DIY Sump Design Questions

[bradv123]

Hi,
I'm currently working on a sump design (20gl) for my 75.
I mostly wanted to see what people think of my design and if there is anything I should change before building it.
I was also curious if I could put a skimmer in the same section as I have labeled refugium (will mostly be small pieces of live rock and chaeto) or if I need to make that 2 separate sections. I don't have a skimmer yet so I also wasn't sure how big to make that section.
As a side note too about the bubble trap before the return. I plan on making two small trays to fit in the 2 inch section so I can use media bags in the future if I want to.
Thanks,
Brad

 

[glb]

Looks nice! I wouldn’t put the skimmer in the same chamber as the refugium unless the refugium will be totally contained so algae won’t interfere with the skimmer pump. FWIW, I didn’t put a bubble trap in my sump. By the time the water got to the return pump, bubbles weren’t a problem. If you take out the bubble trap you also get 3” more in the sump. You could put another divider in to keep the skimmer and refugium separate. I don’t have a refugium, but I did build my own sump and it’s worked out great for me. Good luck!

 

[bradv123]

Looks nice! I wouldn’t put the skimmer in the same chamber as the refugium unless the refugium will be totally contained so algae won’t interfere with the skimmer pump. FWIW, I didn’t put a bubble trap in my sump. By the time the water got to the return pump, bubbles weren’t a problem. If you take out the bubble trap you also get 3” more in the sump. You could put another divider in to keep the skimmer and refugium separate. I don’t have a refugium, but I did build my own sump and it’s worked out great for me. Good luck!

That looks really good, I like the color scheme! Thanks for the advice too

 

[glb]

That looks really good, I like the color scheme! Thanks for the advice too

Thanks! I bought white pvc and painted the above water parts with the type of spray paint that absorbs into plastic (Fusion is the brand I think). It was much cheaper than buying colored pvc and you have more color choices.

 

[Philly Reefer]

I dont think bubble trap is useful after the drain. The skimmer will produce some micro bubbles.
I also agree with separating the refugium and skimmer.
Here is mine using the baffle I bought from ebay.

 

[bradv123]

I dont think bubble trap is useful after the drain. The skimmer will produce some micro bubbles.
I also agree with separating the refugium and skimmer.
Here is mine using the baffle I bought from ebay.

Separating the skimmer and refugium seems like its probably the best idea. I Don't have a skimmer to plan for so what is a good width and height for that section? I've heard before that 8 inch depth is usually pretty good for most skimmers? How wide is your skimmer section? That's basically the exact type of layout I was trying to make.

 

[Philly Reefer]

My skimmer chamber is 7", refugium 10" and return 5"

With the baffle, it has the adjustable dividers after the refugium. The highest it can go is 9" depth
Not sure the lowest but i think its 5 or 6"

 

[glb]

Separating the skimmer and refugium seems like its probably the best idea. I Don't have a skimmer to plan for so what is a good width and height for that section? I've heard before that 8 inch depth is usually pretty good for most skimmers? How wide is your skimmer section? That's basically the exact type of layout I was trying to make.

Ideal water levels vary with each skimmer. Your best bet is to make the chamber deeper than you’ll need (say 9”). You can always raise the skimmer by sitting it on something (egg crate or legos in my tank) but you can’t lower it. Just fiddle with it once it’s set up until you get the best performance. I would choose your skimmer before you build your baffles.

 

[Philly Reefer]

Here is photo when I just siliconed my sump.

Build Thread - Starting with a 40 Breeder Build

Well.. its been while since my last update. I have primed and painted my stand cover. Got my AI Prime 16HD Bubble Magus Curve Elite 5 And just now... Cut and cemented my return line Now if only I finished the 2nd drain line

www.reef2reef.com

 

[bradv123]

Here is photo when I just siliconed my sump.

Build Thread - Starting with a 40 Breeder Build

Well.. its been while since my last update. I have primed and painted my stand cover. Got my AI Prime 16HD Bubble Magus Curve Elite 5 And just now... Cut and cemented my return line Now if only I finished the 2nd drain line

www.reef2reef.com

Thats really helpful, thank you. Do you think something like this will work better that my original drawings?

 

[Philly Reefer]

Thats really helpful, thank you. Do you think something like this will work better that my original drawings?

that is almost the same with my sump. I dont think that 1st bubble trap will work as much for you. The drain pipe is already in its own chamber that will work as a bubble trap.
Then the skimmer will produce bubble hence that bubble trap after filter sock is useless.
you can move that dividers to the last bubble trap. that would make it a true bubble trap. like your 1st design. but with what I have now, I dont see any issue with micro bubble

 

[Hugh Mann]

+1 to buying your equipment and building the sump around it rather than trying to buy equipment to fit your sump. That way you get exactly what you want.

 

[bradv123]

that is almost the same with my sump. I dont think that 1st bubble trap will work as much for you. The drain pipe is already in its own chamber that will work as a bubble trap.
Then the skimmer will produce bubble hence that bubble trap after filter sock is useless.
you can move that dividers to the last bubble trap. that would make it a true bubble trap. like your 1st design. but with what I have now, I dont see any issue with micro bubble

Ohhhh, I didn't understand what you were saying before about that first trap. I moved that one over and that gives me a 7" skimmer width with 8" water depth, a 9" refugium with 7.5" water depth, and a 5" return section

 

[Philly Reefer]

Ok yeah that is the same with mine except that mine doesn't have that extra baffle for the bubble trap.

I agree with @Hugh Mann that it better you buy the skimmer 1st then design the sump around it.

My skimmer is around 5" but the depth they want 9.5" to 11" which it won't happen with my baffle. But I did read around that my skimmer works around 7 to 9" from other reefers. Mine currently in 9" but my tank is still cycling. So I don't know if it will work.

 

[JReef85]

One thing to remember with putting in permanent filter sock section. I did this on my last build and on my current sump I kept it as simple as possible. You may want to get a roller filter in the future and you will be forcing yourself to get the klir (not saying that filter isn’t good). The only think I added to my sump this time was one baffle prior to the return. I just put a piece of acrylic across towards the top that causes the water to rotate upwards. This upwards rotation stops any bubbles from getting into my sump and gives me maximum space to put in there what I want

 

[bradv123]

Ok yeah that is the same with mine except that mine doesn't have that extra baffle for the bubble trap.

I agree with @Hugh Mann that it better you buy the skimmer 1st then design the sump around it.

My skimmer is around 5" but the depth they want 9.5" to 11" which it won't happen with my baffle. But I did read around that my skimmer works around 7 to 9" from other reefers. Mine currently in 9" but my tank is still cycling. So I don't know if it will work.

I agree with @Hugh Mann as well, I really SHOULD do that. I was planning on cycling without it anyway so I'm probably not going to buy one until around a month from when I start the cycle. I'm leaning towards a Reef Octopus Class 110 which will fit in that section and be about the right height

 

[R.Weller]

If you are planning 3 baffles for the bubble trap, I would use Under-Over-Under instead of Over-Under-Over. Doing this, you will have much easier access to the bottom of the sump in the event that you either need that space, or something live & meaningful gets trapped inside the bubble trap. It works the same & is easier to maintain.

PS - I read that tip in a book when we were desiging our first sump & I'm very glad we followed it.

 

[RocketEngineer]

The problem with under-over-under bubble traps is that it can trap proteins on the surface of both sections as the only surface agitation is in the gap between the baffles. I would rather have enough space between the baffles to use a siphon to get the gunk out vs having a layer of scum on the surface of the sump. JMO.