Opinions Welcome

[Claude]

Hi,

I'm putting together a 2ft marine cube (my second reef tank, my other reef is a nano!)

It will have 2 sumps (top one = fuge, bottom = filtration/skimmer etc)

Return water will be by way of a SCWD, flow will be provided by a Tunze stream.

Basically there is 2 standpipes, the shorter of the two is the workhorse and is 100% fully submerged. This is achievable as the outlet flow is controlled by a ball valve. The second outlet is a backup incase the first one gets blocked. I have yet to mod the diagram in that the 2 outlets will not share a common pipe into the lower sump.

Comments, suggestions, improvements MORE THAN welcome.

Cheers

 

[zephyr]

i dotn know much on reef tanks and their designs but your design and blueprints looks pertty professional and think u will be successful with this project. will u be adding a protein skimmer also? ps: gl with the tank and also, wot program do u use to design that blue print?

 

[Claude]

Program used is 'sketch-up'

I will be using a skimmer in the lower sump.

 

[andywg]

The top of the lower standpipe will probably want to be higher than the water level to allow air to escape properly (but the inlet can still be lower).

I'm also not too sure about plumbing a pump straight into another one, but I suppose it could work. You also seem to lose a lot of space to the weir.

But it does look a fairl good plan.

You could try linking ot this thread from the Marin section for more experienced views.

 

[Aquascaper]

Just wondering about your refugium, what are you planning to do with this? If it is to breed pods, etc. to feed the main tank then the refugium should be above the main tank to allow the outflow to be by gravity. If you pump the water back to the main tank via the sump and return pump then you will kill off almost all of the pod life grown in the refugium. If you are just planning on growing algae then just ignore me

 

[Opcn]

I second what was said about the stockman standpipes and the fuge (just fyi you have one sump and one fuge not two sumps), also why do you have the one standpipe so much lower than the other? if you think that you might go a while without toppping up and lose alot of volume you aren't going to want any corals or sensative inverts. Also the hole in the standpipe is there to let air escape when the piep gets going but then to let air in after it gets started, as it is the lower standpipe will render the upper one useless and cause more noise from falling water, essentially rendering the standpipes useless.

 

[Claude]

I second what was said about the stockman standpipes and the fuge (just fyi you have one sump and one fuge not two sumps), also why do you have the one standpipe so much lower than the other? if you think that you might go a while without toppping up and lose alot of volume you aren't going to want any corals or sensative inverts. Also the hole in the standpipe is there to let air escape when the piep gets going but then to let air in after it gets started, as it is the lower standpipe will render the upper one useless and cause more noise from falling water, essentially rendering the standpipes useless.

Hi, thanks for replies.

Basically there is 2 standpipes, the shorter of the two is the workhorse and is 100% fully submerged. This is achievable as the outlet flow is controlled by a ball valve. The second outlet is a backup incase the first one gets blocked. I have yet to mod the diagram in that the 2 outlets will not share a common pipe into the lower sump.

Since doing the diagram i have changed a few things, the smaller of the two standpipes will just be an overflow, that is always submerged. The level of water over in the back compartment will be determined by a ball valve on the outlet of the smaller overflow (i.e. the overflow will be always full of water and no air, therefore hopefully, no noise). The second larger standpipe is there purely as a backup only, if something blocks the outlet from the smaller overflow.

The tests conducted on "what inverts can make it through an impellor" were done with brine shrimp, i understand that a greater percentage of pods will survive from a gravity fed system, but if even a small percentage survive this way i will be happy. I am bypassing the skimmer bay on the return from the fuge to the sump for the aforementioned killing of pods/reducing number of deaths by impellor.

Hope that clears somethings up :\

More comments welcome

 

[Opcn]

If I were you I would raise the level on the lower overflo to be just below that of your stockman standpipe, althought if it is an overflow the standpipe wont do much, why not just set up two stockman standpipes like a centemeter different in hight? Standpipes cabn move about 95% as much water as a straight pipe its just that they don't do that annoying toilet flushin sound and you don't hear the water crashing down the overflow box sides. Also if you drop the water from your fuge down from an overflow it will take bubles with it, and if those get into your retun pump your tank will fill with microbubles.

 

[Claude]

Points taken into consideration, thanks.

Getting closer to my goal i think .....

This just shows the kinda aquascaping i desire, central island, achieveing swimming space, sand space and shelter at back of tank (plus uses less live rock!)