Hi CichlidKid55: I've learned that the only stupid questions I've formulated are the ones I don't ask others for feedback.
The set/up of a sump (sometimes called
trickle filter, wet/dry,
refugium) may seem complicated and hard to do (at least that's what I experienced the first time I set one up).
A Wet/Dry for
FW use should have at least the following divisions/chambers:
a) intake tray above the biological chamber
b) biological chamber
c) small chamber under the biological chamber
d) sponge barrier
e) outtake sump chamber
I will try to cover your questions:
First on the feasibility of using the 60L for sump: For a 120gal tank (following the design of a reputable Wet/Dry manufacturer) the biological chamber should be close to 3.3gals and the outtake sump chamber 8.25gals. Let's convert that into liters: 3.3 + 8.25 = 14.85gals or 56.21L. That leaves little room for the other divisions but hey, I believe it is doable. Personally I would use the 60L tank as sump for a 120gal tank.
1) If you have fully submersible heaters, that fit across the width of the 60L tank (or through the length of the outtake sump division) it is doable. I don't believe using the type of heaters that are placed vertically inside the tank are suitable for Wet/Dry filters as they are usually set-up for FW use (the water line is usually low when running).
2) There are two main ways of getting the main tank and sump connected. a) plumbing going through holes drilled in the glass (usually doable in new tanks not in running tanks, never through already tempered glass). b) by means of over-flow that holds a syphon in stall when water is not running, (for water going from the tank to the sump in the most used setting of the sump being placed below the main tank) and a simple return (from sump to tank in the most used set-up of the sump placed below the main tank) made of rigid inert material (
PVC or alike) that could be an inverted U shape with a little hole above water line and the output placed below the water line (to prevent back siphon effect that would bring water from the tank back into the outtake sump chamber) or just a straight forward spraybar. A submersible
powerhead or water pump is used to push water against gravity from the outtake sump chamber back into the main tank.
That said, you could place the sump above the main tank and use a powerhead to push water form the tank to the intake tray of the sump and use an over-flow or just pass plumbing through a drilled hole in the sump to return water to the main tank.
3) It can be placed anywhere you want it if you manage to plumb it correctly; most common settings work as long as you have some height difference between the two tanks (main tank and sump). That said,
HOB sumps are doable although the room for error might be smaller.
4) For FW you could use anything that provides a lot of surface, from commercially availble bio-balls or ceramic rings, to nylon scrub pads or filter floss.
5) Once running this are the easiest filters to maintain. My experience.
6) That depends. Brand new commercial products could cost something in the range of 200 to 300 USD. If you are moderately handy and like
DIY projects, the cost drops significantly.
Pepetj
Santo Domingo
