Your personal experience on sump

[Capslock]

So for my soon to be reef tank I had considered the cansiter filter to be the best (this is what I read). However over the past few days I see a lot of people using a sump pump (is pump part of the term?). I have been reading a bit on the whole idea and as it stands seems like a viable solution. I need user experience to reflect here.

How clean is a sump relative to other filters? I have hard wood floors and I do like to keep the living space as clean as possible.

Are they easier to maintain? harder than say a canister? Level of difficulty doesn't bother me but I need to know what I should expect of myself or else I become discouraged

Do I follow a regular cleaning schedule for bio, mechanical, and chemical filters when they all seem to be in the sump?

I add live rock and sand?!?

I see them inside cabinets, thats a great thing, the less views can see other than the tank the better, but is there a catch to this? Am I going to end up with tubes every which way making the overall appearance something you would see in a garage and not a nice living space?


Thanks for any input guys, this forum has been a real help so far.

 

[Anonymous]

I would never have a tank without a sump at this point in my experience. It is just a good thing...

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2007/9/diy

 

[Capslock]

ok well ive done a fair amount of reading so far and they are exactly what I am looking for; it will contain my filters in my cabinet and nothing will show near the aquarium, huge plus.

Im a little intimidated by a few things. If I get a used tank that just so happends to be coming with a sump, should I be worried that certain things may not fit like a protein skimmer?

I am going to be worried about this until I get the tank in this week along with the sump so until I see it I don't know which way to look.

Also, in terms of the amount of water in a sump, would you suggest the sump only being half full to account of any power failure?

From what I read I am able to have the bio and chemical filters in the sump but then another reading almost hinted that this may not be the case. True or not? Also, I imagine that the return pump to the aquarium will be the mechanical aspect of filtration?

 

[Anonymous]

Im a little intimidated by a few things. If I get a used tank that just so happends to be coming with a sump, should I be worried that certain things may not fit like a protein skimmer?

It might not fit everything you want, but you can get a lot of what you want in a small space. Plus, we can teach you how to make the space even more useable, so don't worry. Besides, if you have room under your cabinet, you will want to build a bigger one anyway! We can teach you how to build one yourself, custom made to what you want!

I am going to be worried about this until I get the tank in this week along with the sump so until I see it I don't know which way to look.


Don't worry, you can just set it up how it is for now, then tinker with it later. The tinkering, designing is the fun part!

Also, in terms of the amount of water in a sump, would you suggest the sump only being half full to account of any power failure?


Mine is around 2/3's full, and I have turned off the pump to make sure it won't over fill. It goes up 2 inches when the pump is off. You can easily mark a line to tell you what is a good spot then leave yourself a little leeway. As the water evaporates, the level in the tank stays the same, but the sump water level goes down, so usually I don't have enough water!


From what I read I am able to have the bio and chemical filters in the sump but then another reading almost hinted that this may not be the case. True or not?

Mostly the sand and macroalgae in the sump is biological. Bacteria grows on the sand, converting the fish waste to inert nitrogen gas that bubbles out of the water. You can add carbon or phosphate remover ( chemical filters) to a filter bag and put it under the return water from the tank.

Also, I imagine that the return pump to the aquarium will be the mechanical aspect of filtration?

Sort of. As the water goes through the sump, it is filtered biological and chemically. Then, the pump returns the water processed. the pump itself is not doing any filtering, but it does add flow to the main display.

Remember, a lot of the filtering is going on in the tank, in your sand and live rock.

 

[ChrisRD]

How high you can run the waterline in the sump depends on how large the display tank is, how large the sump is, and how things are plumbed. You also need to consider what you're doing for a skimmer. If you run the water too deep in the sump you might have to elevate some in-sump skimmers so they can be properly adjusted (ie. they're made to work in a certain range of water depth).

This sketch might help illustrate:
http://www.reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.p ... 695#952695

 

[shavo]

chris is right on with this, i wouldn't limit yourself to halfway filled unless you need to be. If my sump was filled half way my pump for my skimmer would only be 3/4 submerged. You can fill the tank after it is plummed with no pumps on and your level will be set in the fuge. tape it off and never go over that tape mark incase of power outage.

Chris is also right about the skimmer being too low for the water level, may have to put a brick or something under it if it causes a problem. occasionally i go to high with my water level and my skimmer outlets are submerged. only for a day tops lol!

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah. Chris is right.