Second Hand Sump- Which Chambers are Which?

AllShamNoWow · Dec 29, 2020

Hi Reef 2 Reef Members,

I have been interested in getting back into the hobby after a 3 hear hiatus and picked up a used 80 gallon display with a 40 gallon sump off of Kijiji. Problem is, I'm only used to keeping FOWLR in a 29 gallon tank with only a hang on back filter, so I'm new to the sump game.

The tank itself came with the following items that were supposed to go into the sump:

1) An old Deltec protein skimmer
2) Marine Pure Bio Filter Media Block
3) 2x Boxes of Marne Pure Bio Balls
4) A refugium filled with reef mud and a 4" deep sand bed
5) A return pump
6) A heater

I think the return pump is supposed to go into the first chamber in the sump picture, and the skimmer only fits into chamber 2. Otherwise, I have no idea where everything else is supposed to go. Can someone with more experience point me in the right direction and let me know the most ideal places to put things? Can you also let me know the best place to plumb the return line?

Should I also add a filter sock to the sump setup?

Also, should I get rid of the reef mud in the refugium? The plan is to fill the refugium with chaeto and leave the sand bed. Will the reef mud add anything?

Thanks in advance for everyone's help!

tsouth · Dec 29, 2020

Will you please send a picture from the side, and or multiples? The reason being is that the baffle height needs to be depicted in order to see what the direction of flow is.

Usually, the lowest baffle would dictate the area with the least amount of water. This may be where the return section is.

The baffles where two are put together are going to be bubble traps to keep microbubbles at a minimum. So it makes sense to have one near chamber 4 or 5 since that's where water enters at its highest velocity.

I think it may be this way

4 - Entry/Drain
2 - Refugium
1 - Skimmer
3 - Misc (Carbon/GFO/Etc)
5 - Return

I don't see any areas where the water goes above the baffle that separates both sides therefore I assume water travels clockwise based off of your picture. I'm also thrown off by the miracle mud in chamble 4, which you should definitely discard. Having a refugium here means there's only one entry and no exit? Would need more pictures to see this and to make further observations!

Definitely see what others have to say!

AllShamNoWow · Dec 29, 2020

tsouth said:
Will you please send a picture from the side, and or multiples? The reason being is that the baffle height needs to be depicted in order to see what the direction of flow is.

Usually, the lowest baffle would dictate the area with the least amount of water. This may be where the return section is.

The baffles where two are put together are going to be bubble traps to keep microbubbles at a minimum. So it makes sense to have one near chamber 4 or 5 since that's where water enters at its highest velocity.

I think it may be this way

4 - Entry/Drain
2 - Refugium
1 - Skimmer
3 - Misc (Carbon/GFO/Etc)
5 - Return

I don't see any areas where the water goes above the baffle that separates both sides therefore I assume water travels clockwise based off of your picture. I'm also thrown off by the miracle mud in chamble 4, which you should definitely discard. Having a refugium here means there's only one entry and no exit? Would need more pictures to see this and to make further observations!

Definitely see what others have to say!

Hi tsouth,

See below for the baffle height. I took pictures of all 4 sides of the sump and labelled everything according to the diagram in my previous post.

Based on the height of the baffles, it looks like chamber 4 drains to chamber 2. Chamber 2 then drains to chamber 1.

There is a 0.5" gab between the large glass baffle on chamber 3 and the bottom of the tank. Would that serve as a bubble trap?

There is no way for water to flow between chambers 2, 3, 4, or 5. The central dividing piece of glass is too tall for any water flow.

tsouth · Dec 29, 2020

Got it!

Chamber 4 is definitely a drain, and the area the water falls into from the main tank. You can put a filter sock here if you want to but plan accordingly for the future with regards to your plumbing. Hard plumbing or soft plumbing is going to make a big difference in your approach here. I would not start off with filter socks, but rather plan so that if you were ever wanting to add a filter sock holder, you can do so. Do research with regards to different setups and most importantly, noise levels with the pipe above and below water, entering into the sock or not.

Also please tell me this - is there mud coming out of the bottom of that chamber? It looks like there is and if so, then it's original purpose was not correct in that chamber. I highly assume it is because it wouldn't make sense for water to go over that large baffle and down, but rather water would go into 4, go under the large baffle, then over the shorter one.

Area 2 is where you would want to put your fuge because the water level is stable. It's also typical to put a fuge before a skimmer but not necessary. Regarding fuges, do it If you really need to. Good rule is not to put something in the tank because it sounds great or others do it, but rather to do them for its sole purpose, like reducing nitrates or giving pods a place to live because your tank needs help in those areas where say a protein skimmer cannot keep up with. I encourage you to leave this area empty in the meantime. Do not use any sort of miracle mud or sand bed, but rather keep it available for a place to add a macro algae if needed in the future.

Area 1 can be used for a skimmer, heaters, media reactor, etc

Area 3 can be used for media, media reactors, ATO sensors.

Area 5 would be your return

Keep in mind that many of these things can live amongst different chambers too. If your heaters are too large for 1 or 3, then place them in 2

AllShamNoWow · Dec 29, 2020

tsouth said:
Got it!

Chamber 4 is definitely a drain, and the area the water falls into from the main tank. You can put a filter sock here if you want to but plan accordingly for the future with regards to your plumbing. Hard plumbing or soft plumbing is going to make a big difference in your approach here. I would not start off with filter socks, but rather plan so that if you were ever wanting to add a filter sock holder, you can do so. Do research with regards to different setups and most importantly, noise levels with the pipe above and below water, entering into the sock or not.

Also please tell me this - is there mud coming out of the bottom of that chamber? It looks like there is and if so, then it's original purpose was not correct in that chamber. I highly assume it is because it wouldn't make sense for water to go over that large baffle and down, but rather water would go into 4, go under the large baffle, then over the shorter one.

Area 2 is where you would want to put your fuge because the water level is stable. It's also typical to put a fuge before a skimmer but not necessary. Regarding fuges, do it If you really need to. Good rule is not to put something in the tank because it sounds great or others do it, but rather to do them for its sole purpose, like reducing nitrates or giving pods a place to live because your tank needs help in those areas where say a protein skimmer cannot keep up with. I encourage you to leave this area empty in the meantime. Do not use any sort of miracle mud or sand bed, but rather keep it available for a place to add a macro algae if needed in the future.

Area 1 can be used for a skimmer, heaters, media reactor, etc

Area 3 can be used for media, media reactors, ATO sensors.

Area 5 would be your return

Keep in mind that many of these things can live amongst different chambers too. If your heaters are too large for 1 or 3, then place them in 2

Hi tsouth,

You are correct. Mud is coming out of the bottom of chamber 4.

I'll clear out the sand bed and mud, make sure water is correctly flowing through.

I'll plumb the tank, put everything in place, and then see how things look.

tsouth · Dec 29, 2020

Hey also keep in mind that when using protein skimmers, they require a minimum amount of water. Check the height of your water levels and place the skimmer in one that fits appropriately.