Building a sump

Kehaulani · Dec 20, 2014

Hey everyone.
I am upgrading my 48 gal reef tank into a 75 gallon with a sump. The sump that came with the tank is a 20 long but everything that I've been reading says you should have a bigger sump. I would like to be able to fit everything in my sump. A refugium, skimmer, heater, uv sterilizer, carbon media, probes, ect. So my question is what would be a good size sump for a 75 gal tank? And another question I have is would it be better to put the tank right in the stand or in the basement? My display tank is in the living room above my basement. What are the benefits of having the sump in the stand vs in the basement?

TurboReef · Dec 20, 2014

As far as the size of the tank you use to make your sump, go with the biggest tank you can fit in your stand. Personally, I don't like doing a sump in the basement with the tank on the floor above it because it requires a BIG pump. do you already have a stand for your 75 or are you going to build it?

Reefing Madness · Dec 20, 2014

How does a sump work? | Melev's Reef

redfishbluefish · Dec 20, 2014

I really like the 40 breeder tanks for sumps....you're able to fit everything. Not familiar with ND, but if you have Petco's out there, they run 1$ per gallon sales very frequently. Here's my 40 breeder under a 90 gallon DT.

JMSKI333 · Dec 20, 2014

+1 on 40B. Petco also does the $1 on 55g tanks which could be nice for a sump if you have the headroom.

I just moved my sump to my basement after having it under my stand in my bedroom for 6 years. Let me just say it was the best thing that I ever did. It is about 80% quieter, and I have more room than I can ever ask for in my basement opposed to under my stand. Pumping water from the basement is no big deal. I am doing it with a submersible Diablo 10500 (discontinued) DC pump not even on full blast. From what I understand, the Diablo DC 10500 and Jabao DC12000 are the same pump and they are cheap. I bought a Jabao DC12000 to keep as backup.

Kehaulani · Dec 21, 2014

It's funny you ask that cause I work at petco. And we have our dollar per gallon sale coming up in January which is why I'm asking this question. I have a pine stand for my 75 gallon. I wanted to go with a 40 breeder but it won't fit under the stand which is why I thought I would put it in the basement.

JMSKI333 would you be able to post a picture of your set up in the basement so I can kinda get an idea of it. I thought it would be a lot easier to access it and work on the sump if it wasn't in my stand but other people say it's too hard to run it outside the tank when the tank is sitting high above it (my living room). Have you noticed any other benefits of having it placed in your basement?