20 Gallon long sump/skimmer section.

[Charley Diesing]

Okay so I'm making designing a 20 gallon long sump that will be used for my 40 Gallon Breeder. I got a few questions...

Dimensions for sump are 30"Lx12"Wx12"H

My sump will look like this

8" section for drain/skimmer|1.5" for 3 baffle/bubble-trap|8" section for return|12.5" section for refuge.

On the drain line I'm going to have it T off with a ball valve to make the refuge area have a slower water movement.

Some equipment you might wanna know about...

Skimmer: I'm using Eshopps PSK 100 Skimmer, footprint 10" x 5"
Return pump: Mag-5 rated for 500 GPH, footprint 5" x 3.8"
Overflow: 700 GPH Glass-holes overflow kit, footprint 2" X 6" X 6.25"

Q#1 The baffles will be 8" high, and 12" wide, can I go any higher?

Q#2 For the bubble trap at the moment I plan on spacing them 1/2 an inch apart, is this good?

Q#3 What do you guys think of the overall look of the sump? What would you do?

Thanks so much guys, if it wasn't for this forum I don't think I would be starting a saltwater aquarium.

Charley

[SoCalBoo]

#1: I would research the optimum height for the skimmer and tie in the baffle height into that. Keep in mind that you can create a platform for the skimmer (if it likes a height that is a fair amount less than the desired baffle height) out of PVC and other material.

#2: For bubble trap, that is fine, but it might be tough to get a tube down there to clean it out if you need to. You could use a 1/4" line, but it won't have much pull if you get 'gunk' down there. if space is really at a premium, you can make it work. But it would go for 1" if it were me. At 1", you can get a heater down there (nice, high flow, area).

[Charley Diesing]

#1: I would research the optimum height for the skimmer and tie in the baffle height into that. Keep in mind that you can create a platform for the skimmer (if it likes a height that is a fair amount less than the desired baffle height) out of PVC and other material.

#2: For bubble trap, that is fine, but it might be tough to get a tube down there to clean it out if you need to. You could use a 1/4" line, but it won't have much pull if you get 'gunk' down there. if space is really at a premium, you can make it work. But it would go for 1" if it were me. At 1", you can get a heater down there (nice, high flow, area).

I've heard people have the most success between 9"-10" for the Eshopps-PSK 100 skimmer? So do you think I should make it higher? Will 2" be enough if I have pump failure?

[SoCalBoo]

I've heard people have the most success between 9"-10" for the Eshopps-PSK 100 skimmer? So do you think I should make it higher? Will 2" be enough if I have pump failure?

In a 20g, I wouldn't run much higher than 10" baffles. If you run higher, you are losing your free space in the sump.

I can't answer your question about pump failure. Are you referring to return pump? How much of your DT siphons out when your return pump goes off? Does it over flow the sump?

Answer these questions, and I think you will find your answer.

Having your return pump chamber separate from the skimmer chamber serves two purposes - 1) keeping the water level for the skimmer and 2) limiting the amount of water that can go up to the DT if there is a drain failure. Ideally, the amount of water you keep in the return portion of your sump should not overflow the DT if there is a drain failure.

This goes back to my first statement - if you run your baffles too high, your water level in your sump is high, and there might not be sufficient space in your sump to take extra water from the DT when the return pump is off/fails.

So, your sump has to balance 1) the level of water your skimmer needs; 2) enough space to take extra/siphon water from the DT when the return pump is off; and 3) the right amount of water in the return side of the baffles that the return pump won't overflow the DT if there is an issue with the drains.

For me, this has best been achieved by creating a level area for a skimmer in an area that is as small as practical - and leaving the rest for the return pump area. You can adjust the water level in the return pump area as needed.

[Charley Diesing]

In a 20g, I wouldn't run much higher than 10" baffles. If you run higher, you are losing your free space in the sump.

I can't answer your question about pump failure. Are you referring to return pump? How much of your DT siphons out when your return pump goes off? Does it over flow the sump?

Answer these questions, and I think you will find your answer.

Having your return pump chamber separate from the skimmer chamber serves two purposes - 1) keeping the water level for the skimmer and 2) limiting the amount of water that can go up to the DT if there is a drain failure. Ideally, the amount of water you keep in the return portion of your sump should not overflow the DT if there is a drain failure.

This goes back to my first statement - if you run your baffles too high, your water level in your sump is high, and there might not be sufficient space in your sump to take extra water from the DT when the return pump is off/fails.

So, your sump has to balance 1) the level of water your skimmer needs; 2) enough space to take extra/siphon water from the DT when the return pump is off; and 3) the right amount of water in the return side of the baffles that the return pump won't overflow the DT if there is an issue with the drains.

For me, this has best been achieved by creating a level area for a skimmer in an area that is as small as practical - and leaving the rest for the return pump area. You can adjust the water level in the return pump area as needed.

"I can't answer your question about pump failure. Are you referring to return pump? How much of your DT siphons out when your return pump goes off? Does it over flow the sump?"

and yes that's what I meant.

Hmm alright. So you suggest more space in the return chamber? How much more space?