Simple sump diagram

I have a 30 gal tank with lots of live rock in it. I want to start adding some hard corals. I have a 20gal glass aquarium I would like to use as a sump.. Im a little confused as to what equipment i need. I have a cascade 750 canister filter. Can i use the filter in any way as part of the sump setup?

 

sorry for double post

 

Here is a very simple design i came up with. Sorry for the cheesy diagram. I am still confused about the water levels and how the refugium should be. Can the overflow be gravity powered? Will that be enough flow? Also splitting the intake line from the filter so it sucks water from the tank and sump a good idea? I have a feeling my setup is totally wrong i've looked at other diagrams but im still not sure how the whole thing should work i'm kind of new to all this. I really want to use the filter i have as much as possible to cut costs. It has valves on it to regulate flow and is actually designed for a 100gal tank so i know it can handle this. I also need some suggestions for a decent skimmer. Thanks.

 

if yer gonna use the canister keep it seperate to yer sump as far as the rest goes all u need for a sump is in fact the tank u allready have the what id put in it <and have in mine> is the return pump heater and protien skimmer in the tank its self u will need an over flow box of some sort, simply puttin some hose over the top of yer tank the drain the water to yer sump WILL end in a flooded floor if u are going to do this definitly find an over flow box.
as far as skimmers go i have a cheap 1 in my tank, it works fine but most people have there own preference with skimmers

good luck

 

Thanks for the help its making more sense to me now.

 

I would get an external overflow rated at about 300GPH. I like these overflows the best. They are siphon assist, which is good in case of power failure.

CPR CS50 Overflow Box - eBay (item 180295740366 end time Dec-01-08 06:55:16 PST)

You can run the assist with something like a MaxiJet 1200.

In terms of the return pump, I would get a Mag 5 pump and fit it with a ball valve to control output. Your output from the sump should not be more than the gravity feed from the display tank, otherwise, you are looking at an overflow.

In terms of a skimmer. Well, your options are wide open with a sump. How much do you want to spend? If you plan on upgrading someday to somewhere around 90g, I would get something that will follow you with the upgrade. Three different types of skimmers you can look at are the PM Bullet-1, the AquaC EV-180 or the ETSS 600XR. Admittedly, these are overkill in your case, but like I said, they will all follow you with an upgrade. Otherwise, go ahead and look at the AquaC Remora, the AquaC EV-120 and the Octopus BH-100F. There are soooooo many choices out there. My only piece of advise that I do not budge on is do not skimp on skimmers. Lighting and skimmers are the things you want to do right the first time.

Oh, and in terms of the plumbing, target is absolutely right. Do not hook it inline with the canister filter. A flood will result.

 

If i still run it with the canister filter but i add an overflow box will that prevent flooding? I plan on getting a return pump and a skimmer I just want to get this going now so i can start some new live rock in the sump and my tank.

 

that would be the best idea but one time i ran over flow box to my sump and tried to use a canister filter to return the water and it wouldn't work right and just made a big water mess and headache.

 

Im gonna try out an overflow but i was thinking if I placed the overflow line from my tank high up close to the water line, if for any reason the canister filter does not shoot the water back up the right way when the water goes below my overflow line it will just shut off the whole system right?

 

ok here is the thing as the filter gets dirty at starts to restrict the flow and the rate changes but the box idea might work