Gonna start with the sump

[KittKatt]

Hello y'all, I am Kitt, and new to the forum. Also rather new to salt tanks. I have been helping a friend with his tank, which has undergone some terrible transformations over the last year. It is basically dieing, and he is not physically able to continue maintaining it alone.

Well, one of the pumps in his sump area went out. Impeller broke. I found one, replaced it, and was putting it back to see if it worked. (It does not) While doing this, the water flow hose from the tank separated from the pipe leading to the sock filter. And the pipes for the return also slipped apart.

No, the house is not flooded.
Yes, water is still flowing and returning.

This went from a quick pump replacement to Oh S*** with speeds of which I have never seen before. Repairs to the plumbing in a sump system is not common knowledge for me, and a search online only turned my thinker into a bowl of mush with the amount of information I found. However, no matter how I worded my search, this forum would pop up.

So here I am. = )

Now before anyone gets on me about why I am not asking my friend who owns the tank what to do I should explain why he cannot maintain his tank. He had a stroke almost a year ago, which caused his physical and mental health to decline severely. His memory and speech were hit pretty hard, and he gets frustrated when he can't recall something or say things correctly. I feel tht asking for help would be too stressful for him right now.

Ok, the sump tank. It's pretty basic. Water flows from the bottom of the tank, goes through a sock filter, gets pumped into a protein skimmer (that's the pump that broke), cascades down into another area, then gets pumped back up to the tank. I attached some photos for your viewing pleasure. Or pain. Pick one.

The flow tube comes down, makes a big loop around the skimmer, and then goes into the sock. The return makes a dip into the back area of the flow tank before heading back up. PVC pipes and plastic hoses make up most of the plumbing. Ideally I would like to arrange the downflow so it doesn't make the loop around the skimmer. Why it is like this? He doesn't recall, just tht there was a reason. And proceeded to tell me all about his RCA model planes he used to build.

Any suggestions are appreciated. This will be the first step in getting this tank back in shape.

Thank you!
K

 

[Kooma]

looks like the loop was needed as it’s too tight to get the drain into that sock fitting without it. You could remove the soft to hard to soft on the drain and put a soft S from the drain (top left) into the sock bulkhead in the glass. Those rotted hose clamps are a flood wait in to happen. Grab some stainless steel and barb fittings instead.

If it were me, I would spin the sump 180 degrees, and hard line from the tank drain to the sock chamber. The return could then be ram straight up to the return on the tank instead of across the sump. This would give you more room to make it to the sock, and remove the flex on the return.

Let me know if you need more help explaining.

 

[KittKatt]

looks like the loop was needed as it’s too tight to get the drain into that sock fitting without it. You could remove the soft to hard to soft on the drain and put a soft S from the drain (top left) into the sock bulkhead in the glass. Those rotted hose clamps are a flood wait in to happen. Grab some stainless steel and barb fittings instead.

If it were me, I would spin the sump 180 degrees, and hard line from the tank drain to the sock chamber. The return could then be ram straight up to the return on the tank instead of across the sump. This would give you more room to make it to the sock, and remove the flex on the return.

Let me know if you need more help explaining.

Thanks for the reply!

Moving the sump tank is not an option. It's under the main in a two door cabinet tht has a wood piece between the doors as a stopper. There is not much room to navigate under there, so I am sure you are correct about the loop.

The soft S, that could be done using the same type of pipe for the return, yes? It's the accordion looking pipe in the very back.

And totally agree about the clamps! He has some new ones in the garage I plan on using.

Yes, I would love some explaining about the 180 flip. I think I know what you mean with the hard line and such, just want clarification if you don't mind.

Thanks again!
K

 

[Kooma]

I would take some of the existing soft line from the tank to a hardware store to find the right size. Also take the sock cover with black bulkhead with you and find the parts needed to go from that bulkhead to the soft line using a barb fitting.

From the barb on the tank drain coming down, put a new soft hose on this barb and run it to the sump sock port with your new barb.

I expect you will need a glue in barb, often called a street barb, to go into the sump sock bulkhead. This will remove multiple clamps, the hard section in between the soft, and should flow better.

be sure to leave the soft S line long enough that it curves gracefully and doesn’t kink at the corners.

 

[Kooma]

Can that sock be moved from the front of the sump to the back? That would let water come straight down and you probably wouldn’t need to buy anything and can reuse the flex line he has just cut shorter.

 

[KittKatt]

Can that sock be moved from the front of the sump to the back? That would let water come straight down and you probably wouldn’t need to buy anything and can reuse the flex line he has just cut shorter.

Yes, the back sock is useable. Personally I would prefer to use the front one. It's easier for my friend to access once his mobility and balance get better, as well as easier for me too, lol! However, until the sump system is 100% working again the back sock is going to be out to use.

We took a trip to the hardware store, and I found this super flexible tubing tht is used for sink drain repairs. It includes some extras with it, like a new clamp and reducer. The ends of the tube look like they will fit where I need them to, and I can cut it to size with just scissors. It does not kink up, and I think I might go back and purchase a couple more of them. I have a feeling they will be very useful to keep on hand. I will be sure to post pictures of the end result, and possibly some random point in the middle.

Also, it doesn't sound like you described turning the sump 180°. I envisioned it with the down flow where the return pump is and the return where the sock filters are. The way I saw it was PVC across the length of the tank underbelly and letting gravity move the water. I question the return pump's remaining days, and with the skimmer pump not working I know another will be so to follow. It the return only has to maintain a quick 3ft burst to the tank instead of the 6ft run it does now,maybe the life expenctcy of the pump can be extended.

I once again thank you for your assistance!

Look for new posts from me every now and then. This is gonna be one heck of a project. I am so excited!
Queque the clapping and giggling and ear to ear grin

K

 

[KittKatt]

So here are a couple photos of the new line for the drain side. Next is getting a new skimmer. The tank is 100gal, including the sump area. He is on a budget, and doesn't want to spend more than $150 on the skimmer. We are open to suggestions if you know of any brands we could look at.