Diy Sump Idea

Hey guys, I'm thinking of building a sump and need your opinion on my "idea in making" sump.

So I have a 240L long tank and want to add a sump to it. Its going to have 3 compartments that I think is the "basic" for a proper sump for a freshwater tank.

1st compartment is going to house (in layering order top to bottom) a sponge, some scrunchies and filter floss. Water from main tank is gonna drain down and through to the bottom of those and into the next compartment.

2nd compartment is going to be a refugium with heater housing some sand substrate and I'm gonna grow some plants in there and possibly its gonna double as a "time out" place for bullying fish or stressed fish. The water is going to flow through this compartment from the top down through some more scrunchies or filter floss to the next compartment.

3rd compartment is gonna be the return pump and a heater.

Opinions welcomed and needed about the size of the return pump and the right flow from the overflow. And ofcourse the compartment setup. The sump is probably be a 65L tank.

 

I would suggest a bubble catcher
Before the return pump.

And what will convert ammonia? House bacteria (sorry if this is a stupid question)

 

My design. Going to build in a week or two

 

In the refugium compartment, the substrate houses some bb and in the intake compartment houses some bb (the mechanical filter) that deals with some if not most of the nitrates/nitrites and with that, the plants that I'm gonna add in the refugium chamber will absorb some of that as well.

In regards to the bubble catcher. The constant overflow between the compartments isn't that high to create a significant rise in bubbles. Well that's what I think.

 

Thanks. That give me some insight

 

No problem mate

 

I see that you're from Cape Town. That's awesome.

 

Yeah as we say mother city. One of the prettiest cities in the world.
Where you from?

 

Also S.A. Based in Nelspruit.

 

A couple of suggestions looking at your design. First your baffles should not come up to the top of the tank, you should have a few inches in case there is a clog so it can overflow without flooding. Second, it says bio balls, unless you have a drip tower and the bioballs are above the level of the water, your better off with Pumice, ceramic of lava rock. I would move the first two baffles father apart and put biomedia in that area, keeping the first compartment for mechanical filtering. Third You should add a fifth baffle so that the water comes out of the refugium over the under then over to keep substrate or fish from getting stuck between the baffles. Now to increase flow in the refugium you can make the second baffle out of acrylic and drill holes half way up. or just put a tee on the return pump and feed it into the refugium. I would get a dc pump as the flow can be adjusted. What king of overflow are you using?
Here is a picture to help.

Sump

• ounderfla69
• Jan 11, 2017