plumbing dilema

I want my display refugium who's higher; to feed my reef with pods and rotifers . Now i'm not sure about the plumbing, should i hook the pipe to the drain a get all the debris with it or have a seperate pipe and where should i put it. This will be my set up.




The refugium has a C2c because it will drain in the sump as well as feeding the tank; but thats my dilema. Should i drain the refugium junk into my reef tank; the fuge will have seahorses on one side and on the other side Anglers






So what do you think should i have a seperate pipe from the fuge and where should it drain from?


My reef tank with its glass wavebox my little idea, lol



Reef stand




The refugium stand



Thanks for your time

 

Run the fuge directly to the DT. Run the DT to the sump and the fuge using separate lines. Run the sump return to the DT. That way you get "clean" water to the DT from both sources.

 

Ahh no ok forget the drawing options those were for something else rigid pipes vs flex, so not relevant to my question lol. What i'm affraid of is poluting my reef tank with my fuge bioload it going to have a collection of macro-algae and on one side seahorses and the other side anglers, its a split tank. It will have a rigid mesh seperating the two. the water will flow between . And since these two species are very messy , all their waste is going to go in my reef if the herbie drain is split in two and goes into my reef tank. So my question how do i feed my reef with pods and rotifers from the fuge without the junk and waste from the skimming . Where would you put the feeding pipe, the side, water level ? Thanks for your time.

 

OK I see what you are up to. The fuge needs to go to the sump then. The pods should make it through your return pump fine.

 

Some one suggested a pipe just underneath the water level of the refugium and connecting about midway into the reef tank . The water pressure from the reef tank will stop the refugium water from emptying into the reef but will permit pods and rotifers to migrate without the waste and junk found on the surface near the skimming. I guess from the side of the refugium to the side of the reef tank.

What do you think?

 

Something like that or drilling holes just below the water line on your return line if it goes of the egde. Also drilling holes in the glass very near the top of tank and having your water level just reaching there so you DT does not overflow when the power goes out.

 

Ok a little more precision on my delima, this is the two tanks the refugium is higher than the reeftank and by gravity will be feeding the reef with pods and rotifers. Now how to connect the two without having the junk from the seahorses and the anglers in the refugium ( two very messy species) going into the reef. I came up with kinda solution what do you think. Its a pipe just below the waterline in the fuge going well below the waterline in the reef tank ; to the middlle of the reef tank actually . The water pressure of the reef tank should stop the water from draining the fuge right? Thanks for the idea!



The refugium skimmed water from the C2C will go through the Herbie drain and directly to the sump and not to the reef tank. So no junk will go in the reef just the pods and rotifers.Make sense?

 

No, the pressure from the reef tank won't stop water from draining. You have the 'fuge higher than the reef tank, water will travel from high to low, so the 'fuge will drain as much as it can (to the bottom of the connecting pipe in the 'fuge). As long as the pipe is high enough, it will be fine.

So if I am understanding this, your 'fuge overflows to both your sump and your reef tank? Where is it being pumped back into, just the 'fuge? Does your return pump feed your reef as well? Just trying to understand how you want this to be plumbed.

 

Having such inhabitants in the fuge is counterproductive as it will be adding to the bioload in your reef rather than helping reduce nutrients. Whether or not you are getting the "gunk", you will still be increasing DOCs and Nitrates. My only suggestion is to set up a separate tank for the seahorses and anglers, and use the fuge as a pod farm for both DTs.

JM2C

 

Agreed. The only way this will work properly (as far as plumbing is concerned) is if the fuge overflow drains into the DT, the DT overflow drains into the sump, and the return pump pumps from the sump to the fuge. Not the best scenario however as the cleanest water is going into the fuge rather than your reef.