You think I'd know, but..... sump questions

[Nonfamous]

Okay, so I've had my tank for 3 years now. No major disasters. Over this time, well 4 times anyway, I have completely drained, removed and cleaned my sump. Its a good chance to check all of the things that live there as well as make repairs. A little over a year ago I started adding things to the sump. First was sand. Then LOTS of LR. Cheato, snails, lights and even tried a soft coral frag. Needless to say it is now pretty full. Removing it will require a lot of time and effort. Do you think I should still pull it out for a complete cleaning or just keep up with the PM schedule?

Secondly I have an overflow question or two. What would happen if I remove the Durso pipe while the system is running? Would I get too much draining into the sump? Would it cause serious problems? I ask because the area behind the cover and the drain pipe really need to be cleaned. BAD! I have lots of algae growth in there and I have never cleaned it before.

Seems like after 3 years I should know all this but I don't!

Thanks

 

[d2mini]

1) If you have a fuge in your sump, i would just vacuum out the empty compartments. Get a powerhead and put a filter sock on the output of your hose.

2) You should really have a ball valve on your drain under your stand so you can cut the flow from your tank for maintenance or emergency purposes.

 

[Nonfamous]

So I re installed my filter sock. Been over a year since I ran any kind of filter at all. I also picked up a foam "brick" for the sump. Its been a long time since one of those was installed. It goes between the Fuge section and pump section of the sump. In the beginning it was really hard to get to and, being new to the hobby, it never got changed. Ended up a mess and a good learning experience. I never replaced it after I had the problems. The sump has gone through several incarnations since then and now it should be pretty easy to clean or replace as needed.

My drain is plumped with flex hose. I really need to run hard lines in its place. I actually have all the parts needed, including a valve, I have just never gotten around to cutting and gluing it all up. So If I pull the Durso drain pipe, will I flood the sump?

 

[d2mini]

Depends how much volume your overflow holds vs your sump.

 

[Nonfamous]

I know that the volume of water in my overflow will easily fit in my sump. I can easily shut the system down and remove it. What I'm wondering is if I can pull it without shutting the system down. I'd like to have it soak in vinegar for a day or so and don't want the system down for that long if I can help it.

 

[mariobrothersleeve]

I use filter floss ( pillow stuffing) in my bubble traps for added filtration. It also helps with the cheato from getting to the dt. I would vacuum the sand every 6 months but run it as waste. There is no filter sock that has that small of a micron for cleaning that small of waste out. Better to just replace water with new water.

 

[d2mini]

Oh i see. Well in that case, what will probably happen is you'll end up with a full siphon which will be pulling A LOT more water into your sump. But your return pump will be the same speed which probably won't keep up with the drain. I'd say if anything, it's just going to be really noisy. I'd give it a shot and be ready to pull the plug on the return pump to shut it down.