55 Gallon Sump Setup Confusion!!

[The_Don]

I have a number of questions to ask, sorry if they sound dumb because I am very confused by the whole sump thing. I am thinking of also building a 55 gallon sump for a 180 gallon freshwater aquarium.
1) I've heard if the power fails, the sump will overflow, thus leaving you with water everywhere. How can this be prevented?
2) What differences would it make if the acrylic walls separating the sections of the sump were lower or higher?
3) When water evaporates is it only visible in the sump and not in the tank?
4) How is it that the water is entering the sump at the same rate it is leaving it? With that being said if your pump is rated for 1000 gph will water be entering the sump at 1000 gph too?
5) I've seen overflow boxes (if that's what they're called) that need to be started by sucking on a tube, is this true for all of them? What other ways could it work?
6) Lastly my tank's water level does not reach the top of my tank and the width of the glass and beam (probably not what it's called) on the top is very wide. Would either of these be a problem for the overflow box?

Thanks and sorry if these sound like really basic questions. I've been researching quite a bit and am completely confused.

 

[The_Don]

Bump

 

[Joey822]

I recently make my own 55g sump.for my 180g tank also. The way I did was I followed the same design as uraujoey's. Go on YouTube and type in uraujoey, look for his sump videos. When I get home I will take some pics.

But as of the poweroutage question, there is Somthing you can do, its called anti-siphon. Does your 180 have any overflow? If so you will need to have a pvc. In that pvc their are series of holes in the piping so that water will stop flowing into the sump when the level of the water reaches a certain level. Just type in anti-siphon on Google

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[joel]

If you set your water levels correctly it will never overflow.


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[The_Don]

Thank you very much to both of you.

 

[ElectricBlueSeanBurch]

I have a number of questions to ask, sorry if they sound dumb because I am very confused by the whole sump thing. I am thinking of also building a 55 gallon sump for a 180 gallon freshwater aquarium.
1) I've heard if the power fails, the sump will overflow, thus leaving you with water everywhere. How can this be prevented?
This is easily prevented by a siphon break, check valve or better planning of water levels. Easy to double check, just fill your tank then kill all the power and make sure you have planned properly

2) What differences would it make if the acrylic walls separating the sections of the sump were lower or higher?
The baffles just adjust water levels for each compartment. Raising or lowering them will have a matching effect on water levels in the sump. However in a freshwater sump baffles are not 100% necessary depending on sump design. I used jc1119's sump design and I love it, no baffles at all.

3) When water evaporates is it only visible in the sump and not in the tank?

Yes it only evaporates from sump, unless it gets low enough to affect pump output. In that case it will affect display tank water levels.
4) How is it that the water is entering the sump at the same rate it is leaving it? With that being said if your pump is rated for 1000 gph will water be entering the sump at 1000 gph too?

The main concern with pumps is can your overflow handle the flow rate. You always size your pump based on your drain size and number of drains. Say you have drains capable of 1200gph, you want to stay below 1200gph with your return pump(s). Then your drains are draining exactly what your pump is pumping out.

5) I've seen overflow boxes (if that's what they're called) that need to be started by sucking on a tube, is this true for all of them? What other ways could it work?
You are referring to hob ( hang on back) overflow boxes. These are usually the best option if your tank isn't drilled from the factory. The usually have to be started in that fashion once upon initial installation, but never again. Other option is to have the tank drilled and add an internal overflow box. Or do a DIY PVC overflow.

6) Lastly my tank's water level does not reach the top of my tank and the width of the glass and beam (probably not what it's called) on the top is very wide. Would either of these be a problem for the overflow box?
The overflow inlet is usually setup to where the water level is just above the top trim of the tank. I don't understand your question so I will guess...7.

Thanks and sorry if these sound like really basic questions. I've been researching quite a bit and am completely confused.

Answered in red

 

[The_Don]

Wow. Thank you so much!! Really cleared a lot of things up for me. Sounds like much better filtration than what I have right now. I guess it's time to start planning! Thanks so much again!