Heated Sump Distance

LbulletM · Mar 10, 2017

I'm planning a bigger build wayyyy in advance. The room that I keep my tank in will be a bar room once I refinish it, so I'll be putting in a false wall and building in a 90-150 gallon tank. In that room, there is a storage closet ~4 foot deep, and then adjacent to that on the other side of the wall is the laundry room where I make my RODI.

I'm wondering about the feasibility of putting my sump in either the closet, or in the laundry room. If I keep my heater remote and have my sump at 78 degrees, am I going to be losing appreciable heat to bring the display down a degree or two in a heavily air conditioned basement, or will my flow be fast enough to minimize the contact time with cool air around the piping? If so, what's the play here? Heat the sump to ~80?

Also, what are the benefits/detractors of a remote sump vs a sump under the tank aside from being able to use gravity more effectively for your overflow into an under tank sump?

donnievaz · Mar 10, 2017

Insulate your pipe with foam sleeves.

LbulletM · Mar 10, 2017

donnievaz said:
Insulate your pipe with foam sleeves.

Touche.

fragit · Mar 10, 2017

I live in Maine, tank is on the first floor, sump is in the basement. It is sometimes something like 60 degrees in my basement. Temp stays very stable in my DT between 78-79. You should be just fine, with what ever you decide to do as long as you have a big enough heater.

jason2459 · Mar 10, 2017

I've had a basement sump for many many years and about a 13 foot run over and 9 foot vertical climb. The heaters are in the sump and keep my DT with in a degree from the Sump temp just fine. Basement as a whole is about 5 degrees colder then the rest of the house temps for a reference.