all in one nano w/ sump?

[bs21]

has anyone ever made a sump, fuge, any other tank that is connected to an all in one system like an aquapod or biocube?
I was wondering because i have a 10 and 15g tank i was going to make one of these into a little frag tank but was interested in plumbing it into my aquapod. I am in the processof building a diy stand for my aquapod and have room below the tank for one of these but am having a mental block as far as how to plumb it without drilling tank for an overflow. If anyone has done this or has any thoughts on it i would love to see/ hear it.

[seastar12]

Yes, it has been done. Just to give you one example, Oogie plumbed a sump into his 6 gallon SPS nano cube.

[!wrass!]

Drilling is super easy and cheaper than you think. I am in the process of setting up a 24G NanoCube with a 20 tall for a sump. If you don't drill, I think you will have to build a siphon overflow box and cut the hood.

[bs21]

well i allready have tanked stocked w/ fish and corals so i wasn't sure about how to drill it without taking down tank. the hood won't be a problem as i'm getting a halide setup. I guess i would have to make an overflow box but i don't want to see it in the main part of the tank so it would have to go in the back chamber which seems like it would be one tiny overflow box.

[goalieman92]

I have came up with an idea just a couple days ago that would solve your problem. Take a normal hang on the back power filter that can keep up with your return pump. drill a hole in the side or back of the power filter for your inlet tube, and run a pipe into the tank for your return.

[bs21]

yea i was thinking about making a hang on overflow box that would fit in the back chamber of my aquapod also.

goalie i think i see what you are saying and that could work also. My biggest thing is i want the cleanest look possible so i will have to start comparing ideas to see which i will like most.

[seastar12]

That is a neat idea, drilling a HOB filter, instead of your tank.

[goalieman92]

that's what I'm going to school for (engineer)

[!wrass!]

Won't work unless the flow rates of the two are always exactly the same all of the time. That is near impossible. Or you turn the return pump off and on with a float switch. If anything happens, anything goes wrong, you have a flood.

Safest thing is to drill, next safest is siphon overflow box.

[bs21]

well drilling i think is out of the question. I do have what seems like it will be a good and inexpensive siphon overflow box design i'm workin on. I am not sure, however about size of tube for siphon and drain.

[!wrass!]

Try this only smaller (http://www.melevsreef.com/acrylics/overflow.html)

[Phong33]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10823068#post10823068 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by !wrass!
Won't work unless the flow rates of the two are always exactly the same all of the time. That is near impossible. Or you turn the return pump off and on with a float switch. If anything happens, anything goes wrong, you have a flood.

Safest thing is to drill, next safest is siphon overflow box.

I agree, its impossible. Even if somehow you get the two rates to come to an equilibrium, the pumps will never stay constant for various reasons such as calcium build up.

Any kind of overflow is a pain. I would get it drilled. Its very easy to do on those tanks.

[bs21]

right i know it is i just don't want to take everything out b/c it took me way to long to setup rockwork and coral placement etc... so i will have to come up with another idea.

[goalieman92]

I knew it would have to match the flow of the pump, but you could also make it exceed the flow of the pump and drill your inlet tube halfway between the over flow line of the Power filter and stick a bio bag or something like that in there so you get power filter filtration as well as sump

[!wrass!]

You are going to get a sump running anyway. Set it up first and cycle it like a new tank. Increase the bioload untill it can handle your tank's load. Then move your rock and corals to the sump or a bucket and drill. It only tankes about 10 minutes to drill. If you have all your pluming set up ahead of time, you can have the tank up and running in a matter of hours. I know it is a lot of work but you will be happier in the long run.

[seti2020]

I drilled my 8 gallon BC for an overflow which goes into a sump in the back. I drilled the tank while it had fish in it. Just lowered the water level. I used a dremmel with diamond tip bits. It was hard to keep bits cool with water when drilling surface is vertical. However, it was actually quite easy. Just go slow drilling. It took me about 20 min per hole. Drilled 2 holes.

[seti2020]

Oh forgot to mention. Didnt have to take anything out of tank. Didnt effect tank at all. All critters survived process.

Plus, it might seem like more work know, but drilling will make you much happier in long run. I would be suprised if you could get two pumps working in harmony without constant tinkering and/or flooding.

Good luck

[bs21]

seti what about glass or anything else in tank? I guess i could put somethin in tank to prevent that somewhat

[seti2020]

Well First I dropped water level a couple inches. Just below the bottom of drill hole. Then I put some filter floss on the inside of were I was drilling to catch any glass particles. However, most of the glass dust was on outside of tank. So, glass pieces (dust) was never a problem. I think I inhaled more glass dust the fish.

None of the critters seemed to mind. Within a couple of hours after I started the pumps back up the tank was back to normal. Tested for ammonia spikes for the next couple of days, just to be sure, and I never detected anything.

As far as drill bits, I used about two per hole. This was mostly because I couldnt keep drill bits wet with water when I was drilling. If I could of keep bits wet and lubricated, the I probably would of only needed one. Oh yah, the cheapest place for buying bits was at Super Walmart, about half the priece of lowes.

For my sump, I used a marineland betta tank. The width was the same size as the back of my tank. The main reason I put a sump in was because I needed to hook up a chiller. And this was the best way.

Oh almost forgot. I would get a check valve for your return line to tank. In case your not familiar with check valves, it stops siphons if you lose power. Depending how you hook up your plumbing you might need this.

[!wrass!]

If you are going to do it, go all the way. This is what I am in the process of doing. It use to be a 24Gallon NanoCube
http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u47/kmcclain1119/DSCN5810.jpg
Here (http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1187797) is the thread.

[seti2020]

Thats cool !wrass!. Eventually I am going to have to tear down my tank to move. But when I set it back up, Im going to set it up like your tank.

[bs21]

thanks for the replys. I will have to move my tank before the end of the year so i am going to set it all up w/ a homemade overflow but do my best to plumb it so when i move it i will be able to drill it then just reattach with a little tweaking of the plumbing. Thanks again!
if anyone else has added a sump/fuge under their nano i would love to see pics

[s0hcsleeper]

heres the solution you are looking for....


no drilling

less than $10 in materials for the siphon overflow

http://www.3reef.com/forums/attachments/i-made/5936d1160115249-nice-cheap-diy-overflow-overflow.jpg

http://www.sirensongboutique.com/animals/images/overflow.gif

http://www.3reef.com/forums/attachments/i-made/4411d1108229259-nice-cheap-diy-overflow-overflowmydry.jpg

reference thread

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1183660

You should be able to get a really good idea from those pictures of how this works.

This thing will also never break siphon...
No unsitely box in the main display...
If done properly will set your water level perfectly in the main display...
easier water changes through sump/fuge

really you have nothing to lose...

go out buy some pvc....and start playing with buckets in your tub and you will get how this thing works

good luck!

I used 1" pvc on my NC24 and it easily handles 400gph...for lower flow and space constraints you can try 3/4"

now go play!

[bs21]

awsome this is 10 times better than what i was planning on doing! Thanks for posting this. It seems so simple why i can't think of that in the first place who knows.

[s0hcsleeper]

this might help you out a bit in making things as noise free as possible

http://xd1.xanga.com/9d4c115339233149206067/b110992750.jpg

The new red line would also be the water level if power was to go out.

Another thing is you should definitely get an aqualifter pump for the top U with the one-way check valve.

The aqualifter pump is made by Tom's and runs no more than $15

The check valve can be found at walmart for $2

But make sure you play around in the tub first...some pipe designs might cause excessive flushing noises.

[bs21]

awsome thanks again

[bs21]

what is the aqualifter/checkvalve for? I saaume in case air bubbles collect in the top of the tube?

[johng723]

to put on any overflow type design onto a nanocube you would have to remove the false wall that is currently installed in the aquarium though wouldn't you? I'm also thinking of setting up a sump for my 24g nano cube but I also do not want to tear my aquarium down to do it as it is an established tank. How would one go about removing the false wall with minimal stress to the livestock?

[s0hcsleeper]

you dont need to remove the false wall...with the pvc design siphon overflow you just need to piece the pvc together and slide it down into one of the back chambers...trim the hood and youre good to go.

"what is the aqualifter/checkvalve for? I saaume in case air bubbles collect in the top of the tube?"

yes thats exactly it...you do not want airbubbles as it might break the siphon...the check valve and aqualifter also help the siphon start and remain active. its really cheap security.

[johng723]

Okay, but if the false wall is kept in tact and the overflow design is used as well, not all of the water would be going into the overflow and into the sump right? Some water would be able to bypass the siphon overflow and continue on to the 3rd chamber return pump which would pump the water back into the tank. I'm pretty sure that's not a bad thing but how much water would be able to bypass the siphon?