Sump, Which powerhead to use?

[Artem]

Hi, Im building a sump and all the components have been put together except for the return powerhead. Basically Im not sure which one I should get.. I havent seen any in the pet shops so looks like I have to get one from trade me. My biggest concern is what height to get.

The top of the sump will be around 1m below the top of the aquarium (these are the places where the water needs to enter/leave). Does this mean I need a 1.2m powerhead? But then the 1.2m powerhead Im looking at has a 1200L/H capacity is there a way to make this smaller?

I also already have a 0.6m powerhead that I could put in there, my concern is that it will blow up and then I'll have to buy a new one

[ryanjury]

How big is the tank? As that determines the size (flow rate) of the pump you need , ideally you want one that turns over 4-5 times the volume of the tank (you could go even more depending on what type of fish you keep and the size of your overflow) at your head height.

The pump with the 0.6m head probably wont pump the 1m you want it to.

[Ira]

Hi, Im building a sump and all the components have been put together except for the return powerhead. Basically Im not sure which one I should get.. I havent seen any in the pet shops so looks like I have to get one from trade me. My biggest concern is what height to get.

The top of the sump will be around 1m below the top of the aquarium (these are the places where the water needs to enter/leave). Does this mean I need a 1.2m powerhead? But then the 1.2m powerhead Im looking at has a 1200L/H capacity is there a way to make this smaller?

I also already have a 0.6m powerhead that I could put in there, my concern is that it will blow up and then I'll have to buy a new one

The 1.2m powerhead will probably barely pump a trickle at 1 m head. The .6 m powerhead will slow down the water draining into the sump a little bit.

Most pumps have a flow diagram on them, like Ryan says look for 4-5 times tank volume at your head height. Look at pond pumps, they're usually less expensive.

[Artem]

Tanks only a 90L, Ive figured out that with the tube Im using it will pump approximately 300L of water to the sump, now to get it back up :roll: Should I get a larger hose? The one I have right now is 16mm in diameter

Im looking at these three right now:

MaxOutput: 1300L/H

Max Height: 1.2M

Watt: 25W

Voltage: 220-240V

Hz: 50/60

Max Output 1200L/H

Max Height: 1.5M

Watt: 25W

Voltage: 220V

Hz: 50

MaxOutput: 2000L/H

Max Height: 2M

Watt: 38W

Voltage: 220-240V

Hz: 50/60

Which one do you guys think would suit me best? Im leaning towards the 2000L/H one just because then it will definitely do the job even if it is more expensive.

Haha! unfortunately the 0.6m one is a 300L/H pump so no help there :0

[ryanjury]

You really need to ask what the pumps actually pump at your 1.2m head height before you can make a decision.. Like Ira has suggested there is usually a diagram on the side of the box..

I would say the middle one would probably be fine, but the bottom would be better, however that depends on what they actually flow at 1.2m. I am not sure what the 16mm overflow it sounds a bit small to me, is that the size of the tube of the size of the hole drilled in your tank or are you running a different overflow?

Another thing, have you considered using a canister filter on this tank considering it is only 90L? Unless you are going marine or have any specific reason for going to a sump..

[spoon]

or a canister filter to pump it back up? :lol:

[Ira]

Tanks only a 90L, Ive figured out that with the tube Im using it will pump approximately 300L of water to the sump

The tube will pump...Wait how are you getting the water to the sump? I hope you have an overflow setup unless you enjoy floods?

[diver21]

what are you stocking the tank with? african cichlids or you having a planted tank? as if its an african i would go with the 2000l/hour pump.

yea the overflow sounds a little weird to me too.

and canisters dont work too good pumping uphill

[Artem]

I haven't exactly got an overflow set up yet. Ill get one ready by the end of the week; the space between the wall and tank is very small (6cm) so right now the problem is getting a box thin enough to squeeze in there :lol: the tube that I have to go down to the sump is 16mm in diameter, might have to go bigger though

Why a sump? Why not? :bounce: Basically doing one because I can

At 1.2m the 2000L/H one pumps 1200L/H so I think i will go with that one, it can also be adjusted down so that the current is not too strong I have a feeling that at 1200L/H in a 90L tank the current may become too strong for a 2cm fish :-?

Stocking the tank with around 25-30 ember tetras and then Ill see where to go from there not going to be planted at all apart from a java moss, going to use plastic/silk plants :bounce:

[ryanjury]

So are you going to drill the tank and run an overflow pipe down? Or divide off a corner and run a durso? You mention fitting a box in does this mean you are going to try an overflow box and siphon type system?

lol fair enough, just a sump on a 90L tank is a fair bit of effort when you could just pick up an external or even internal quite cheaply and use it.

How are ember tetras in flow? I think they should be ok but it might be worth checking out, also if you tried java moss in there with that flow rate you might just end up with it all blocking your overflow as it tends to get blown around a bit and block filters up.

[diver21]

box? what? im confused...

basically what ryan said.

have you got a drawing of what your planning as some of the stuff your saying is a bit muddles up, like the tube that pumps?

have you done some research into sumps as its best to have a well thought through plan before diving into things.

[Artem]

Sorry about the miscommunication :oops: to clarify:

By box I mean a box that goes into the tank with holes like this one

By tube that pumps I mean a tube that pumps water using gravity. You know when you stick a tube into an aquarium and then you suck on it and if the tube is below the water level of the aquarium then it pumps out water?

I might tie down the java moss to the back of the wall to create a backdrop type thing

Does everything make sense now? :bounce:

[diver21]

thats whats refered to as a siphon type overflow, generally avoided as the top of the u pipe can trap air and can cause your tank to flood, but if you keep an eye on it and regulary bleed it it will be fine.

drilled type of overflows are generally preferred

thought, with the 2000L/h pump at 1.2m giving 1200l/h into the tank the siphon wont be able to support it if it will only allow 300l/h into the sump. have i got that right?

[spoon]

those ones are good the air isnt likely to trap in the u tube as the bubbles tend to get taken thru with the flow of water its when you make one up from elbows and you have a straight piece at the top you run into problems

[Artem]

Ah I see, Im not good with all the aquarium lingo yet :oops:

Yes, I think I'll just get a larger tube. 32mm should do it

Im not too keen on drilling a hole :-? so this is the next best option :bounce:

[diver21]

the tube size your talking about, is that of the u tube/ siphon or the length of pipe that connects to the barb fitting at the bottom of the box?

and are you buying the overflow or DIY?

[Artem]

Its the diameter of the u tube.

DIY. A bottom of a 2L milk bottle for the inside box that will be held on by two suction cups. I have tested if this works and it does. And seeing as I cant find a small enough box Ill probably have to build one myself from an acrylic sheet 3mm. I have a tool that heats up plastic (basically a powerful hairdryer). So I'm thinking I'll bend the front and back parts from one piece and attach the side pieces with silicon. Then it will depend on if I can get the bottom to be flat or not if not then Ill drill a hole in the side of the box for the tube.

Do you know what the outside box is for exactly? I must be missing something because it seems that if I put a tube down to the sump the effect will be the same :-?

[spoon]

you need it to keep the syphon or else once it breaks it wont start again.

go to the warehouse and buy two small tupperware containers then you have your inside and outside boxes and just bend a piece of acrilic when hot over the top of the tank and attach the boxes to this

the inside box could be kept separate if on suction caps as this will set the level of water in the tank and make it adjustable

make some grooves in two edges of this for an overflow comb.

just watch the cost because as soon as you start buying plumbing fittings and Bulkhead fittings you may find it could creep up considerably

and leave you wishing you had drilled it

[diver21]

and i would have 2 siphon u tubes for redundancy. u really want both boxes to be bolted/glued together as suction cups can and will fail and what would happen if your box fell into the tank.

overflowed tank and a dry sump with an overheating pump in it.

[spoon]

well if only the internal box is suction capped in and it fall off water level will drop to the bottom of the syphon tube in the display tank and rise in the sump maybe a couple of inches at most ive been running one like this for ages now with no problems