What kind of filtration is right for me?

InfinityARch

Exodon
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Apr 1, 2018
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With that last chamber "f" being so small and where the baffle is, you run the risk of running your pump dry. Just remove that baffle. You can put your skimmer in c if you ever go saltwater. You can use lots of live rock in the dt for your bio and a biopellet reactor outside the sump for nitrate control a little more lr in the last chamber for extra bio. You'd want a airbubble trap between your skimmer and the return pump anyway.
The reason for F being so small is because I don't want it to be possible for the display tank to flood if the drains clog, which I understand to be much more of a risk when using full siphon drains versus open channel drains. Were I to remove that baffle around 5 gallons of water would end up on the floor in that eventuality, and considering my pump has an automatic shutoff feature, the motor shouldn't burn out if it runs dry, though I'll obviously keep a spare around for that scenario.

I can probably afford to give the final chamber more space though.
 

InfinityARch

Exodon
MFK Member
Apr 1, 2018
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With that last chamber "f" being so small and where the baffle is, you run the risk of running your pump dry. Just remove that baffle. You can put your skimmer in c if you ever go saltwater. You can use lots of live rock in the dt for your bio and a biopellet reactor outside the sump for nitrate control a little more lr in the last chamber for extra bio. You'd want a airbubble trap between your skimmer and the return pump anyway.

F is so small because I'm trying to make it impossible for the display tank to flood if the drains clog, which I understand to be a significant risk when using full siphon drains like I am. I can definitely make that section of the sump bigger though, and I'll shift the bubble trap forwards.


Sump_Design_3.0.png
 

twentyleagues

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Apr 5, 2017
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So you are running only the syphon, no emergency drain?
Is this a manufactured tank with dual overflows?
Sorry if you've gone over this already but I guess I'm just now realizing your issue. This is an easy fix.
 

InfinityARch

Exodon
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So you are running only the syphon, no emergency drain?
Is this a manufactured tank with dual overflows?
Sorry if you've gone over this already but I guess I'm just now realizing your issue. This is an easy fix.
I'm planning on running the siphon with an adjustment drain (as in the herbie style overflow), in fact I'm running two of them, but yes, this is a manufactured tank with double overflows, I ended up getting it secondhand before I really understood why that style of overflow is going out of fashion. In any case, I'm not doing the full bean animal style setup where there's a full siphon+an open channel tuning drain+a dry emergency standpipe; you need three holes per overflow to do that, and I'm working with two holes per overflow.

I suppose I could remove the last baffle and rig up an IR level sensor to shut off the pump in the event that the tank is in danger of flooding as an alternative to designing the system to be incapable of flooding the tank.

Or maybe I could remove the overflow boxes and replace them with a single long box that combines all four holes into one system-err wait, I can't do that because the tank's center brace is in the way.

Then there's the option of drilling into the back of the tank and installing a pipe that runs between the two overflows to join them together, but I'm reluctant to do that since I don't have any experience drilling glass. Moreover, wouldn't I need like a 2" pipe to actually equalize the overflows to the point where I could safely treat them as a single system?


P.S. Thanks for all the advice on proper plumbing.
 

twentyleagues

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So 2 holes per overflow use 1 as your syphon and one as your emergency drain per overflow. Return over the back of the tank. This is how mine is setup so no worries on an over flowed tank.
 

InfinityARch

Exodon
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Apr 1, 2018
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So 2 holes per overflow use 1 as your syphon and one as your emergency drain per overflow. Return over the back of the tank. This is how mine is setup so no worries on an over flowed tank.

That's how I'm currently planning on setting it up, but I'm still worried about what would happen if something goes wrong. in spite of the precautions. Maybe I can set up an IR level sensor as an additional failsafe beyond the drain system, or I could use an ATO to keep up with evaporation; someone offered to sell me one from a tank they're tearing down for a pretty good price.
 
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InfinityARch

Exodon
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Okay, I've since decided, both for the sake of my budget and sanity to K.I.S.S. the sump as it's currently configured is set up for a wet/dry trickle system, and I'm going to run it accordingly rather than trying to redo the whole thing for some elaborate filtration system.

Is there any way of calculating/estimating the bioload capacity of a W/D filter like there is with moving bed, because I'd ideally like to have an idea of how much I can feed the tank.
 
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DN328

Potamotrygon
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I would focus to ensure your sump can handle the water level from your tank if your return pump turned off. That will be dependent on how big your overflow weirs are and the height of you full siphon drains.

Use a strainer on the full siphon to mitigate any clogs...that would significantly reduce any risk.
 

InfinityARch

Exodon
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Apr 1, 2018
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I would focus to ensure your sump can handle the water level from your tank if your return pump turned off. That will be dependent on how big your overflow weirs are and the height of you full siphon drains.

Use a strainer on the full siphon to mitigate any clogs...that would significantly reduce any risk.
I'm not using full siphon drains anymore, just open channel drains, because that's what the tank is set up for, and reconfiguring everything to be the way I want is going to add massive amounts of complexity. I might do some more elaborate stuff if and when I upgrade to a bigger system and have more money to work with, but for now I'm going to keep it relatively simple.
 

LBDave

Peacock Bass
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Nov 27, 2018
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I have a 110 gal tank with 20 gal sump. Since the sump is enclosed the noise factor is not bad. I have a variable speed pump which can be turned down due to noise and turned up to "flush" the tank out. I have had canisters in the past. I prefer the sump.
 
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