50b Build Check list and advise!

[dtd87]

I want to take my time with this system and get a sump and such.. So I need help with a checklist..

So far I already have the LR Heater and such from my other tank which should be perfectly fine for this system.

I want to drill this tank and have an overflow. Where should I look into getting the supplies for this? I am not extremely handy. But I believe I would be able to drill it myself. Or unless someone is near seatac who can help

I am a novice so I need help with sump building and.. plumbing.. Anything that anyone could help me with would be awesome!

Signed

The Excited Novice ^.^

 

[fragallrock]

help

glass or acrylic kinda helps on your drilling Q's

 

[Jesse_emel]

Glass-holes.com has everything you need including instructional videos. The overflow kits come with the hole saw bit. I would figure out what pump your gonna use and calc your GPH and then order. had mine less than a week after ordering.

here is my 40B thread which on the 1st couple pages shows what i did. Good luck Build slow and think everything through. (Twice)

http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=56392

You will notice i built everything in my garage and did multiple water testes before final on-site assembly.

I want to take my time with this system and get a sump and such.. So I need help with a checklist..

So far I already have the LR Heater and such from my other tank which should be perfectly fine for this system.

I want to drill this tank and have an overflow. Where should I look into getting the supplies for this? I am not extremely handy. But I believe I would be able to drill it myself. Or unless someone is near seatac who can help

I am a novice so I need help with sump building and.. plumbing.. Anything that anyone could help me with would be awesome!

Signed

The Excited Novice ^.^

 

[Loke]

i agree. just make sure you have most of your equipment. sump, return pump, stand, heaters power heads and plumbing planned out. it will make things much easier.

 

[dtd87]

Lol.. it's glass. I forgot that. I have my heaters lights. Need to build the sump and such.. Most on glass holes say nano >.>

 

[Jesse_emel]

This is the one i got.....

http://glass-holes.com/700-gph-Overflow-complete-kit-gh700kit.htm

This is the one i should have got.....

http://glass-holes.com/1500-gph-complete-kit-gh1500kit.htm

 

[Loke]

You can make your own overflow. I did. It wasn't too bad if you want I can help you through the steps

 

[dtd87]

This is the one i got.....

http://glass-holes.com/700-gph-Overflow-complete-kit-gh700kit.htm

This is the one i should have got.....

http://glass-holes.com/1500-gph-complete-kit-gh1500kit.htm

Why would you want that much flow? or do I not correctly understand this.

 

[Loke]

No he has a huge return pump for his return. Necked down and reduced.

 

[rainydave]

I'll second the glass holes recommendation. Great kit. I went with the 700 gph return for my 40b build as I was putting a refugium in my sump and wanted moderate flow. I'm running a Mag 7 for a return pump.

Drilling wasn't really that difficult. Just take your time. It is not a step that should be rushed.

 

[dtd87]

Does anyone have a website where I can read about this. Cause the 700gph seems better to me. but I dont have much to judge it upon. Also why are the holes so big for those overflows! all reef readys I've seen seem to have like 3/4 inch holes. Or 1 1/4.

 

[dtd87]

Also what return kit would you get?

 

[Jesse_emel]

I'm running about 500 gph through a 1/2" flapper valve out 2 nozzles. And i would personally like to see a little more flow. The water is moving but not quite enough for my taste (Found out everyones opinion is different on this topic) I did not want any power head with cords running over the back. I may try to adjust mine sometime in the future but for now it's doing fine.

The 700 gph overflow kit is doing fine and i have valve adjustment on the return line. But now I'm running it wide open. But if you wanted more flow i would go with the 1500 just to be safe. can you have to much overflow capacity??

 

[dtd87]

I'm running about 500 gph through a 1/2" flapper valve out 2 nozzles. And i would personally like to see a little more flow. The water is moving but not quite enough for my taste (Found out everyones opinion is different on this topic) I did not want any power head with cords running over the back. I may try to adjust mine sometime in the future but for now it's doing fine.

The 700 gph overflow kit is doing fine and i have valve adjustment on the return line. But now I'm running it wide open. But if you wanted more flow i would go with the 1500 just to be safe. can you have to much overflow capacity??

What return kit did you pick up? And will I need to get like a mag 7 or 8

 

[dtd87]

Shameless bump..

I think I'm going to do the 20long sump.. I might just look for a company in seatac or seattle so i can get it drilled. Don't know if I want to risk borrowing a drill from my uncle and screwin up my tank.

 

[Krish]

Shameless bump..

I think I'm going to do the 20long sump.. I might just look for a company in seatac or seattle so i can get it drilled. Don't know if I want to risk borrowing a drill from my uncle and screwin up my tank.

I love the idea of letting someone else drill a tank even if you are skilled and very confident in doing it yourself. The reason why is if something accidentally gets screwed up, they will have to replace it for you and not you yourself.

 

[DonW]

Shameless bump..

I think I'm going to do the 20long sump.. I might just look for a company in seatac or seattle so i can get it drilled. Don't know if I want to risk borrowing a drill from my uncle and screwin up my tank.

I think folks are missing the point with flow through the sump. A 500 maxed out is 10 times turn over per hour through the sump. There are two ways to do this its either with a slow high contact time flow 3-4 times per hour or an extremely fast flow that basicly makes the tank and sump one. Either is just fine but anything in the middle is a waste of resources. Tank flow should be seperated by powerheads or a closed loop if you go with a slow flow sump. The slow flow through the sump is the most common. If you wanted to used the return as all the tanks flow then for sps you would need much more pump along the lines of 3000gph.

Secondly Mag pumps although great for ponds are not a good reef pump. They run way to hot especially if valved down. The extreme heat not only heats the tank but causes precip on the magnets. The precip binds the pump making even more heat. They are also not efficient in terms of energy usage.

Don

 

[Jesse_emel]

Short Story:

My Mag 18 pump went down this weekend in my 40B with 20L sump (60 gallon total). Turns out the ceramic shaft in the middle of the impeller snapped in 2. It was made in 03' so it actually lasted a pretty long time. I figure that pump as it was necked down through a 1/2" flapper valve was pushing 600-700 gph and I had nice movement through my sump. In my attempts to fix my tank i installed a mag 7. I thought the flow was pathetic. I got hardly any water movement through my display tank or my sump with that pump pumping about 4'. So i repaired the MAG 18 and converted it to a MAG 12 with a smaller impeller. It's back up and running and looks great again. So from my personal experience I would shoot for 7-10 times the volume in turn over.

 

[rainydave]

I'm fairly pleased with the Mag 7 I'm using as a return pump on my setup. Of course, I'm running my 20l as sump/refugium and not attempting to use the flow from the sump as my main flow in the dt. I use Koralias for that purpose.

 

[DonW]

Short Story:

My Mag 18 pump went down this weekend in my 40B with 20L sump (60 gallon total). Turns out the ceramic shaft in the middle of the impeller snapped in 2. It was made in 03' so it actually lasted a pretty long time. I figure that pump as it was necked down through a 1/2" flapper valve was pushing 600-700 gph and I had nice movement through my sump. In my attempts to fix my tank i installed a mag 7. I thought the flow was pathetic. I got hardly any water movement through my display tank or my sump with that pump pumping about 4'. So i repaired the MAG 18 and converted it to a MAG 12 with a smaller impeller. It's back up and running and looks great again. So from my personal experience I would shoot for 7-10 times the volume in turn over.

Your sump is designed to process water only. To much flow just reduces contact time thus reuced skimming and heater efficiency. A 20g sump holds no where near 20 gallons of water after you leave drain back clearance and displacement of equipment. The skimmer area has to be so small that the dirty water is being pushed back into the tank faster than it can be processed. A sump does not need to flow fast, the "pathetic" flow is perfect unless you are using it to create circulation. If thats the case then you need powerheads. A mag7 is plenty for a 40g return pump although uses way to much power and generates to much heat.
You say flapper valve. What are you calling a flapper valve? Do you mean check valve? Why?

Don