Lots of ?'s... di-my self sump :)

[hingreef]

Have a 40breeder & would like to get rid of the HOB & get a sump!!! Yayy! But, also kinda scary. Lot of planning/learning/building! I have looked into a lot but it seems every person has their own crazy/hard/simple/different setup.
I think from my studies, I would like a sump that had 3 sections: one for a skimmer, a refugium, & a return.
I have a 20L for the sump. Is this big enough? Does anyone have a simple layout suggestion? What size baffles would be needed?

I would like to buy an overflow, what size or gph would be good for a 40gal??
Would something like this be good?? :
CPR CS Overflow Boxes

I don't know much about the overflow and return. I know the overflow says so many gph, how do I decide which overflow & pump would go together with the setup I am trying to do? Do you know of any good pumps for this setup?

Ahhh! Thank you! :)) :sfish:

 

[Brian_G]

a 20 L would make a good sump. The baffles could be 1/4 " acrylic and siliconed to the tank . make sure to have bubble traps and such.

I have no clue about an overflow box. Im drilled.

If it was me I would make sure my overflow was overrated for the pump. and when setting up a sump, make sure when the power goes out that the sump does not overflow from the siphon of water back down.

 

[Bifferwine]

The CPR overflow boxes are good. Lifereef and Eschopps are another good brand. I'd buy the smallest one they sell for a 40 gallon tank.

 

[RedTornado]

My CPR has not giving me any problems at all. Just be sure you get the Tom Aquatics Aqua-Lifter Dosing Pump with it. I tried going without it at first and it was a pain. With the pump I have nothing to worry about air is always getting pulled out of the siphon so it will never fail as long as the pump is working. Plus if the power goes out I dont have to worry about it a flood when the power comes back on. The pump will get the siphon going again with no problems.

I would suggest putting a valve below the over flow to help keep it quite. Other wise you will here it from across the house.

Plumbing Videos - BRS TV - English

This is off a drilled tank but it works in the same way on a Over Flow box. If you can though use a quality valve like the one in the video. The ball valves you can get from your hardware store work but they are sticky and hard to get the flow just right.

I dont have the second tube on my Overflow but i have placed my return pump high in my sump so if it does get blocked in anyway the pump will be sucking air fairly quick. it probably will flood but if it does it will only be a couple gallons rather then 15 if it was on the bottom.

Thats my 2 cents

 

[BL1]

If you don't have the overflow already, I would pass on the CPR. While yes, it's effective with the aqualifter pump to keep it's siphon, in the end you are relying on an electrical device to help keep your suction. And there are issues with it, I just got home from vacation and there was a small piece of algae that had gotten lodged in the hole for the pump so it was keeping it from pulling the air in effectively which slowed the overflow down considerably and almost overflowed my tank.
If I were you I would look at/buy the Lifereef one. It's got a great design and it doesn't require anything electrical to keep it's siphon.

When you're deciding on your pump, make sure the pump is rated slightly higher (IMO 50-100gph higher) then the overflow you pick. You can use a ball valve on the return line to fine tune your water flow after setup. I would recommend either maxi-jet or eheim pumps as they seem to be two of the better choices out there.

 

[hingreef]

Thanks everyone!

How do i make bubble traps and how do they work?

Thinking about cpoying this design.
How many gph dose the overflow need to be?

 

[BL1]

If you go with this one prefilter box, siphon box, overflow box, siphon overflow, Eurobrace, Euro-brace, Euro-tank I'd suggest the 600gph, and if you go with another company get one with a similar flow rate. The bubble traps are just sheets of acrylic cut to fit snuggly in your sump and then generously siliconed in place.

 

[hingreef]

thanks bl

That is the one we were looking at getting.
How many gph does the return pump need to be?
Is there any other equipment that we would need to get?

 

[BL1]

It depends I think if you're going to do the sump the same as in the picture you'll need a bigger pump I'd say like 750-800gph or so but, if you setup your sump like, skimmer/refug/return then you can probably get away with 700 gph pump.

 

[hingreef]

What would be a better set up?
Attached pic or skimmer/refug/return

Are these good pumps?
Hydor Seltz Pumps/Powerheads

Rio Aquarium Water Pump/Powerhead

 

[dcantucson]

I like these.

Lifegard Aquatics Quiet One Aquarium Pump