150 gallon plywood tank with intigrated sump

rotccapt

Candiru
MFK Member
Jun 7, 2009
311
11
48
oklahoma
hi all i am working on the design for a tank i will be building in a few months and i wanted to share my idea with you to get some critiques on it.

the tank will be ruffly 150 gallons including the sump at running capacity and will have a sump that is behind the tank. the main thing that i want feed back on is the idea i have of making it self cleaning as far as the gravel goes. my plan is to have my sump return split going to the top and bottom of the tank. the top will be regulated to get my desired amount of current. the gravel will be elevated off the bottom of the tank supported by a screen that is only big enough to keep the gravel from falling through. the bottom pump return will be under this screen to make a strong current under the gravel. my idea here is that the current will help keep waste from collecting in the gravel reducing the amount of gravel vacuuming that is required. the over flow will be a pipe that also goes to the bottom of the tank and under the gravel. the pipe will go up to the top of the tank and spill into my sump behind the tank. this will be a 1.5 inch pipe. my filtration will consist of two filter socks mounted in a box that will overflow into the next chamber. also if the socks happen to clog the water will be able to bypass the socks and overflow to the next chamber. the next chamber will be a drip tray with 5 gallons of bio-balls under it. i am planning on using a quiet one 4000 pump to return water back to the tank. i am not realy conserned about the tank siphoning when power goes out because the sump is behind the tank so both the sump and the tank will equalize so there will be no overflow issues. i will have a siphon break on the overflow line though so that it does not pull more water than the pump can deliver.

so what do you think of my design?

for clarity i have removed the front and back of the tank along with the center brace. also the tank dimensions are 55 inches long, 23 inches wide and 24 inches tall. this is actual internal dimensions. also the sump will be 55 inches long, 6 inches wide, and 28 inches tall. this is the height to the top of the tank.

one more thing should the center brace be close to the water level or at the top of the tank. also should i run a center brace on the sump side too? or should i run two braces on this tank? also i have toyed with adding a small surface skimmer to this design what do you think of that?

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wrslrcichlid

Candiru
MFK Member
Aug 27, 2011
596
2
48
Battle Creek, MI
Well, I don't have much experience with DIY so I can't give too much advice, but my first thought is how will you reach your sump for infrequent (but necessary) maintenance? Some maintenance that comes to mind is changing the filter socks (which will be somewhat regular and often), bio-balls have to be rinsed (with tank water) every few months or so to keep from getting clogged, pump maintenance, etc.

Just wanted to mention that stuff before you get too far. I think it is a good idea, and if you are able to get to your sump for work then I don't see any problems there.

As for the return. Is water being taken from the bottom of the tank (below the screen) to the sump? I don't have much DIY experience so I can't really state what problems might arise, but it just seems to be asking for problems. One thing is access. Your substrate and whatever rockwork/decorations you have will be "on top" of your intake. That will make it a pain to get at. I also feel like there may be an issue of actually filtering the water with this idea, but it may just be an unexperienced DIY mind thinking.

Just giving you my initial thoughts. It is a good idea, but make sure you really think through your ability to access your filtration system.
 

rotccapt

Candiru
MFK Member
Jun 7, 2009
311
11
48
oklahoma
those are some valid points. as far as sump maintenace goes the drip tray will be removable so i can remove the bio balls as necessary also the side of the tank that the filter socks are on is on an easily accessible side of the tank so that is a non issue. the only thing that may be fun to work on is the pump but i am planning on using flexible tubing to attach it it the return(s) so all that would be required would be to reach over the tank disconnect it and pull it out. its only 31 inches from the front of the tank to the back so standing on a stool this will not be a hard task.

for the intake i am borrowing the idea from a guy that did this with a gold fish tank with good results. i have toyed with the idea of just returning the water to the top of the tank and using a power head to run the under gravel current i think this would make a better water exchange. i will also be running this setup for a week in my garage before it comes into the house so if i find problems i can address them in a flood friendly environment. as far as getting to my intake to the sump i am thinking of putting all large rock work on the opposite side of the tank and making that part of the screen removable. the overflow will work just like any other overflow except it will draw water from the bottom in hopes of removing all the wast to the filter.
 
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