Can i do these and how long for?....

[mennazeher04]

Hey there everyone, I have a quick question for ya. I was sitting back looking at the tank yesterday and I really dont like the way I originally arranged all my PVC piping for the drains and all that. My question is how long can the tank be with out having the return pump and skimmer going while I redo the plumbing?

 

[OhNoNemo]

I think you'll be fine as long as it does'nt take a week..lol,but no ,seriously,i have had power outages for 15-24 hours before and everything was fine.How long you looking at taking?

 

[Smitty]

You should be fine for a couple of hours...as long as the temp stay constant and there is some sort of water movement for oxygen, they'll be ok.

 

[reeffreak]

The main tank can go for weeks with good circulation.Throw a heater or two in the display to keep the temp consistant.

 

[wontonflip]

+1 everyone....they'll be fine as long as you leave a heater in there, and a powerhead to keep the water oxygenated.

 

[dcantucson]

+2 Everyone.
I would recommend developing a good plan so that you could do the plumbing in one day and then give it the second day to set-up, then back up and running after two days.

 

[mennazeher04]

thanks everyone.......i was hoping i can get it done within one day and let it set up the next day and hopefully have no leaks. Thanks again.

 

[mennazeher04]

Got one more question.......Im thinking about adding a refugium, so that where the rearranging question came from. Would it work ok if i had the plumbing drop off into the refugium then into the skimmer section and then the return right?

 

[Bifferwine]

Skimmer first, then fuge, then return.

 

[mennazeher04]

Skimmer first, then fuge, then return.

Well the reason i asked that is because my refugium is seperate from my sump. Im making the fuge from a spare 10gal that i have. So will that be ok or should i have it being pumped from my sump into the fuge and the fuge spilling back into the sump?

 

[Bifferwine]

I would do it that way. That's how I have mine plumbed. Since it is separate, it will work either way, though. Whichever is easiest.

 

[reeffreak]

The best way is to split the drain so raw water goes to both the skimmer and the fuge or the skimmer first.If that is the only way you can set it up then it will be okay.The skimmer may not work as efficiently since the dirtiest water is going to the fuge first.

 

[mennazeher04]

The best way is to split the drain so raw water goes to both the skimmer and the fuge or the skimmer first.If that is the only way you can set it up then it will be okay.The skimmer may not work as efficiently since the dirtiest water is going to the fuge first.

Just a thought, but i always was under the impression that you want the dirtest water to go to the fuge because it still has all the nutrients in it. Atleast thats what i read anyways.

 

[Bifferwine]

You should have the water going to the skimmer first. If you have the fuge first, pods that get washed out will get sucked up by the skimmer.

 

[reeffreak]

Just a thought, but i always was under the impression that you want the dirtest water to go to the fuge because it still has all the nutrients in it. Atleast thats what i read anyways.

I think you read wrong.Skimmers remove the protein(nutrient) before the bacteria breaks it down into nitrates.The protein in other words is what you want to remove first/quickiest.The fuge(macroalgae) consumes what the skimmer can't remove which is nitrate and phosphate.If that makes any sense then that is why the skimmer is before the fuge.