Myvirtue Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 Im gonna redo my sump soon since its not built correctly for high volume movement. I currently have a 50 gallon sump/fug. my overflow is divided so that some of it goes into my fuge. My fuge is on the left side. the middle is my return pump and the right side is the skimmer and where 98% of my overflow goes. Currently my sump can only handle moderate flow and i have to limit my pump to keep the bubbles from going into my tank. Im thinking about changing my design where my fug is in the middle, the left side would be where my return pump would go and the right side would stay as my skimmer and overflow drain, or should i keep the same design and the make the space between by baffles wider? here are pics below to show u what i currently have. Im ok with either design i just need it to be effective for high rates of flow. Ive been looking all over the internet and i guess i havent found the right design to go by. Im just looking for something basic and i was wondering if anyone had any designs or new a good place to look, and yes i looked and melevs site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mcallahan Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 Why are you wanting a high rate of flow? 50-100 gph will be fine through there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myvirtue Posted February 28, 2011 Author Share Posted February 28, 2011 well i didnt mean high rate. just saying im only using a mag 12 atm and my baffles arent keeping up with it, so i have to turn it down alot, to keep the bubbles out of my tank. im thinking i need to pull out the baffles and put more space in between them maybe or redesign it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mcallahan Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 Sounds like you need a smaller pump if you have to turn it down and your baffles aren't keeping up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myvirtue Posted February 28, 2011 Author Share Posted February 28, 2011 (edited) i added the filter pad to my pump. but the bubbles still got through, but when i decreased my return pump and overflow and add another filter pad in the baffle, the micro bubbles stopped i only have a mag 12 running on 120 gallon tank. Im assuming that my overflow is over 5foot 7inches tall might cause more flow due to gravity?. Edited February 28, 2011 by Myvirtue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+mcallahan Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 Holy freaky. Downgrade pumps man. Fast flow = noise, bubbles, issues Less flow through there will give the bubbles a chance to rise and not get back to your pump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robb in Austin Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 +1 to what Mark said. You could probably do with a Mag 7 or 9.5 depending on the overflow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jessie Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 slow flow through your sump / refugium is what you should be aiming for. i just made one this weekend and its working great no bubbles. its a 20 gallon long. The first chamber is about 9 inches and houses my skimmer and media bags. It can also serve as a holding area. Next there are two baffles (bubble difuser) and a 7 inch chamber to hold cheato and the final one is live rock and my return pump which is about 13 inches . there are a ton of examples on the internet also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myvirtue Posted February 28, 2011 Author Share Posted February 28, 2011 cool thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Rodriguez Posted March 26, 2011 Share Posted March 26, 2011 i added the filter pad to my pump. but the bubbles still got through, but when i decreased my return pump and overflow and add another filter pad in the baffle, the micro bubbles stopped i only have a mag 12 running on 120 gallon tank. Im assuming that my overflow is over 5foot 7inches tall might cause more flow due to gravity?. If there isn't anything else that you dislike about your sump, you should just go with a lower wattage, low flow pump. Regarding the overflow, with it being that tall, it doesn't create more flow but it definitely give the water a good chance to mix with the air creating more bubbles. I agree with Jessie's post about the refugium having a slower flow. In the wild, a refugium or an estuary type area is a region that has remained unaffected by a the weathers currents etc.. It is also considered to be a safe breeding grounds for animal life and algae life. One nice thing about pumps is that have a lower gph is with summer coming up, they make less heat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renman303 Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 I have 2 Eheim 1262's feeding back into my tank. External overflow provides the gravity fed Sump. The Eheim's are running full open each at 900gph! You can see my sump on my blog. Dave renman303 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DerrickH Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 (edited) I agree with slower flow in the sump, seems to me it would give the BB or LR more time to filter out the water and more time for bubble to rise to the surface. I tried to use the return pump for all my tank flow but in the end it just made things a PITA. Added a vortec PH and think Im going to ditch this pump for a slower one. 1,500gph on a 40g tank seems a bit overkill. Should use it for a closed loop system instead. Im in the same boat as you MV. Edited March 29, 2011 by DerrickH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
renman303 Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 @DerrickH: I'm not sure it really matters you can go with "Slower allows more time for Nitrates/Organic matter to be processed" or "The more times you turn over the water in an hour, the better".? I prefer the latter of the two keeping the pH of the tank and sump more evenly balanced. Your tank should be loaded with LR as your sump. I also include plants and algae in the sump for Nitrates. I only have one baffle on the input of the sump, Refug in the center, and one on the output just to keep plants out of the pumps but, this could also be done with a LR wall...which I am going to. Just my $.02. Cheers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timfish Posted April 8, 2011 Share Posted April 8, 2011 I think reducing heat and noise is a good argument for going with a low flow rate but I've also seen setups with high flow rates without excessive noise or temp. so I guess it's largely what you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramsey Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 I'm getting a custom sump made in the near future based off of this one: The only difference is mine won't be as fancy with the lids and all, and instead will have 6 filter sock holders and not 3. I really like how this design allows you run more than just one filter sock per drain line and allows the water to run over the top of them. The one pictured is made by My Reef Creations. They're very proud of their sumps though which is why I'm having someone build one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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