I want to add another sump

[anarekist]

I have this idea to add another sump to my current sump, basically have 2 sumps. I'm trying to figure out how i would connect the two, right now my sump is basically 2 storage rubbermaids, one inside the other for strength. My last setup was a 35 gallon rubbermaid and over time the mid points bulged and started to rip apart.

currently my idea involves using a siphon to connect the two sumps, sorta like an overflow box for glass tanks. when the water level in one take rises, water moves thru the siphon to the sump with lower water level, this way the water level in all sumps will be maintained. Also this way i can use just one pump pumping water from the original sump and it will sorta cascade the water back to the original sump. The ends of the siphon will have to be at the very bottom of the tanks to avoid trapping any air and killing the siphon connection.

I have a 20 gallon glass tank i wanted to use as the extra sump plus make it a planted refugium to help with ammonia and nitrate levels. what do you guys think? i think it would be a good and easy way to add extra features to your sump while also increasing the overall water capacity of your system. Also a good way to utilize any extra tanks you may have laying around that are other wise good but have no room to start "another tank".

another idea would be to place the different tanks/sumps in a stair like configuration so the water can "waterfall" into the next tank on the downward "step" but im not sure how i would direct the "waterfall" to the next tank/sump. cant use a siphon for this idea because then the lowest sump could potentially overflow when power is lost.

 

[jcardona1]

1. Why?
2. Better off using bulkheads and connecting them with a short section of pipe, rather than doing the waterfall thing.

 

[anarekist]

im trying to create a separate space for plants to help maintaining water quality. bulkheads will force the extra tanks into sumps only mode and that will negate the modular idea of this setup. also im unsure of how a bulkhead will hold since my main sump is 2 rubber containers stacked inside each other. i think the siphon idea is alot simpler.

 

[jcardona1]

Not simpler, how will you make it work? What about when the power goes out? What happens to the siphon when you turn everything off to do a water change? How will you restart the siphons? What if evaporation in the sump causes the siphon to break?

 

[anarekist]

basically water level is what runs water thru the siphon, as the water level in the first sump rises it pushes water thru the siphon to the next sump in the water's attempt to level itself off.

only way the siphon will break is if air travels to the bottom of the sumps where the ends of the siphons are located and gets traped at the top of it. any tiny air bubbles will simply pass thru to the next sump and leave via the surface of the water. when everthing is turned off the water will just level itself thru all the sump and that should be well above the openings of the siphon. if the water level goes down due to evaporation then the pump that i plan to sit above the level of the siphon ends will simply just stop pumping water and the level in the sumps will just remain the same across all of them.

 

[jcardona1]

I mean I get how it works, but it's a lot of siphons that could go wrong. This is no different than the overflow boxes that use those clear u-tubes, even those fail every now and then.

 

[anarekist]

well, i can always install a float valve on the starting sump and if the water level gets to high the circulating pump will just stop

in my last tank i had such an overflow and my tank never flooded, bubbles can slowly build up in the tube but a few bubbles will not completely stop the siphon either. i just had to give the tube a lil shake to break up the bubbles into smaller bubbles and that was usually enough for the current to carry them away. besides my current set up will only be one overflow so keeping attention to it will just be part of the daily aquarium care routine.

 

[swk]

I'm with jcardona on this one. Your current plan has so many ways to fail that I wouldn't try it at an enemies house

The only way I would be able to sleep at night is to connect them via bulkheads. Extra tanks are cheap off craigslist if you're worried about relegating them to "sump only tanks"

 

[MyGiants]

Bulk heads connecting the sumps is the better idea. Using tubes to siphon over to another sump to another sump is still all the same water. Its all going to be a sump whether you use a section for plants. If you want complete separate water then you can't connect them. But its all the same water from the tank. So bulk heads is the best idea.

 

[MyGiants]

well, i can always install a float valve on the starting sump and if the water level gets to high the circulating pump will just stop

in my last tank i had such an overflow and my tank never flooded, bubbles can slowly build up in the tube but a few bubbles will not completely stop the siphon either. i just had to give the tube a lil shake to break up the bubbles into smaller bubbles and that was usually enough for the current to carry them away. besides my current set up will only be one overflow so keeping attention to it will just be part of the daily aquarium care routine.

So where is the return water going to come from? the sump that holds the plants or in the main first sump. You can put the connecting tubes with bulkheads near the surface so when water rises in the first sump it just drains into the 2nd instead of a siphon. If you don't have the return water come from the plant box then that water will not circulate with the tank it will just keep a level with the main sump. If you have the return water come from the plant sump then its all the same water whether you use a siphon or connect with bulk heads.