sump/refugium/chiller pump location design ha ha ha talk about general

PS got to laugh at myself because started this thread as where do you put your chiller pump in your sump but seems to be morphed a bit as I went.. super tired..

Read the rant (need a V and go to bed)

Ok for those of you who have chillers where in the sump do you put your pump and then return line. My crazy uneducated thoughts!!!

So I will be building a sump with refugium out of a 40long 48x12x16tall tank

Just in the beginning design(in my head and on paper..chicken scratch) of how many sections I will have and I want to incorporate my chiller(sitting in a closet unused).

Maybe tomorrow or Sunday I will try to put something presentable on paper but for this minute bear with me (probably not going to have enough room for all I want to do but these are my first thoughts
Going from left to right (each individual sections)

1) overflow drain from tank (was thinking of putting pump to chiller here)
2) a reactor section
3) protein skimmer section
4) fuge (return from chiller but then it means that not all water is running through the reactor and skimmer)
5) return

or

1) overflow drain from tank (reactor pumps)
2) protein skimmer section
3)chiller pump
4) fuge (return from chiller)
5) return

and have external reactors (and return to skimmer section??)

lastly not that I have any at this point but where would you put your probes.

I want to have this thing completely on paper and designed before I do any purchasing parts etc.

PS sump width and height is non negotiable. Limited by design on the stand and also there is no way the wife is going to let me have an external 1.. I live in florida they do not believe in building in extra storage space etc.. how I do miss my basement and attic up north.. but will take the sun over snow any day....

blah blah blah blah blah.. I am tired.. hope you all dive in and give me your thoughts, designs, fits of laughter at me even thinking I can pull this off or how my design will totally not work. As long as you do not call me stupid and virtually slap me in the back of the head because my brother used to do that and it really pissed me off(minus the virtual slap more of the actual)

At least you get what I am looking to do so what would you do with a 40long

 

75 views and not even a thought.. Probably not a lot of people that have chillers so guess I can understand.. also was a little late when I started the thread, so hopefully someone will chime in today that has 1

For those of you without chillers where in line do you put your reactors? A video I had watched said if using biopellets put it before the skimmer.. what do you do

Also where are you putting your probes? In the return section?
Also

 

I have jbj chillers on my 40b (1/10) and 120g (1/5hp). I like the jbj's because they can handle more GPH through them. On both tanks They are tied into the main eheim 1262 return pumps. One less pump in the sump. Some chillers can't handle 900gph so you will have to have a separate pump for it.

 

Both my sumps are the same 3-section design. 1st chamber has return drains w socks and skimmer. 2nd section chaeto. 3rd section return pumps and reactor pumps. Reactor pumps intake and discharge in the 3rd chamber. The discharge exits into the return pump intake.

 

When I used chillers I used my return pump to circulate the chilled water. The overflow fed the sump, through the skimmer, over-under-over baffles to the return section where the return pump picked up clean water, passed it through the chiller and up to the display. No need for an additional pump, the extra power it consumed or the additional heat it generated and the chiller had to remove.


3 chamber 30 gallon sump. Refugium on far right end which overflows into the center/main section where the protein skimmer resides. The overflow is 1" with a 1" x1/2" tee branching out to the refugium so it is fed with nutrient laden water. After the main section it has over-under-over baffles to the return section where the Water Blaster HY-5000 return pump sits. I also have two Phosban 150 reactors hanging on the side here, both fed via a tee and individual ball valves with GFO in one and carbon in the other. The calcium reactor sits outside the sump but drips into a Lee's Specimen Container hanging on the refugium baffle with the pH probe suspended in the effluent and which overflows into the center section.

 

AZ and Singlefin do you have a thread with pics of sump/refugium or could you drop some here if you get some time.


Matter of fact I would not mind getting shots of others sump/refugium setups

PS thanks for the input.. this is not going to be a quick DIY project but will take some time. First thing is to put some cash away and come up with the design I want

 

. Old pic of my 20L. I added another baffle next to the return section on left so it draws water from the bottom.

 

left baffle added after tank was running or a while.

 

40b sump for my 120g