269g plywood tank?

[Conner]

Well, I was thinking built in so that I could use the framing of the stand as outer support for the sump. This makes it more secure and eliminates the need for internal supports to prevent bowing. And it is easier to install it that way then build it separate and slide it in (I think it will be, anyways).

I do see the benefit of one that I can move in and out though...

 

[Conner]

If I leave 2" to either side of the sump so that it can be slid in and out of the stand, then it drops it to about 82g of total volume. Half full would still be about 40g, so that ought to be plenty.

The only thing I don't like is the height, but I need to leave sufficient space above the sump to service it and to run plumbing to it, so I can't really make it any taller.

 

[Pharaoh]

If I leave 2" to either side of the sump so that it can be slid in and out of the stand, then it drops it to about 82g of total volume. Half full would still be about 40g, so that ought to be plenty.

The only thing I don't like is the height, but I need to leave sufficient space above the sump to service it and to run plumbing to it, so I can't really make it any taller.

The height is probably something you'll just have to deal with.

 

[Conner]

Now I've got another dilemma with the stand. I want to be able to remove this from my house.

So, I either build the stand as one unit, with a total height less than 32", MAXIMUM.

OR, I build the stand as 2 units, however tall I want, and figure out a way to bolt them together so that they can be separated to move through doorways.

Which way sounds better to you guys? I do NOT have room for an external sump except for under the stand, so height is an issue here...

 

[Noto]

It seems to me that it would be easy enough to bolt together a two-part stand. Easier to move too; a one-piece 48"X96"X32" stand would be a real bear to move. I guess you could slide it.

 

[Pharaoh]

I think you could go either way. All depends on how tall you want the stand to be.

 

[Conner]

I think I would actually prefer a shorter stand, since this thing is going to be a ****** to get into in the first place. The only problem with that is it forces me to make a shorter sump. With a 32" tall stand, I'm looking at 20.5" of interior height. If I leave 6.5" of clearance above the sump (which is not much at all), then I can only make the sump 14" tall, with a 13.25" interior height.

Which isn't terrible, but I know that a taller sump gives you more breathing room in case of a power outage. Even with such a wide and long sump, it we be nice to get it taller, I just don't think I can.

And building the stand in 2 pieces would be easy to assemble, but not so easy to disassemble, once its been skinned with plywood and trim.

Arrgh!

 

[Noto]

Just some ideas: You could skin the two pieces separately and use a removable piece of trim to cover the seam, or use a three-sided facade that simply slides into place in front of the stand.

Also, if you are worried about sump capacity, you could place an overflow tub in the other side of the stand, connected to the main sump via bulkheads placed higher than the normal operating water level and a length of tubing with some slack in it. This tub would remain dry during normal operation but greatly increase the sump's capacity to accept water draining from the main tank. The soft plumbing still allows you to slide the sump around.

 

[Conner]

Just some ideas: You could skin the two pieces separately and use a removable piece of trim to cover the seam, or use a three-sided facade that simply slides into place in front of the stand.

Also, if you are worried about sump capacity, you could place an overflow tub in the other side of the stand, connected to the main sump via bulkheads placed higher than the normal operating water level and a length of tubing with some slack in it. This tub would remain dry during normal operation but greatly increase the sump's capacity to accept water draining from the main tank. The soft plumbing still allows you to slide the sump around.

Yah, I considered a removable piece of trim as well.

The double sump is an interesting idea. I hadn't though of something like that. I may look into doing that, although I'd like to leave a good amount of space under the tank for storage (I may have a 20g tank for feeders under there as well).

I've drawn up my idea for the sump. I really like it, and it gives the water flowing through a lot of contact time with the biomedia. I'll try to get it uploaded, or draw a new one in mspaint or something to load.

Also thinking about a 5200gph pump. Figure it will do about 4200-4500gph at 5 feet of head. Is that too much flow?

With that much flow, will 3 x 2" pvc overflows and 2 1.5" pvc returns handle that kind of flow?

 

[Conner]

Here's a quick and dirty mspaint drawing of my sump idea. There will be 3 overflow drains that empty into the first chamber of the sump. This chamber will hold the heaters as well. This chamber will overflow onto the next chamber, which will be a mechanical filter media sitting on an eggcrate platform. The water will then flow under a baffle and then over another baffle and onto the biomedia. The water then flows around 3 consecutive baffles before running underneath the last baffle into the pump chamber.

Oh yah, the biomedia will be lifted up off the floor on eggrate by 1-2", and I will string some airstones/ropes underneath the biomedia to blow bubbles up through the whole length of it.