Splash / media box versus sock?

Am I correct in understanding that if the overflow pipe dumps into a rubble filled splashbox in the first chamber of a sump - that you do not need a sock?

Also, if i have been reading other posts correctly, the water trickles down over the LR rubble then discharges out openings in the bottom of the splashbox walls...

Wouldnt the splashbox fill to a water level equal to that of the sump chamber this keeping the rubble submerged - as opposed to a trickle down scenario?

Can someone clear me up on this? I am going to be brave and take the plunge soon in laying out my first sump. I have a ton of threads bookmarked here - but it all gets overwhelming at once.

Just want to be sure I understand what should happen at the overflow discharge into the first sump chamber before I tackle the next chamber

thank you for your patience - I know so much of this gets asked a bazillion times.

regards,
elizabeth

(we really need a "newb" smiley icon for moments like these!)

 

...well...I was in your shoes also...its kind of intimadating when you first start looking....but just keep it simple...and btw, I removed my sock a few months ago...big positive difference in the growth and health of my tank habitants....I will put it on once in awhile to clear the water ...but I just let it dump in the sump area of my sump/fuge/return system.....the rock box sounds like it sure would'nt hurt...but I dont see why it would be needed if your running micro algae LR and LS in your fuge...JMO..good luck ! : )
LG

 

yea i ran a 100 micron sock for about 2 weeks and it cloged bigtime and was too hard to clean the inside of the sock so its gone...

 

lot'o good stuff gets caught up in that sock ! ......

 

LoL...hope you both fed your socks to the clothes dryer - don't know about you folks but my clothes dryer seems to feed on any socks i give it!

ok ok..back to business - I feel better about chamber 1 - i would still like to hear more from those who do run a splashbox with rubble. I believe the splashbox helps with noise a bit too. A thread that Wiigelec posted a while ago about a really nifty splashbox he made had gotten me inspired - and i think I would like to give it a try.

Regarding the Refugium - LG, you mention LR in the fuge - should you always do that? Again having scrolled through tons of threads and pics, i think I sometimes see fuges with only a DSB and macro algaes in them. I anticipate mine to become a bit of a swamp if all goes well.

(yeah i have been making chicken noises for a while now in regard to attempting a sump / fuge etc..but it is time....there is a 20Long sitting at home just waiting quietly - well except for all the whispering it does..."come work on me"....)

I tend to think that when you are a true newb and a newb who isn't necessarily cozy around tools and a lot of this type of plumbing / electrical DIY stuff, that each "first sump" is like a rite of passage - i think this is why so many of us start yet another sump thread no matter how many others we may have bookmarked and read over and over.

It's a deeply personal experience! (could someone please start the dramatic soundtrack music?)

Keep the info coming! The people here are wonderful.

 

+1 to no sock! Actually I prefer nothing but heaters and pumps in my sump. Less places for ditrieus (sp) to get trapped and easier to clean imo.

 

I agree, socks are terrible. They take way to much cleaning to keep them from becoming nitrate factories.

IF you pile live rock into a spot in your sump that you cannot also have CUC you are only re-creating bio-balls. It will trap tons of detritus and begin to create nitrates.

You don't have to have LR in your fuge, but it creates a more diverse environment for pods to live in. I like to have at least a small piece in my fuges for them to feed on and live in.

 

In my sump I have a splash box that feeds into LR rubble and my skimmer in the first chamber, which is the same place my peppermint shrimp has decided to live and clean all of the rocks for me. I also might invest in snail proofing the skimmer and putting some bumblebees down there. Haven't decided yet.

 

Now i am curious - might you be willing to share a pic of that?

I would greatly appreciate it.

 

Everyone has an opinion and not one of the is wrong....for that person..

I use a sock on my drain from the tank into the sump but not into my fuge, they are 100 microns. It take me 2 minutes once a week to replace it, 15 minutes to toss it in the washer to clean it. I hang them in my fish work room to dry.

My water is crystal clear, my sump has very little detritus in it. My corals and fish are all happy and look great. Been using one since I set the tank up 2 years ago. Never had high Nitrates, Nitrites, Phosphates or any other issue due to using them.