270 Gal

[cheesy feet]

would like to do a sump for my 270 gallon tank.A rough diagram of it is;

Reduced: 64% of original size [ 800 x 611 ] - Click to view full image

I have found a cheap tank locally and the guy described it as '5ftx20inchessx18inchess high is drilled at the back top right corner with 2 holes '.How would this tank work as a sump for the above tank? Could someone give me some good links on how to build or even better if you have done it give me a rough plan please I could remove the glass covering the wholes in the middle with a bit of hacking at the sylocone lol, only if it is needed though.

p.s this is for my new worlds but someone reccomended i post this in the marine section as you guys are good with it

 

[GrantyBoy]

whats the white circle on the left of the tank, is this another hole on the bottom pane of glass?
Also, what do you want to use the sump for? Extra water, hide equipment, extra filtration???

 

[Mr Miagi]

Wow, I have no idea whats going on there! I can offer you one killer site for sumps though. Meleves Reef!

Melevs Reef.com

 

[SkiFletch]

I too am a little confused... Any way we can get pictures here?

 

[GrantyBoy]

to me it looks like a weir on the left with a durso pipe which has been hacked away at for some reason, possibly trying to quiet the pipe down. The three holes on the bottom pane must have been used for a closed loop to provide circulation under the main area of live rock. They have now been covered up and sealed with an additional piece of glass. The white circle on the right I don’t know what that’s for, need a description of what it represents.

If you can provide a photo that would help along with measurements of the weir I can calculate how big a sump you need.

Oli ~ Is this a second hand tank and has it been filled with water and used for any length of time. The reason I ask is I've never heard of anyone drilling the bottom pane of glass before I think this would compromise the tank. Should the silicon fail around these additional hole or a crack form the whole tank is going to lose its water and 270g is going to make a pretty big mess of your folks house.


edit - I've just re-read your original post. Is the tank drawn to be used as the sump tank?? If so I wouldn't use due to all the extra holes drawn adding to potentail flooding risks.

 

[SkiFletch]

Actually, bottom-drilled Durso's are very common. I see em all the time

 

[cheesy feet]

Well the white things are the wholes.I'll see if i can get some pics in a sec.I want to use a sump for all the reasons lol.the tank is all very solid and was holding water.brb getting pics

 

[cheesy feet]

I hope that expalins it a bit

 

[SkiFletch]

OK this is a piece of cake. The three holes in the middle I assume are sealed off? Looks like the original owner drilled those holes, decided he didnt like them there, and then capped them off.

The part with the internal box is your overflow/drain side. When the water level in the tank is above that of the internal box, water cascades over the sides into the box, and out the hole, down to your sump underneath. If you want it to be quiet, you'll need to install whats known as a Durso Standpipe. A google search will show you how to build one. Just clever use of pipes to silence the operation.

Now the hole opposite the box, is that still open? If so, you should install a second standpipe there. The outlet of the sump pump goes there and pushes water from the sump, into the tank raising the level in the display tank. Then water cascades over the internal box into the overflow and back down into the sump.

Make sense?

 

[cheesy feet]

Crystal Clear .I hope the guy still has the 5ft tank.Thanks so much for your help! O yeh i don't really mind if it's a bit noisy because its in are conservatory, a fishy room lol.

 

[mark7616]

Is a sump for sw the same design as fw as this is being used for fw isnt it cheesy?

 

[cheesy feet]

Yup, sumps for freshwater are the same right?Or do saltwater sumps have skimmers?

 

[Mr Miagi]

Sumps are the same thing, on either FW or SW, it doesn't matter. You could have your skimmer in your sump, and thats where it will most likely occur, but you dont have to have a skimmer in one at all. Any equipment you want can go in a sump.

 

[cheesy feet]

Thought so I just realised a big problem though (i'm an idiot lol), the stand has zig zag metal bars going across the middle and sides for support.So it means we would have to cut it up to fit a sump.

 

[diet]

Cheesy Feet your knowledge just outstands me I'm in complete awe. I used to liv ein Wisbech just down the road from you.
I'll be keeping an eye on your threads as i feel i can learn alot from you.

Keep it up!!!