View Full Version : Final sump design
crigsby
02/18/2009, 12:19 AM
So I am in the process of setting up a new 70 gallon mixed reef and I have been reading up on the sump design for the tank. The sump/refugium will be made with a 29 gallon tank. I can't decide which sump/refugium design to go with. The first design from left to right would drain into first area with skimmer then go into the fuge then through bubble trap to return pump. The second design would split the drain going into the first section to the skimmer then to the third section being the fuge with the return in the middle. Which would be a better design and why. Any pictures or drawings would be great. Thanks for the repies ahead of time.
tkeracer619
02/18/2009, 12:29 AM
I have design 1 but without the fuge. Why I think it is better...
Skimmer gets the big stuff but not all of it, I want a portion of the sump to be calm and allow detritus to settle to the bottom. The longer it takes for the water to get to the return the longer time it has to seperate.
A fuge pulls stuff out a skimmer doesn't such as phosphates so it doesn't matter that it is after the skimmer. In fact it will stay cleaner after the skimmer.
On my 6 foot sump the middle section gives a good amount of time for settling. I pull a huge amount of stuff out with a python monthly. I am glad it doesn't make it back into the display.
ludnix
02/18/2009, 05:07 AM
Here's my sump:
http://www.someawe.com/uploads/120gallon/December/sump.jpg
The water drains into bubble towers on the right which bleed into the skimmer section, this is done to prevent excess micro bubbles. There is then a baffle to keep any bubbles from the skimmer out of my return section.
The refugium comes after the baffles and skimmer so that the skimmer doesn't remove any of the beneficial life such as the copepods and other crustaceans, this way some of those will make it to the return and up to the tank.
reefscape15
02/18/2009, 08:58 AM
100% in agreement with Eric's setup! Very nice design to eliminate bubbles into the rest of the sump, and NEVER filter your fuge return water in ANY way! Filtering the outlet of a fuge is basically just eliminating the point of having a fuge
crigsby
02/18/2009, 12:34 PM
bump
crigsby
02/20/2009, 09:24 PM
So should I put the bubble trap after the skimmer or before the return pump?
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