live rock rubble instead, and won't need the light.

 

[theedudenator]

no...
I ment to say that I will branch my overflow line into the skimmer and refuge.
The return pump will go direct to the tank.

 

[dskidmore]

Awsome.