DIY Project (Bulkheads, Sump, Internal Overlow) NEED ADVICE

HEY GUYS & GALS!

I am new to this forum, so let me take the time to point out thusfar I LOVE IT! I have got so many great ideas to work with it is ridiculous! Now, I have a question of my own: (bare with me if this has been answered elsewhere)

I currently have a 55g setup that is mainly fish only. I do have some star polyps and a clam, and in the future, will be adding some additional corals. I am getting ready to move the first week of September to my new apartment about 20 miles away. I was thinking the other day that if I was planning on upgrading my tank size/equipment, this would be a perfect time since I was going to have to tear my existing one down anyway. So, I started looking. I came across an unbeatable deal on a used 90 gallon with stand for $200.00. So, I picked it up. I have no idea the manufacturer or anything of the sort, all I know is it is roughly 5 years old or so. It is in near perfect condition as well! I am a very "anal" person, you might say, and have always hated seeing the HOB devices I am currently using on my 55 (UV, Protein Skimmer, Penguin 350, powerhead, heater, etc..) So, I started thinking about the sump approach. I went to the local fish store and spoke with the guy about 2 hours about the whole deal, and to be honest, won't go back as he is just trying to push his own equipment to make the sell. For instance, I want, and am going to, drill the tank. I have watched countless YouTUBE videos of exactly how to do it, and that it will take the diamond bits and take a good while being it is a 90. I plan on drilling 4 1" bulkheads (already ordered the appropriate diamond bits). I plan on using two in the back center, around 3" down from the black trim, and then 2 on each corner of the back, also around 3" down from the trim. I wanted everything to be uniform. As I previously stated, I am very anal and want things symmetrical lol! I don't want 2 larger and 2 smaller. I have purchased a Mag 12 for my return pump, and auto-refiller, 4 1" bulkheads (blue ones to match my painted blue back glass) and 4 of the diamond bits (1 for each hole to make sure they are fresh and ready to drill). I had made a custom sump the other day from a 20 gallon LONG aquarium from Petsmart, had my baffles installed, and broke the damn thing like a fool! lol. Me being stupid. So, I am back to the drawing board. I also think after doing further extensive research, the 20 might have been too small for the amount of flow i'm wanting anyway. All the information up until this point is what I am planning on doing. Please only give me your advice if something is drastically wrong with the above. I know there are a million ways to skin a cat so to speak, so it will work the way I have imagined lol. I knew a guy that would literally put a garden hose in his sump to refill it and drop a few drops of declorinator and he never lost a fish, so to each his own. One way might sound drastically wrong, but works. lol. Now, for the questions I still need answered:

1.) As I stated before, the guy at the LFS suggested I used the hang on the back overflow rated at 1200 gph with the 2 U tubes. I bought it, of course, because he is a good salesman. Afterdoing research, I have decided to go with the drilled approach for both cosmetics and functionality. So, since I have the box anyway, I am going to use the overflow part as my internal overflow by cutting out the backing of it so I can silicone it to the back of the tank. I have a couple of questions regarding this. I have heard that there could be a problem with the drainage not going fast enough to accomodate my pump. Do I need to buy a T fitting instead of a 90 elbow for the back of the tank where the bulkhead turns down to the sump, thus allowing air in? Possibly just putting a cap on the T with a hole drilled? Or will the 90 degree elbow work fine since I will have 2 of them? I read that the 1" bulkhead flows roughly 600 gph, thus 2 should flow roughly 1200 gph between the two. I plan on using flexible hose to connect the back of the bulkhead to the sump, not pvc.

2.) SUMP DESIGN, SUMP DESIGN, SUMP DESIGN! This is apparently another hot debated topic on the forums. Since I destroyed my previous build, damn it, I guess I will have to create a brand new one from scratch. I will NOT be taking out a loan just to buy a custom acryllic one, what a waste of money when you can do it yourself. I was thinking of the 30 gallon tank for $50 bucks at Petco, and doing the chambers will cut acryllic panels as I did before, but this time with a larger sump. What about the rubbermaid approach. I know they buckle under water pressure, but what about the tractor supply hardened plastic kind? And if you did it this way, I know there would be no way for custom chambers, unless you bought individual smaller plastic containers to go inside the big one, and somehow made sure they flowed correctly. I think I will go with the 30 gallon sump out of the aquarium, IF it will fit under my stand, which is another thing I will be measuring later today. How many chambers? Refugium? Separate refugium? what is the most efficient design? Any advice on sump design would be greatly appreciated.

3.) The return: As I stated above, I have the Mag 12! WHAT A BEAST!! I bought it and filled my sink up with water just to see the output I would be working with.. HAHAHAHA, I don't have to tell you what happened next! I think it shot water 15' across the kitchen lol! So, I know I have a hoss of a pump. But, my idea was this. I will be using PVC to plumb all my returns. What my idea was is the pump in the sump, straight pipe coming up a little, 45 bend towards the center back of the tank, then a Y fitting to split the return up to the corner sides of the tank to attach to the bulkheads, and of course, 2 90 degree elbows going into the back of the return bulkheads. I wish I could give you guys a rough picture, and might try it later. Also, another thought I had and read somewhere, while i'm doing the inital plumbing, I could do another Y and run an extra pvc over to the refugium and/or sump with a ball valve to adjust in case the water output is more than the drains can handle, I could turn it down by simple bleeding off some of the output right back into the sump/fuge without damaging the pump. Your thoughts on this setup?

4.) Finally, with regards to the bulkheads, i know the strainers you can get to just plug into the bulkheads (btw, all 4 of my bulkheads are SLIP/SLIP 1") to keep creatures from getting trapped. But what about for the returns? What would be a good option for directing the return flow? I see the loc line, but would there be a simpler/cheaper option? Pics would be WONDERFUL!

THANKS SO MUCH IN ADVANCE FOR ANY AND ALL REPLIES!! I am new to the forum and don't mean to overwhelm on my first post, but I have been researching for weeks, and these are the few questions that are still lingering.

Thanks,

Matt Price
TMattPrice@gmail.com

 

Welcome to 3Reef. Let me try to take a stab at some of this...

If you silicon the overflow to the back of the tank, so the bulkhead is lower than the water level in the overflow, you shouldn't need a "T" for air release. Gravity should do the rest. A 90 should do just fine. You could use 2 45 degree elbows instead of one 90 which would speed up the flow to the sump a bit

You can do pretty much anything you want here. Folks here have used just about everything you can think of for sumps. If you have the space, a separate refugium is great, but again, its up to you. Look in the galleries here for some ideas.

You answered your question #1 here with the ball valve on the return pump to regulate flow. Good thinking!

Shouldn't get any critters stuck in the return lines in the main tank, too much flow to allow them to get in there, I think. You do need to make sure the pump has a strainer on it, though. As far as directing the flow, I would search the forums. I have seem plenty of DIY returns, spray bars, etc...I like the loc line, but its your preference.

Hope that helps a bit

 

Thank you very much for your advice!

 

One thing I would say is use PVC for the drain and return lines. To use flex line you have to use a barbed fitting and the ID on that fitting will GREATLY reduce your flow. Since you're going to all of this trouble why not get all the bang for your buck? They make 1 inch flex PVC that works great. I used it on my tank where ever possible.

Good luck and go slow as you drill. Let the bit do the work, not your arm. It's not uncommon for each hole to take 20 or 30 minutes.

Any questions just ask...

Karma for doing research first!!!

 

20 minutes and a loud "BANG" from Otty, right Kogle? At least thats what I read....;D

 

I wish I could have been there to see KOgle jump out of his skin

 

You forgot the pants wetting part.

 

:LolLolLol:LolLolLol

 

Ok, so it must be an inside joke about a mistake lol. I just want to make sure I don't crack the back of my tank. I have searched high and low for a sticker/ embedded inscription or whatever saying tempered, do not drill, but cannot find it to save my life. I am assuming that being a 90 gallon tank, the bottom HAS to be tempered, but the sides are not. I did a "knock" test with my knuckle lol. The bottom DEFINITELY sounds different than the rest of the sides, which I am assuming means the others are not tempered. Any other tests I can do prior to drilling?

I like Kogle's idea of using PVC the whole way, so I think what i'll do for the drains is either use two 45 degree angles to go down to the sump OR use a 90 degree TURN, not Elbow joint.

Lastly, I am SO confused on the best way to build the sump for the flow rate and rains I am using. I have a general idea, but there are SO many variations it is overwhelming. I believe I have concluded that I will be using the biggest aquarium that will fit under my stand, more than likely the 30 gallon tank. I definitely want a bubble trap and fuge. I love the design that I originally posted a pic of. This way, you have your FUGE and SUMP all in one tank, and also gives me the option to bleed off some flow if the Mag 12 is pumping faster than the overflows can handle. I have read somewhere that the 1" bulkheads flow roughly 600 gph, and since I will be drilling two of them about 3" apart from each other, I would assume that would roughly be 1200 gph, and since the mag 12 is rated at 1200 gph at 0' head, I feel very confident that once the water flows through my series of piping, it will lose some of that pressure, thus working perfectly, hopefully anyway lol. For my internal overflow, if you can visualize this, I am using the teethed box that came with the HOB 1200gph dual drain overflow box. I have it painted blue to match the back of the tank. I plan on cutting out the back of it and siliconing it to the back. My thoughts are since the original overflow box was rated at 1200 gph, then by using that box, it should be sufficient surface skimming and draining to accommodate what I am trying to do, wouldn't you say? As far as your sumps, can someone please post a pic of theirs that is working 100%? What about the drain tubes that come down to the sump and then do a J shape and come right above the water level for output to create the cascading/bubbling effect? I know this is suppose to "quieten" down the sump, but does it have any other effects? possibly reducing bubbles? Your thoughts?

Thanks in advance as always!

Matt

 

Not really a mistake but still funny as heck

http://www.3reef.com/forums/show-off-your-fish-tanks/kogle-s-180-diary-41369-25.html

Forgive me if you've already answered this question but do you know what the manufacturer name is of the fish tank that you're looking to drill?