new sump.

[craw]

When I decided to rebuild my tank and get a 240 my wife said I could go ahead and do it my way. So, heres my Guy inspired sump. Its 120x48x22.

 

[stlfishguy]

now that's a sump 8O

 

[jdeets]

Man, nice sump. You'll never run out of room for stuff in there. That holds more than the 240 in the tank, right?

 

[craw]

You know its funny because I felt that it was not big enough and I should have made it bigger. Actual water volumn will be about 336 gallons.

 

[craw]

The sump will be a combo type thing with a grow out area for frags and various patches of macroalgae growing in the sump. I will be using a DSB of about 4 inches. I'm pretty sure I'm going to jump on the mangrove band wagon and put a few of them in there as well. I'm going to have another sump above this one that will be about 100 gallons. Now you say to your self. "What the heck is he going to do with that?". Well I'm going to use it to simulate the tide going out and then comming back in. The theory here is at a set time (what ever the event is timed at) I will have a pump that pumps the water into the upper sump. This should lower the main sump but about 2 inchs (still working out the math on this one). In side the 100 gallon sump there will be a pump to circulate the water while it waits to return to the sump. When its time to return to the sump 2 pumps will come on and start a siphyon (SP?) Once the syphion is started the pumps shut off, and the water gravity feedback to the tank untill the siphyion breaks. There will always be some water in the bottem of the 100 gallon sumpe so there will be a small power head in the bottem circualting the water so that it does not get stagnet. In the midding of the maain sump I will have a round rock formation with a DSB in the middle of it. This is where the magroves will be. when the tides goes out the water level should leave the top of the sand around the mangroves moist. When the tide comes back in the water level should be about 2 inches up on the mangroves. Just a reminder here I'm still working out detail,but this is what I'm shooting for. The substrate will be the famous southdown play sand. I just back back from MI and picked up 40 bags. Thats pretty much it. I hope to have the system cycling by april if all goes well.

 

[craw]

Heres the lighting set up. I have room left in the middle for a 400w mh. Most likely a 6.5k because of the magroves I would like to keep.

 

[Reefguide]

Dude, who are you kidding thats a bath tub !! 8O

 

[brobak]

Heh, check this out, it might give you some idea's as to how to insulate it. We are heating 575g of water w/ one 250w heater.

http://www.phortawesome.com/tank/reef/tod/page_01.php

Good luck

 

[craw]

Only one 250w heater? I think I will insulate the sides. Do you by chance have pictures of how you put your bulk heads through? I need to put in 2 1.5's and I have an idea but I'm still waivering.