overflow that draws water from the bottom of the tank

[rotccapt]

hi all i am working on a new tank design with a sump behind the tank. i am wondering if an overflow would work if the intake was at the bottom of the tank? i am thinking of making a space below the gravel with a current flowing under it to help keep debris from settling on the bottom of the tank. i will have the sump return at the top of the tank and either a branch off the return or a separate pump creating the under gravel current. i would have a pipe at the bottom of the tank with the bottom cut out under the gravel to suck up the debris.

would this idea work?
in my pic the cylinders are representing filter socks. also the pipe is 1.5 inch pvc also this is a fresh water tank so im not too concerned about film on the top of the tank.

 

[billm90]

Issues I see.
I do see the open T fitting, but be sure you dont pull a shiphon on that pipe.

2 with it mounted so low and now under gravel, if it jams up, you will be putting in more water then going out.

If you are really into this idea, I would add 1 or however many overflows to the top just for saftey backup. Maybe a little higher up incase something does go wrong, once the water level rises, it can hit the next bulk head and drain.

Honestly it seem like a cool idea but would scare the crap out of me. If I were going to try that, I would do it on a closed loop system like a canistor filter just incase anything does go wrong to keep water off the floor.

 

[wheatgerm]

its a good idea if your ok with having an ugly pipe in your tank? i have 2 floor drains in my tank but i actually have a bulkhead on the floor of the tank then the plumbing on the outside of the tank goes back up to equal to water lvl with a small hole in it to break the syphon. that way inside the tank looks good and you still get the suction off the bottom of the tank

 

[rotccapt]

i did think about adding an overflow at the top of the tank that would run along with the one from the bottom of the tank i think it would work as long as the levels were correct. i am going for a "magna flow" style overflow if you know what im talking about