Been looking through some threads but no luck as of yet, so I thought I'd ask. Building my second sump ever. Planning socks in the first chamber, moving bed with K1 or similar and maybe some submerged media in there somewhere. Not sure of the order just yet, but my main problem is figuring out how to determine the water level in each chamber. I built my first one and the water level is way too high in the wet/dry section. Don't want this problem again. Do I even need a wet/dry if I have the moving bed? I need to know what determines the height of the water in the chambers. I know it is the baffles but I have looked at several sumps and can't figure out which baffle determines the height. If there are any plans out there that I can look at, point me in the right direction. Or feel free to even design it for me, I am wide open to suggestions. It will be my only filter for my 150gal. Tank is a 40 gallon breeder, the return pump is a eheim 1262, overflow is 1 1/2" pvc. Will be using 1/4" glass for the baffles and can get plexi for anything that needs drilled, ie: drip plate, walls, covers, etc. Thanks for any help and info that you can provide.
HELP!!! DIY 40 breeder sump.
- Thread starter snowhnter
- Start date
OK, I think I got it figured out, well at least the water level thing. Plans are to overflow into socks, out onto drip tray over pot scrubbies, into either a fuge or moving bed then to my return. At least this is the plan for now. Seeing how I can't get any help, I'm doing a leak check now and will start cutting glass in about 30 min. I will check this thread once more before cutting glass to see if someone out there is willing to give me a heads up. If not, thanks just the same and I'll learn from my mistakes.
Well, the best laid plans of mice and men sometimes go awry. Did not get to the glass cutting tonight. Got sidetracked watching the 3rd Blue Collar comedy show. So tomorrow after church, I gotta get it done. My current sump if falling apart and not quite up to the job. Any advise is greatly welcomed. Thanks
Usually the last baffle sets the minimum level for the previous chamber. I was going to do a sump with moving media but got lazy. Your idea will work and the most important thing is to make it easy to swap out the socks and leave room to clean the media, or scrubbies.
If you don't mind, I am considering building a sump for my 500 gallon. I have been looking for a place to buy the parts, and can't find items like drip trays. This could be a great thread.ifsomeone knowledgeable would chime.in.
Totally agree witht the most important thing. The current sump is all but impossible for me to get into to maintain. Thanks for the info. Taking pics while building and if all works out, will post with the steps I took.