Filter Suggestions

[kntrygrl4lyfe]

I'm going to be getting a 125gal tank this weekend, and the guy said that it was set up as a reef, and had two holes on the bottom piece of glass, one of the back left and right. I was thinking of putting two overflow boxes in those corners.... but where would the return go? So should I just make one over flow box and the other side be the return? How big should I make the sump for this particular tank and how big of a pump should I get? I'm probably going to use this tank as a grow out for my smaller catfish and want a pretty good filtration system going on it. This is my first tank project, and I'm pretty excited about it. Thanks in advance.

 

[kntrygrl4lyfe]

Don't reply all at one people.... lol

I have somewhat of an Idea that I'm going to do. I went and picked it up today. Didn't feel like waiting till the weekend. It already has an overflow on one side, and it came with some of the piping. All I have to do is make a sump for it

 

[CHOMPERS]

Don't reply all at once people.... lol

Hey, you know who you can always ask. Here is a link that should be helpful. I don't remember who wrote it but he kinda seems like he knows what he is talking about...
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47105

Since you have an overflow built in and an extra hole, you might want to plumb it up like mine.
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=69943

If you don't want gravel in the bottom, you can just add a spray bar to the return side.



To size up the sump, you'll need to do a little math. Measure the inside length and width of the tank. Also measure the grill height of the overflow. The will be your LxWxD of the volume that will drain back into the sump when the pump is shut down. That is the surge volume that you will need to plan for in your sump.

The volume for the media should be at least 10% of the tank. If you are going to use scrubbies, then 90% of that volume can serve also as surge volume. For my tank, I broke with tradition and designed it to have a portion of the media submerged all the time.

The rule of thumb is to have a sump that is 30% of the size of the tank. Mine is barely over 10%.

 

[kntrygrl4lyfe]

Ok, well the tank is 71"L 18 1/2"W 19"H Not 125 like I thought... More like 108. That kind of sucks. But oh well, was only 50 bucks and came with a stand. The grill at the top is 1" Here are some pictures.

Those holes are 1" in diameter

 

[CHOMPERS]

Also measure the grill height of the overflow.

I had a brain fart. That should be the height of the water over the overflow. Not that it really matters because your surge volume, if the tank were totally full, would be just under six gallons. In reality, you will be looking at less than three gallons with that overflow design.

All tanks never measure up to their advertised volume. They are always rounded up. That is just some marketing BS that we have to put up with. Your tank is still considered a 125.

Measure your stand to see if a 30g tank will fit in it. At worse, a 20g long or tall will do the job.

 

[kntrygrl4lyfe]

Yeah pretty sure a 30 would fit under there. What type of pump should I get for it?

 

[SonsOfLeda]

Yeah pretty sure a 30 would fit under there. What type of pump should I get for it?

This should be your line of thinking when determining what kind/size pump to get:

1) What is the total volume of water that will be in my system?

105G + 20G = 125G​

These numbers are tank volume + sump water volume = total water volume (approx)​

2) What is my desired turnover rate in GPH?

3x total volume for wet/dry = 3 * 125G = 375GPH, or​

10x total volume for wet sump = 10 * 125G = 1250GPH​

For our purposes, I'm going to assume you'd like a wet/dry filter and we'll work with the ~375GPH number for now​

3) What is the height between the bottom of my sump and the top of my tank that the return pump will have to push water?

30" + 20" = 50" total head height​

Stand height + tank height = head height. I usually round up to the nearest foot here, so lets assume 5 ft of total head height​

4) What brand of pump gets a good recommendation here on MFK?

Eheim, Iwaki, Supreme Mag-Drive, Rio, Little Giant, Reeflo, Quiet One, etc​

Simple searching will find others, but these are probably the most common ones on here​

5) Which pump model from the brand you picked has the proper output at the pre-determined head height we figured out earlier?

The Eheim 1260 pump does pretty much the exact 375GPH at the 5' of head we guesstimated earlier, so you would pick this pump​

I just randomly picked the Eheim because it was first on the list (really no reason - brand is up to you)​

I hope this helps answer your questions! Anything else, feel free to ask.

 

[CHOMPERS]

Quiet One pumps are inexpensive but they are power hogs even though they are advertised as energy efficient. Danner Supreme Mag Drive pumps use almost half the electricity but they cost more up front.


Have you used either of those pumps that I gave you? I got another one like them and tried putting it to use on my saltwater tank. I took it off after two days. It was such a pain to retrofit that I will probably junk it before trying it again I think they can be converted to submersibles by turning them upside down and removing the four screws that hold the black pump housing on. Discard the rest (gray part). I'll take mine apart to see if this is possible.

 

[CHOMPERS]

Quiet One pumps are inexpensive but they are power hogs...

Well spank my ass and call me Sally! The Quiet One pumps are more efficient. I found a listing for the power consumptions in my Aquatic Eco-systems catalog for both pumps and for your tank the Quiet One wins hands down.

For three turnovers per hour, the QP18 is the ideal pump however it seems to have been discontinued. To move up to the next larger pump means moving down to the QP13. Crazy but true. It is cheaper, more energy efficient, and pumps more water.

Quiet One
QP13....40W....$50.35

Danner Supreme Mag Drive
MD7.....60W....$70.00

Magnetic Drive External Pump
MD40....84W....$80.80

Iwaki Magnetic Drive
PM21....54W....$142

Little Giant
PM125...180W..$112

 

[kntrygrl4lyfe]

Thanks for all the info guys! Sorry I'm so late to reply. I have been so sick these past few days it is ridiculous.

Still deciding on what I want to do. Not sure if I want to go ahead and make it or just cover the hole and get two good HOB ones for now. I'm a very inpatient person. If I can have it set up quicker I usually go with that. lol. Think I may save my money and put everything into the one tank I'm wanting to build soon.

With all the info given It will help me out a lot on the big one.