Sump for 180 gall

[Stillkickin]

I'm thinking about doing a DIY sump. I don't know anything about this, though as I've just had canister filters in the past. The tank I'm getting is already drilled.

What size tank to use for a 180 gallon, and why?

Where would I find the pump for it?

How do I set up the filtration properly?

I'm sure I'll have more questions later... I'm lacking any experience whatsoever on sumps. So, sorry if these are super noobish questions.

 

[Tacit Blues]

I like sumps, though I’m no expert. I have a 40g breeder with a 20 long as a sump. Here’s a website that can help calculate sizing: https://reefs.com/calculators/sump-tank-volume-calculator/

As for a pump, in freshwater the rule of thumb is you want to have a water turnover rate of roughly 8-10 times per hour, so you’d want to size your pump for that. You can get a decent Chinese knockoff DC variable flow pump that will let you control the flow more precisely for not much more than a regular pump. Be sure to actually size it taking in to account height head losses, and fittings head losses too if you want to be crazy. I can’t really remember by fluids formulas from college to help you more specifically but hopefully that’ll give you a place to start looking

As for filtration (I assume you’re talking filter media and the like?) it kind of depends on what you’re planning on stocking. It’s good to have some level of floss or a filter sock or something first to get the big chunks. For basic bio media, lots of diy sumps have those cheap plastic pot scrubbies. I have a bunch of landscaping volcano rock in mine, with some “real” Seachem matrix and purigen. Generally there will be different chambers in a sump for you to put different stuff in.

I can try to help more if you’ve got more questions. Though a lot of what I know of just from seeing what other people have done, so do a search and start finding things you like. That’s the best part of a diy sump, in my opinion, you can keep tinkering with it for as long as you like

 

[King Fisher]

A friend of mine uses a 40g breeder tank for his sump on his 180g.

 

[coralbandit]

I would opt for a 12" wide sump possibly water bridged or connected with bulkheads to another. Just my opinion but 18" wide sumps are a PIA for mechanicals and sponges..
I do have a 60g 4x2 sump that I have placed a premade sump in and then channeled through space left[less then 18" by far] .
For freshwater with a little creativity you could build a nice sump with an 18" wide tank,just place glass down the middle length wise 4 inches less then total inside of sump and flow through the 2 halves.
This was my latest fresh water sump I built. Running very nicely I will say !
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f70/paludarium-build-364970-5.html#post3496602

 

[Stillkickin]

So! Thank you all for the responses. I decided on a 90 gallon for a sump. ? Mostly because it was a pretty good price. I got the 180 all stripped out and cleaned up this weekend. It cleaned up better than I thought it would. So, I'm pretty excited about it.

I've got the very basic outline of a design for the sump. I'm trying to figure a couple things out.

How high are the baffles supposed to be in the sump? I need around 26 gallons to avoid overflowing in case of power failure, I think? Am I supposed to just leave that amount of water out?

This 180 came pre drilled with 2 15/16 inch holes. I figured out I can use 1.5 inch bulkheads. Is it necessary to have an overflow? I get conflicting information. Would it be acceptable to just use a strainer like this one instead of an overflow? Any issues with this sort of set up? https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00GJ1SACO/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1
Wouldn't having the strainer at bulkhead level keep the water level at bulkhead level too? Should I try to raise the strainer higher?

The reason I don't really want an overflow is because I'm using the tank to split a room, so it will be viewed from 3 sides.

 

[Tacit Blues]

The way I built my overflow was with with a couple of 90 degree elbows to get the actual point the water goes into the drain at the height I wanted, then I had a piece of perforated pipe and some foam that went on the end. Here's a picture from when I was building it: http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f12/logic-and-logistics-361613-2.html#post3470798

And yeah, you want to have at least the amount of space empty in your sump to hold the amount that will drain out of your main tank in the event of a power outage.

 

[Stillkickin]

Another quick question. I can do either 1.5 in sch 80, or 2 in abs bulkheads. What are the pros and cons to one over the other?

This might be a dumb question, but do I need to get a pump with those same size fittings as the bulkheads. And if I do, where do I find that?

 

[Tacit Blues]

You can plumb in any size pump to any size tubing with enough adapters it's best to size your pump for flow and then go from there. The standard in freshwater is 6-10 times the tank volume turnover rate per hour, I think I'm remembering, so for a 180g tank you'd want a roughly 1000-1800gph. For the drain, 1.5" should handle that flow I think (it's been a really long time since I took fluid dynamics, so maybe check into that...) but if you've got the ability to do a 2" drain maybe that'd be better? I know that for my 40g tank with roughly 450gph flow the 1" drain does just fine. I found this website which seems to agree with me: https://www.hy-techroofdrains.com/water-flow-through-a-pipe but I am not a plumber and I don't play one on TV

 

[Stillkickin]

What are your thoughts on this pump? I figured if the flow isn't as advertised, it'll still probably be good enough for the tank. And the 2 inch drain should be able to keep up with it.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01DW4JU06/ref=ox_sc_act_image_4?smid=A35Z9O0DZA4VQP&psc=1

On a different note, I got the beast resealed today. Can't wait to water test it. I also came across a bunch of 14 x 14 inch tempered glass shelves and had fun making these tanks. I also water tested the 90 gallon im going to use as a sump. So far, so good. ? It's been a fun weekend.

-p.s. I have no clue why some pictures keep uploading upside down...?