Assist needed for DIY Sump!!

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G

Gabe7210

Feeder Fish
Mar 4, 2011
4
0
0
Northern New York
Hey all, first time poster here at MFK. Please Don't take that as a Noob hobbyist...

Anyhow, I finally kicked the canister habit and am in the process of setting up a sump. Right now I'm only dealing with a 55g (long) tank.

My main concerns, other than the actual design of the sump, are what happens with a power outage?

I've been researching this for a long while now and can not seem to come up with a fool-proof plan for this issue.

The other question I have is my overflow is one I just made and is made out of 3/4" pvc. I am looking to get a 500gph pump for my return line.

will this 3/4" pvc line be sufficient to handle the pump?

I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to make a new stand for my tank, so if anyone can point me in the direction of some sump/refugium designs... I would greatly appreciate it!!
 
go to dyi under forms and look at the top of the posts.click on one that says pump or the one that says overflow.im useing a 44 gal rubber maid garbage can
 
Don't mean to be dumb... but I'm not seeing anything you said. I can't find the form's section, unless you meant forums... and I am just assuming that you meant diy and not dyi. which is where I thought I created this post.
 
on ur overflow pipe put a ball valve that u could access in a hurry but if ur not home when the power goes out idk. i never thought about that haha
the sizing im not sure. go to the forums and down at the diy section click diy filtration. theres a sticky about pipe sizing flow rates that should help.
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=45035
check out this thread he shows his process of buildin a 1700 gal shark tank and sump. it came in handy when i was lookin up designs for my new tank. not gonna end up buildin a sump but help me understand it alot
 
if your overflow is near the waterline (which most are) it will just drain up to your overflow when the power goes out. not a big deal as long as your sump can handle the few extra gallons. when the power goes back on, everything resumes to normal and the few extra gallons get pumped back into the tank. tonnes of DIY sumps here that work very well.
 
overflows don't cause flooding, the return line causes flooding.

I'm all set on the overflow setup. I'm just wondering if someone has figured out how to full-proof the return line in case of a power outage.

or does the pump itself take care of that issue?
 
all you do is have the outlet of your return positioned just below the waters surface that way it will only back siphon a few gallons before air brakes the siphon or use a spray bar just above the water surface then you wont get any back siphon
 
Or add a check valve
 
Thanks for the replies.

I'm on to the next step. I got a good deal on a 30gal tank, that I'm going to use for my actual sump/fuge. Dimensions of the tank are roughly 36x17x12.5

now to make the baffels and such, should I only use glass or is plexi ok? also what thickness would be best?
 
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