Building a 40gallon sump

[madsalt]

I am going to build a 40 gallon sump 36 x 18 x 16 It will be a simple build, I have attached an image I found of what it will look like. My questions are this:

1. The first chamber will have the drain and the skimmer, how tall should the glass be, I was thinking 12" high because the tank is only 16' tall.

2. How high should the baffles be between the middle section and the return to the tank.

3. Can I use plexiglass instead of glass to create the separators

I was thinking the spacing between the baffles pieces would be about a cd case.

Disregard the plumbing, that is not how mine will look

Thanks

[Woods]

Yes, plexiglass is fine, that is what I used (1/4") . For the spacing between baffles, a CD case may be too thin, but it depends on how much flow you are wanting for your water... You will be more limited the thinner you go. If you do a little wider than you have more flexibility in flow rate...

[Ibnzmonkey]

I found 1/4" Acrylic at the Home Depot on 35/Parmer. Well, It's actually 0.230"... Close enough for baffle work. You should cut the baffles so that when you shut power off to your system, the drain back doesn't overflow your sump. If you're going to use a skimmer, you should also take into account it's operating depth.