New to us 200

[Brfoster77]

Good day all! So it's been recommended to throw out a build thread, so here goes nothing.

New to us, 200 gallon, dual overflow, with eshopps R-200 sump, with plumbing, powerhead, return pump, heater, and about 200lbs of dead (been dry 4 years) "live rock". Finally got everything hooked up, plumbed, (3 days of leaking bulkheads), just got the canopy built last weekend, and lighting installed. Tank is circulating now, awaiting residents, which are in the "hot tub" (as my 5 year old calls it).

My biggest concern, do I have enough flow in my sump, and are my drains working at the best they can. My drains are dual Durso style, (from what I've seen on the web) but are only 1 inch in height difference. Nothing drains back when I cut power, and the sump will run dry before the tank overflows. This exact setup was used prior to me getting it, but I dunno how the plumbing or how much flow the previous owner had. I'll attach a few photos for reference.

 

[thomas_neil]

As long as water is flowing through the sump with the pump on everything should be working fine. You want enough water in the sump to not run the pump dry, I like to keep a couple inches of water above the pump in the return section. You also want to make sure your ATO isnt always dumping water into the sump when the pump is on, that means your pushing more water into the tank then the overflow can handle. You don't need crazy flow through your sump, a lot of people try for 10x but it really depends on your setup and what your sump/over flow can handle.

 

[Brfoster77]

Good info. Thank you. What would cause random "flushing" of one of the drains?

 

[thomas_neil]

Could be emergency over flow, could have a little to much flow on the return that the main over flow can’t keep up so water goes down the emergeny

 

[Brfoster77]

OK. I have 2 Durso (diy) drains, one is only 1 inch shorter than the other, by previous owner, I just re-used what they already had. My return line is one 1" that splits into two 1" lines. My drains are 1.5 that reduces at the bulkhead to 1" flex that individually drain into the sump. If that's relevant.

 

[thomas_neil]

Try turning your return pump down if you have a dc pump and see if that helps

 

[am3gross]

You can also put a valve on the drain pipes to help "fine tune" your drain

 

[Brfoster77]

I have a ball valve on the return line, I'll try cutting it down a little. It doesn't do it all the time, just randomly for about 15 minutes. I'll have to change/redo the drains to add a valve to each.