Brianemone Posted April 14, 2005 Report Share Posted April 14, 2005 for me new tank im planning at the moment on having both a small refugium and a sump (for skimmer and heater and other bits and peices) my issue is wether the refugium is worth it or not. what would be the advantages of it verses using the space for something else Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted April 14, 2005 Report Share Posted April 14, 2005 If filled with live rock (no sand bed) a refugium would be great for added de-nitrification capacity, and be very little maintenance. This means you can support a higher bioload in your tank without having the "wall of rock" effect. This is the route i'll go down when I finally get to planning my new tank. Layton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 14, 2005 so fill it with rock. does it need to have any added flow? or would the overflow from the tank be enough? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted April 14, 2005 Report Share Posted April 14, 2005 The more flow the better, but I wouldn't think it would be too critical. Layton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 14, 2005 any other suggestion?? defenatly sound like the easiest option (and effective) i am thinking about going full barebottom in the display tank and having a starboard substitute (depending on what i can find) on the bottom with most of the rock in the main tank on a reef rack. as i think i can keep it cleaner this way than using any other method. do baffles need to be placed in the sump before the skimmer or would it only be neccessary to have them afer to stop the bubbles getting into the main tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeBlog Posted April 14, 2005 Report Share Posted April 14, 2005 i am thinking about going full barebottom in the display tank and having a starboard substitute (depending on what i can find) on the bottom with most of the rock in the main tank on a reef rack. as i think i can keep it cleaner this way than using any other method. I am considering doing the BB with Starboard equivalent as well. Let me know what you come up with and I will do the same. Cheers, Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drifty Posted April 15, 2005 Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 I want to do part of my new tank with a starboard sub also, only under the reef rack where it cant be seen anyway, will be interested to find out what you come up with. Lol will it be in the next week though as my new tank goes on the stand this weekend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 15, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 my time frame is based on how quicky my son learns to crawl and stick little fingers into power outlets :-? , thats the reason i got the go ahead for the new tank/stand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 15, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 i know about the durso overflows and will be requiring more info when setting them up what is the secret to having the overflow sump baffles /skimmer all silent???? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted April 15, 2005 Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 Durso is the secret to silence. As for silence in the sump, its all got to do with flow and water fall, the less water falls the quieter it will be. Not sure if there is much you can do about keeping the return pump and skimmers pumps quiet though, certaily nothing I can do about mine other than the obvious building a box to contain them and the noise. But wait, mine is in the garage, who cares Pie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 15, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 im sure the cabinet will contain alot of the unwanted noise. how many of you all that have under tank sumps (in a cabinet) cover them??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suphew Posted April 15, 2005 Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 I have my sump uner my tank and it is pretty quite, other than an old pump which is driving my skimmer which needs to be replaced. My overflow pipe and return release below the waterline. Once you have the durso etc setup right I think the trick is using decent pumps, I have used (and still have one) cheap pumps and they rattle and hum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted April 15, 2005 Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 As far as keeping things quiet, you could try using a relatively small return pump. Something like 1000LPH should be fairly quiet and be enough flow. If it's a submersed pump that will keep it quiet too. if I had a smaller one that would eliminate a lot of the noise from my tank. It's not the pump that makes the noise, it's the water splashing through the grill into the overflow and a hissing noise from the air going into the standpipe. Less flow, less noise for those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie extreme Posted April 15, 2005 Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 but if you trying to cut down the water flow from the sump to quiten your living room you also cut down the return from tank to skimmer, sump/refugium and additional filters what ever they may be. makes one wonder why some people with very little turnover (600-1000 liter minus the head) bother to have a sump (next to hiding the heaters)? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted April 15, 2005 Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 Hiding the heaters and extra water volume alone would be worth the effort IMO. Piemania Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie extreme Posted April 15, 2005 Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 what would you rather have a 500 ltr tank with no sump or a 350 ltr with a 150 ltr sump? i would go for the 500 ltr. looks better is bigger for your fish to swim in and a little heater can be placed in some corner, plus one can choose one of the many external skimmers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted April 15, 2005 Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 Hmmm...I'd go for a 440 with a 60L sump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie extreme Posted April 15, 2005 Report Share Posted April 15, 2005 so did i, also tried large sump, sump above tank (which seems to work great to produce lots of living critters to enter the main tank), no sump at all, no sump and no skimmer, and the list goes on. at present i have a large tank and a reasonbly large sump (with not much in it), let see how that works!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control Posted April 16, 2005 Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 does it need to have any added flow? or would the overflow from the tank be enough? That depends on what you are trying to achieve with it. If you using it as a life saver for anything that may grow or hatch you don't want to be flushing it out the other end. Aaron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pies Posted April 16, 2005 Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 I'd go for a 1400 litre tank and 2 sumps equalling over 1000 litres Pies Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookie extreme Posted April 16, 2005 Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 just got back from a guy who propagates corals(no names, got me into the s$%ts last time). was in his garage, with car fumes etc., very simple setup, but very effective. 10/10 for success. great growth rate on sps, polyps, softies and xenia. did i mention he uses zeovit? he/she is not to sure if it is the reason behind the good growth, butm says that lots has improved since using it! i don't want to start off that whole zeovit c%$#p again but it is nice to know that some people have (in their opinion) success with it. good on them. keep it growing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 after seeing that prop tank my wife said my tank was really messy because my corals arent in rows :-? need to reaquascape anyway for the return ive noticed that pretty much everyone has their returns at the top (or towards the top) is there any way of putting it at the bottom or is the siphon in the event of power/pump failure inevitable??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted April 17, 2005 Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 is there any way of putting it at the bottom or is the siphon in the event of power/pump failure inevitable??? way too risky - it will back siphon unless you have a valve to block reverse flow - but i wouldnt risk putting all my trust in it. i would imagine it would also place more back pressure on the pump because of the pressure exerted at the bottom of the tank restricting flow rate? probably not by alot. whats the problem with it going over the top anyway? you just want to be different? btw, i've got a 540 litre main tank and 460 litre refugium and sump. IMO sump is crucial as it is also a highly efficient way of aerating the water (outside of the obvious water volume, heater hiding etc benefits) the additional benefits (because im happy with a 5 footer) is as layton says, more room for LR (for biological filtration) without overloading your main tank and potentially ruining aesthetics. my wife said my tank was really messy because my corals arent in rows :lol: if only it were like that in the ocean!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted April 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 i want a spray bar under the rock work do avoid dead spots the closed loop is probably the only way to acheive that effectivly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted April 17, 2005 Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 yup! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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