Overflow/pipes questions!

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Cookiemonsterx

Feeder Fish
Mar 17, 2011
3
0
0
Canada
Hey everyone! I’m planning to make a diy aquarium/stand/led lightening 55 gallon aquarium.
And I got a lot of questions about the durso stand pipe/sump. (Since I’m a newbie, please don’t be too harsh haha)

First of all, since my aquarium will be rimless/diy, my bottom won’t be tempered, and I’ll be able to drill it.
I don't like the look of corner overflows...There’s only 1 overflow that I find allright, and it’s a clear pipe one. (http://www.ultimatereef.net/forums/showthread.php?t=367635&highlight=donkey )
But since I don’t want to have pipes outside of the aquarium, do you guys think something like these could be used? http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=969798 http://www.fmueller.com/home/aquaristic/240g/technology/filtration/the-drain-pipes/
Let me know what you think.

Also, for the sump, I wanna know what diameter of pvc pipe I should use for the 55 gallon aquarium. (I know you can put valve under the stand, but like what’s size is the best). Also, for the sump pump, I’m kinda lost about the GPH required..?

I would like to know why no one uses clear pvc pipes in their aquarium? Because I don’t like white (even if I know that most of the time they get covered in algae.) A 100% clear overflow etc. would be damn nice.
That’s pretty much about it! If you can help me, it would be great. If you think there’s webpages I should check out, let me know.

Ps: I’m not rushing into reef tanks. I’m giving myself until summer 2012 to get everything I need to start my aquarium.
 
You can buy grey PVC in the electrical section at home depot, might be a better option if you can't access and clean the pipes since they'll become quite disgusting when dirty.
 
Clear PVC isn't really clear, it's blue. And it doesn't stay clear. I used clear pvc for my co2 reactor and it turned dark brown/green in no time. If you don't mind the constant cleaning, then it will work.

The size of your piping will depend on the size of your pump. I like to go for 8-10x turnover in terms of flow. 1" plumbing all around will be more than enough for your tank. Anything bigger is overkill.
 
Cookiemonsterx;4990535; said:
Also, for the sump pump, I’m kinda lost about the GPH required..?
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Click to expand...

Sounds like a fun project.

There's a lot of good info in the DIY stickys that would help you figure all this out.

Fot the pump, first you need to decide how many times an hour you want to turn over the tank water (GPH). You also need to know what the pumps capacity is given the head of you set-up. And of course, you need to know how to determine the head. And of course it's not always that simple :irked:

But like I said, check out the stickys.
 
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