Sump Building help

[Brad.Sedore]

Hey guys

just been considering building a sump for my 120 gal. but i cant seem to wrap my head around how it works.. say i want to do maybe a 30 gallon sumpp. how do i determine flow rate. what pumpp i need. i just dont understand. cash is not an issue if someone could just explain to me how the heck to build this ... also im sorry about the ps i have a broken keyboard.. the p acts up and the backspace is broken.

 

[pat8you]

Marc's Hidden Treasure

Look through the links on this page. He has some great articles that clear up all of your questions. He also has a variety of sump designs that you can look at and then adapt to what ever you need.

 

[melosu58]

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sumps, Part I by Greg Taylor - Reefkeeping.com

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sumps, Part II by Greg Taylor - Reefkeeping.com

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sumps, Part III by Greg Taylor - Reefkeeping.com

 

[mr_X]

a sump is another tank that shares the same water.
they are useful for increasing total water volume, putting all of the ugly stuff in like heaters and skimmers, reactors..etc.
what components will be in this sump? a skimmer? how many GPH is the pump on it? if it's 300 gph, then you need a return pump rated for at least that (after head loss) for it to work at it's full efficiency.

is your tank drilled/reef ready, or will you be purchasing a HOB overflow box?

 

[Brad.Sedore]

ill need a HOB overflow box. i have a couple skimmers ones 325gph the other is 500. my question is how do i know how much water will flow through the overflow.. how do i determine head loss.

i think im starting to understand how the overflow works.. maybe its just easiest to say how i think it works and you guys tell me if im right or wrong.

so what i understand is that the flow rate of the overflow does not matter unless the pump after head loss does not exceed its maximum flow rate.. so a 1 inch bulk head will support up to 800 gph. below that it only lets "over flown" water run through at the rate that it overflows?

another question. is head measured in the total line or just how high the water needs to climb?

 

[mr_X]

the overflow doesn't determine head loss. height and elbows do. in other words, if i had a 120, i'd probably go with an overflow box between 800-1200 gph. once i picked that out, i would pick a pump that after about 4 feet of head, would equal my overflow.
you don't have to be exact- you can always choke back a pump safely at the exhaust port with a ball valve or gate valve if need be. you just don't want a pump rated for less than your HOB overflow, because it's possible that over time it can lose siphon.

head loss is figured out by taking into consideration height and turns/elbows.
there is no head pressure sending water sideways.

 

[Brad.Sedore]

so if i were to buy this overflow https://www.seaumarineonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=84&products_id=439

and a mag 9.5 i would likely have a good match?

 

[mr_X]

it sounds like it would work fine.

 

[David S]

so if i were to buy this overflow https://www.seaumarineonline.com/product_info.php?cPath=84&products_id=439

and a mag 9.5 i would likely have a good match?

Have a look at the eshopps range,there very good.