dannylewin
07/28/2011, 12:48 PM
Hi,
We got our 120G tank (4ftx2ftx2ft) from a guy of craigslist, its in pretty good condition and included the live rock, sump tank (30G), pumps, testing kit ect...
For some reason he took the walls out of the sump which left me asking the question "how can the skimmer be doing its job properly?"...
I'm wanting to know how to set the sump up properly as our return pump broke last night so figured it would be a good time to figure this out before getting a new one to make sure its all gonna work properly.
I have a pretty good idea of how the walls should go in the sump, but my issue is figuring out what pumps to use. The return pump was a rio 3100 (900GPH) and the skimmer pump is a rio 2500 (782 GPH). Should the skimmer pump and the return pump be the same so that the return section of the sump isnt drained faster than the skimmer pump can put out water?
Also. He marked 2 lines on the sump but when the water is at the highest mark, its only 10 gallons. Is this an issue? I notice that when the sump is fuller the skimmer works better. But when its low i cant get the bubbles to go anywhere near the collection cup!
Also I read that you shouldnt really be using the return pump for circulation and to use powerheads!? It came with these 2 underwater fan looking things. But I feel like the flow is too strong? The anemone looks like hes holding on for dear life lol... nah.. its not THAT bad but should I get weaker ones? And where should they be placed? on the back wall aimed at the front?
Thanks allot for any advice anyone can provide!
Danny
Ps. I have transfered the skimmer pump over to the return hoses for now and put the fans in there to circulate the water until i can get this figured out. Hopefully by sat!
We got our 120G tank (4ftx2ftx2ft) from a guy of craigslist, its in pretty good condition and included the live rock, sump tank (30G), pumps, testing kit ect...
For some reason he took the walls out of the sump which left me asking the question "how can the skimmer be doing its job properly?"...
I'm wanting to know how to set the sump up properly as our return pump broke last night so figured it would be a good time to figure this out before getting a new one to make sure its all gonna work properly.
I have a pretty good idea of how the walls should go in the sump, but my issue is figuring out what pumps to use. The return pump was a rio 3100 (900GPH) and the skimmer pump is a rio 2500 (782 GPH). Should the skimmer pump and the return pump be the same so that the return section of the sump isnt drained faster than the skimmer pump can put out water?
Also. He marked 2 lines on the sump but when the water is at the highest mark, its only 10 gallons. Is this an issue? I notice that when the sump is fuller the skimmer works better. But when its low i cant get the bubbles to go anywhere near the collection cup!
Also I read that you shouldnt really be using the return pump for circulation and to use powerheads!? It came with these 2 underwater fan looking things. But I feel like the flow is too strong? The anemone looks like hes holding on for dear life lol... nah.. its not THAT bad but should I get weaker ones? And where should they be placed? on the back wall aimed at the front?
Thanks allot for any advice anyone can provide!
Danny
Ps. I have transfered the skimmer pump over to the return hoses for now and put the fans in there to circulate the water until i can get this figured out. Hopefully by sat!