Refugium side of display tank

haaha indeed cant be building a mini ecosystem with out a nice cold beverage

 

so... is this all possible?

 

yup im workn on a similar set up as we speak...if u wanna pm me for specific help id be more then happy to share the knowledge i have with you

 

thanks! I am just concerned that given the distance between the overflow and the sump is not "as great as" if the sump was under the display tank (like the normal sump setup); could the flow in pvc NOT being able to catch up with the return pump?

 

if your wondering i have a 55gal dt and im adding a 10gal fuge next to it using black flexable tubing (black so algea wont grow in it )

 

Not true, pods go right through pumps perfectly fine.

Your set-up looks fine. I have something slightly similar, in which the fuge is actually built into the stand as sort of a secondary display tank.
As for flow rates, you will need to install a ball (or even better gate) valve after the return pump, as with any sump/fuge job. This will allow you to dial in the return rate to the overflow no matter how it may or may not be slowed down by a reduced height.
The only thing I would suggest doing differently is to use solid PVC instead of flex tubing. Since this is going to be next to the tank, the plumbing is going to be exposed. Solid PVC will give you a much cleaner, neater look while the flex tubing is going to be dangling everywhere and look kind of hack. All this is just opinion though

 

my tank had to be "retrofied" to fit in my tiny bedroom so i gave my desk and used it as a stand and the fuge is on a shelf perpendicular to the dt so i used the flex tubing to snake it through the back of my bookshelf and through my wall (i cut the sheetrock so it is serviceable...shhh dont tell my mom i cut a hole in the wall ) so no hoses are really visible besides the wall to dt. and i used ball valves on both the intake and output sides

 

man your mom doesn't let you install the tanks in the living room poor you

 

she was until my brothers cats came home and figured how to take my lid off and go fishing rip mollys ...so in my room my tanks go ...its ok its nice to wake up to fish friends next to my bed the lights turning on in the am on my day off isnt

 

One more question - the 1/8" hole at the top horizontal pipe will have the slip barb connected to it and attached an aquarium air hose. This is for priming purposes; right?

Can this be replaced with a check valve instead of slip barb?

Can this part be taken out of the design totally?