30g sump build out recommendations

[Danh]

I got this really nice sump with an acrylic 120g at an incredible price. I've always had DIY and wet/dries for my FW tanks. It's 30x16x14 and you can see its set up more for a salt water tanks. I can put submerged media in the large chamber, some sponges through the baffles.... but I feel like I can do something better with it. I'm up for making some slight mods but whatever I do, I don't want to keep it more than half way or so full so that when the pump turns off there's plenty of space.

The intake section has a tall settling chamber and then overflows in to the 3 sock holders.

The center section is 14x16x6 when water is flowing through it will be about 6 gallons. I was thinking between sponges through the first baffle and some kind of a weir on top of the second to last baffle I can make a fluidized bed in that section.

Any thoughts on that idea or other suggestions?
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[Midwater]

I am a great fan of pumice in sumps. For me it beats all other bio media.

 

[Danh]

Thanks for the response. So your vote is just fill it up with pumice.

 

[tlindsey]

Thanks for the response. So your vote is just fill it up with pumice.

There is a wide range of biomedia such as pumice, lava rock, bio balls, plastic pot scrubbers.

 

[Danh]

Yeah.. I know.. I've done all of those. An old 180g I had a 2' tall, 20" round trickle tower of scrubbies... and an old 480g had two 4 foot tall, 1 foot square trickle towers of bio balls just to name a couple. This 120g will only have space under the tank, no auto water changer and I'd like to use this nice sump. Maybe I just want the project of a K1 FB chamber in the middle but any of those static medias would work just as well for a moderately stocked 120g.

 

[Midwater]

Thanks for the response. So your vote is just fill it up with pumice.

That's what I do. A bit of poret foam start with to catch the gunk.

My reason is as follows: If you get a piece of fresh pumice, it floats. And then after a few days, or even a few weeks, it sinks. So the water must get to the centre slowly. Not only must there be lots of surface area for aerobic bacteria, it must also be a great medium - inside - for the anaerobic bacteria that eat nitrate as well.

 

[Danh]

I'll have filter socks in it so not much gunk should be making it to the bio media!

 

[duanes]

Since all bio-media is just a surface for beneficial bacteria to live on, a bunch of old tooth brush ends, or worn out hair curlers is no worse, or no better than the most expensive tech doodad of the day.
And more media does not necessarily mean better.
The size of the bacterial colony is based on the amount and output of ammonia from the tanks stock, not by the square feet of media.
Of course if one overstocks, and only uses 1 cup of biomedia, that amount may not be sufficient to consume output, but the tendency these days, seems to be to overkill, and slack off on the most important aspect, that biomedia and filtration does not address, the reduction of nitrate only sufficiently reduced by performing frequent water changes.

 

[Midwater]

... the reduction of nitrate only sufficiently reduced by performing frequent water changes.

I have found that with large sumps full of pumice and overflow by continuous drip, I get zero nitrates with never a water change.

 

[Danh]

Midwater - you're talking about a constant/auto water changer, right? I can't do that where this tank will be. I had my 480g set up like this.. but it was a lot more than a drip lol. A continuous drip IS a water change. So with never a water change is a little misleading. You just made it constant/automatic.

My daughter wanted to watch some of the saltwater 12g guy's youtube videos on public aquariums... I found out his little slogan is something blah blah keep those nitrates down.. He was trying to get one of the public aquarium keepers to do his tag line and he was like..... Nitrates don't really matter....

Don't get me wrong... I plan to do a lot of water changes... I just want to get every bit out of this filter... plus I like the project of making this basic sump do something cool. On my last 150g reef I made the acrylic sump from scratch and included a built in algae scrubber...

The most impressive monster fish tank I've ever seen in person was at a local fish store owned by a Vietnamese guy way back.... He had a mix of at least 6 jardini and silver aros that were all over 3 feet and the biggest NGT I've ever seen in my life. The tank was about 7'x3x3 or so and had a small overhead sump sitting on top of the tank and he rarely did water changes. It wasn't the most beautiful crystal clear water I've ever seen but the fish looked as healthy as any others monster fish.