Just thought id ask this question and see if anyone has some good info on an answer. Basicly im doing my third diy sump for my 250 gallon but im always limited on space under the tank. Usually it is the width and height that im limited on. If i was to use 4x4's to build the stand for my 250 and make the stand flush with the tank and not make it wider or longer then my tank it would leave me with 8" in between the frame of the stand and a few inches under 1.5' for the rest of the area. Thats because my 250 is only 1.5' wide. To make more space for a large sump i would have to make my stand bigger or put the sump behind the stand on the floor but i dont want to do that. And i also want to fit my 3.5' uv sterilizer under there too. Im just looking for space saving ideams and ideas for having a large sump or large overflow.
For now ill just keep searching the fourm. Thanks mfk and eveyrone for your input.
For my 180 i used 4x4's for the stand and pvc drainig system in the middle leaving me with an area 18" wide and 2 feet under the pvc draing ( i should have used tubes that i could move around and addjust them). I didn't make that one overflow style so i put valves on the main drain (tip: don't use a large valve controler unless u have high water flow, bercause if you do 1mm turn will make a huge difference in the flow of the water) and i used all plastic tubes for media, bio balls, overflow. And for when the power shuts off i just bulkheaded another 30 gallon plastic tub to the sump tub that fills up when the power shuts off. It would have been nice to use glass tanks but it would have been so hard to fit one or two under there at the right size and then have space for an overflow when the power shuts off. that leaves me wiht like a 1.5'x1.5' area left under it.
For my double stack 80's (top tank drains into the bottom then into sump then back to top all internaly) it was a similar setup but this one was overflow so a lil easier. They are on a metal frame and pvc draining so i only have1.5' or less of height and just under 4' length. Not to much to work with and has to be enough area for a sump that would hold enough water when power shuts off. I ended up using a 25 gallon tub and it works just fine.
For now ill just keep searching the fourm. Thanks mfk and eveyrone for your input.
For my 180 i used 4x4's for the stand and pvc drainig system in the middle leaving me with an area 18" wide and 2 feet under the pvc draing ( i should have used tubes that i could move around and addjust them). I didn't make that one overflow style so i put valves on the main drain (tip: don't use a large valve controler unless u have high water flow, bercause if you do 1mm turn will make a huge difference in the flow of the water) and i used all plastic tubes for media, bio balls, overflow. And for when the power shuts off i just bulkheaded another 30 gallon plastic tub to the sump tub that fills up when the power shuts off. It would have been nice to use glass tanks but it would have been so hard to fit one or two under there at the right size and then have space for an overflow when the power shuts off. that leaves me wiht like a 1.5'x1.5' area left under it.
For my double stack 80's (top tank drains into the bottom then into sump then back to top all internaly) it was a similar setup but this one was overflow so a lil easier. They are on a metal frame and pvc draining so i only have1.5' or less of height and just under 4' length. Not to much to work with and has to be enough area for a sump that would hold enough water when power shuts off. I ended up using a 25 gallon tub and it works just fine.
