Can someone help me with sump design?

afk-47 · May 19, 2021

Specs:
40gal breeder as a sump
75 gal using Eshopp Prodigy Large with bean animal drain (1" pipe)
Main drain to Thieling compact rollermat
Secondary into rollermat/skimmer/heater compartment
Emergency drain going into the sump area

Should I put the roller mat and skimmer in the same compartment or separate them?
I love the idea and look of rolling chaeto. From my understanding, water vents need to be located on the bottom of the baffle. Glass or PVC board or acrylic baffles?

here are some pics of what I got going so far.

jda · May 19, 2021

40b is a good choice for a sump - lots of options. My generic advice is twofold. First, this is so custom that your design is for you and you alone - input is nice, but definitely figure out what works for you. Second, most sumps last longer than equipment, so don't make one that is too specialized.

For example, roller might be cool now, but you might want a second skimmer some day, or the next best thingy... so make the compartments a bit oversized so that they are versatile.

I mostly make mine with two compartments. Return is also the skimmer compartment of about 8-10 inches and then have the rest just a final area for the return pump and whatever else I come up with. The water flows over the top of the first to the second. Simple and boring, but it works. I like that I have a massive amount of gallons in the final chamber if something happens. For example, I have a 60 inch sump under my 240. First 20 inches is 12 inches deep for a skimmer... next 48 is all the same level for the return pump and heaters. I keep a few more skimmers in that final chamber. The final chamber holds like 70 gallons which is handy if I need the tank to run without the ATO or whatever - I had a ATO fail while I was out of town and when I got back, there was about 20 gallons left and everything still ran just fine. This could have been a disaster with a 10 gallon final chamber.

afk-47 · May 19, 2021

I like the idea of using PVC board and somewhat wedging it in rather than silicon in. I would allow for changes in the future or even on the fly to be a lot easier to do.