# Sump Setup



## chiefacorn (Dec 2, 2014)

I am thinking about adding a sump setup to my 150g tank. I am a little confused as to what all I will need. I will not be drilling my tank, but rather using an overflow box. The ones I have seen online and in my LFS seem to work pretty well.
I plan on using a 40gal breeder as my sump.

My biggest concern is gph. or gpm., as some of the higher rated pumps go by.
Obviously as I have a tall tank, my head height is going to be ~5.5ft. How many times per hour am I going to want to turn over the water using a sump? Is it the same for a normal canister or HOB setup?


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## Warhawk (Feb 23, 2014)

I have always done DIY over flows out of PVC and I shoot for 3-4 times the tank per hour. 

So your case 500-550 gallons a hour is what I would do. I would use 1.5" PVC for the drain or maybe 2" to be on the safe side. Not sure how the over flow your looking at is set up but make sure it will drain the water fast enough.


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## chiefacorn (Dec 2, 2014)

This is a link to the one I am considering:
http://www.amazon.com/Eshopps-AEO11010-Overflow-Pf-1000-Aquarium/dp/B001K5K8TW/ref=sr_1_7?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1428351575&sr=1-7&keywords=aquarium+overflow+box


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## Warhawk (Feb 23, 2014)

I could be wrong that that over flow tube looks like a 3/4" or 1". I don't think that will give you enough flow. You will want your over flow to be large enough to handle your return pump at max. If you run the return a lower setting that's better. The bigger the over flow the less likely it will be to get clogged also.


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## chiefacorn (Dec 2, 2014)

The actual website of the product:
ESHOPPS | PF-1200

This is the model up from the one I posted before, it has two tubes instead of one going from the tank over the side.


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## Warhawk (Feb 23, 2014)

I think that is saying its a 1" tube. Two of those might be enough. 

Have you looked a the DIY options or are you set on those?


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## chiefacorn (Dec 2, 2014)

I looked at several different DIY setups, and they seem interesting, however I have seen the majority of them have spotty success. One of the most interesting is out of PVC that goes down and then back up inside the tank, and has some odd configuration outside the tank, leading down to the sump. That one seems to be the most successful. If you can point me in the direction of one that works well, maybe one you have had experience with and know the problems that can arise. My biggest concern is that the majority of DIY setups cannot recover from a power failure. Living in Central Florida, brownouts are common, and I don't want to not be home, and have my sump pump all the water out of the sump, overfilling the tank, and flooding my condo, all while destroying the pump in the process.


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## Warhawk (Feb 23, 2014)

I have see how some of them will lose siphon when they lose power. Check out the "The king of DIY" on youtube his videos have a great setup. He makes a over flow what doesn't break siphon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DFk4bnIxEg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65yVr7DiDls


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## chiefacorn (Dec 2, 2014)

That is the one I was interested in.


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## Warhawk (Feb 23, 2014)

chiefacorn said:


> That is the one I was interested in.


What that extra 90 bend the water will stay in the pipe so the siphon won't drain out. Unlike the others where if the end of the pipe gets above the water level it will drain you you lose siphon. 

Don't forgot you can paint PVC with Krylon spray paint and after it fully drys it's safe for your tanks.


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## beaslbob (Oct 17, 2012)

FWIW the diy pvc overflows are just as reliable as any commercial overflow that is a hang on back design.

I posted somewhere beaslbob traps of three designs I built and tested.

What you do with pvc is create the boxes on the two box configurations. You do that by having a "water trap" on the back. The pipe goes down to the bottom of the tank then back up almost to the top before draining to the sump/refugium below. And you have a pipe from that top part in back up above the water level of the tank (and the tank itself) with an air hole at the top. 

So while running the water goes over the top, down, across, and back up to the top again and water falls to the sump/refugium.

When the power goes out the water drains to any inside the tank limit, or the point where the water does that final fall to the sump/refugium. Because that point is open to the air there is no siphon and the water stops flowing to the sump/refugium. And the water in the "u" is trapped behind the tank. and if there is no air hole in the hob pars, the water is all trapped in the over the back pvc also. With an air hole then it is just trapped in the u behind the tank.

When power returns the tank level increased to where the water starts falling down to the sump again.

I did add a venturi so suck out air bubbles in the over the back part which would also suck out air there to reestablish siphon. (this also is the "hole" I mentioned above)

Bottom line is the $20 of pvc will provide a very effective overflow with no better or worse operations than the two box designs.

Flooding is prevented by testing and adjusting water levels. One thing to remember is what happens when the drain itself fails. In that case the sump should run dry or the return motor turned off before the display floods.

my .02


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