Is this plumbing possible?

[Falconeer]

Ok all, so i'm fighting some algae/nutrient issues. I know a carbon/GFO reactor could really help, but i'd like to see if I could work a sump/fuge into it.

Currently, I have a standard 10 gallon glass tank. Unfortunately, it's kept on the kitchen counter and I am unable to keep/plumb anything underneath it. While it would technically be possible for me to do so, I do not want to empty and drill the tank. How would I go about plumbing a sump/fuge if it is going to be on the same level as my DT? Is it even possible to plumb a tank without drilling it?

The plan would be to have the (from birds eye view, with an XY grid overlaying the area--sorry, i'm awful with Sketchup, so I hope you understand me...haha) 10 Gallon DT on the right side X-axis, with the 5 gallon (or 2.5 gallon...that's yet to be decided) sump/fuge perpendicular on the bottom y-axis.

So...that leads me back to my main question. Is it possible to plumb a sump/fuge on the same level as a DT (without drilling)?

Thanks,
Falc.

[lordofthereef]

Being that it is on the same level I feel it would be extremely difficult unless the sump/fuge is much shorter than the DT. If you do make it much shorter you could do a HOB or PVC overflow and plumb it much the same way you would something under the tank. For what it's worth, I don't feel drilling the tank would make much of a difference in your application.

[Falconeer]

Being that it is on the same level I feel it would be extremely difficult unless the sump/fuge is much shorter than the DT. If you do make it much shorter you could do a HOB or PVC overflow and plumb it much the same way you would something under the tank. For what it's worth, I don't feel drilling the tank would make much of a difference in your application.

Ok. I can go measure the tanks. I don't know about the 5 gallon, but I believe (from memory) that the 2.5 gallon I have in mind is about half the height of my 10.

[nikon187]

a 2.5g fuge will do little to reduce nutrients. One will have to be lower for gravity to work

[lordofthereef]

Is the display only 10g? My fuge is about 2 gallons (actually 2g water capacity) on my 10g and it works great IMO. Granted, I don't really have a "before" value to compare it to.

[Falconeer]

Is the display only 10g? My fuge is about 2 gallons (actually 2g water capacity) on my 10g and it works great IMO. Granted, I don't really have a "before" value to compare it to.

Yeah, the display is only a 10 gallon.

[Psychographic]

A sump/fuge does NOT need to be lower than the DT to work. I had a 10g sump next to my 30g DT for 2 years and it worked fine.

To do this the top of both tanks need to be at the same height. I made a platform to raise the 10 to equal the 30 and used a pump to transfer the water through a DIY skimmer for the DT to the sump and a U-tube to transfer the water from the sump back to the DT. You need to make sure the U-tube can't get blocked and oversize it for the flow rate of your pump.

I would get another 10 and place it directly behind the current one, using the U-tube/pump to transfer the water from tank to tank.

[steamer51]

Rather than use a U-tube that may loose siphon you could drill the smaller tank (be careful of thin glass that breaks easily) and put it behind the display on a level platform so it is higher. Pump from the display up to the sump/fuge that would gravity feed down to the display so the pods would not have to go through the pump. If you opted for another 10 gallon you could drill the new one, place it on a platform to raise it up, transfer your livestock to the drilled 10 gallon and use the old one as a sump/fuge behind the new display that gravity drains into it.

[Zestay]

what about a hang on back fuge ?

[bikeguy1]

If the DT is on the kitchen counter why don't you just use your sink for a sump/fuge? This would solve your height and space issue plus give you lots of free time once your wife leaves you.

Happy Holidays!

[Frick-n-Frags]

If you can put your sump/fuge thing up higher than the DT, you could rig it like from an easy-2-drill small restaurant lexan(indestructible plastic tubs) or w/e to overflow back into your DT. You then put a powerhead in the DT to pump water up to the fuge thingy :D