Long time no see... a picture friendly story

[burning2nd]

Hey guys... long time no speak.. All is well,

marriage, house, kids, work..

and a new build

Ive been working on this for a while, and im almost ready to pull the trigger on liquid from what i can tell i have everything but what i need to finish the plumping

b4 this all started i had my 75g i broke that down to my original 30 after i lost my clown fish of 15 years, with out fish it is very easy to make a tank modular

so i acquired this 125 for free and most of the stuff with it..

this is the dt.. we redid the entire room so everything started with the carpet so now that the tank is in place on the stand on the new floor..

this is what i want to do (and i think im going to do most of it with flexiable black pvc tube (plus some barb fittings)

see that panel to the right of the outlet? that opens to a nice finished hole in the floor thats how im going to get my feed and return to my sump.. all of the equipement except for a few power heads and the lights will be down stairs

*well that hole in the cealing isnt finished because i dont know how i want to do this just yet

so here come the questions

 

[burning2nd]

Im proably going to have to do some calculations for gpm with that head lag (about 8' plus a few 90's)
but how do i go about drilling this... putting a bulk head in, a union and some kind of flexible joint so the pump isnt directly on the glass... (not to rigid)

some kind of 90, then a union a small piece of flexible pvc, a union then the bulk head?

the pump motor will be screwed to the wood.. the pump will face forward for maint: but this sections has to all come apart

i remember years ago having to replumb and replumb thats why this has taken a year or more just to get it all together

 

[Scooterman]

cool deal, good to see you back, welcome!! congrats on the new build!

 

[burning2nd]

im just not sure the best way to plumb that barricuda pump to the return side of the sump, ive been searching around for a while on the proper way to do it.. and still have access to maintenance

i also have to install some kind of lolly colloum under the tank ( i use to have one under the 75 in this very spot) but i want something more finished..

if i come off the return side of the pump going back to the tank.. and then switch to barb fitting.. and use 1.75? or 2" black pvc tube, with a few doubled ended barb fittings (for like 90 degree angles)

the drain will be a larger diameter of tube then the return.. I dont think it will be very high flow after the amount of height that the pump has to push

 

[spieszak]

looking good!
Sorry I don't have any great input for you on the plumbing!
One suggestion I do have though, is that when you install the lolly column, keep in mind you can box it in with ply, but leave room for the plumbing. Fitted correctly, you could have a removable panel so that you could get to the column, and the plumbing, and still be able to hide everything from view. Probably have to run your plumbing a little out of the way for that, but hiding it all might be worth it.

 

[Scooterman]

lolly column?

BEST thing to do is sketch your plumbing idea and post it here, we've done that lots to figure out the best way. I already see you're in it for a few challenges. That pump is big, the glass on the sump looks standard, thin, if so you have to be absolute certain it won't just shatter it even with a flex hose, this hoses that diameter are still somewhat ridged. Post a sketch!

 

[spieszak]

 

[Scooterman]

ahh thanks

 

[burning2nd]

yeah... my main concern And really my only concern is the pump...

the pump is large... just an off of the top of the head measurement, Ill probably loose at least half of the flow rate, with the distance and the head lag (10-12 feet vertical )

the pump will probably be secured to the cabinet with a piece of thick rubber between and some large lags holding it down, the bulk head will probably be a 2" bulk

Thats an aga tank.. its actually the sump i used 7 or 8 years ago.. there isnt any other options to plump an external pump?

 

[burning2nd]

ill proably use a combo of hard pvc and soft tube's or hose

on several spots to alleviate stress thru out the feed and return,

under the tank will be standard pvc with 90"s and 45" which will then connect the left and right return to a center centralized drain then there will be one drain that will come thru the floor... make a 90degree turn twice and then enter the left side of the sump..

the return will be very close to the same thing all the way up thru the floor.. then will split in to 2x 1.250" (maybe 1.5) ive got a getto drawling that i was useing to get an idea for the amount of bends and couplings i need..

This has been a build ive been working on for about 2 years now.. its getting closer to water time... Ive decided that im going to start fresh

 

[Scooterman]

Go large on the suction, that is the important thing, do not undersize it at all. Use a schedule 80 BH from the sump tank to the pump. There are other options for an external pump but if power is ever lost it is a bad thing. The only other thought is get an acrylic sump or a tank that has thicker glass but you should be fine with what you have. I again say make a chicken scratch sketch of you plans, it will help.

 

[codybene]

Go large on the suction, that is the important thing, do not undersize it at all. Use a schedule 80 BH from the sump tank to the pump. There are other options for an external pump but if power is ever lost it is a bad thing. The only other thought is get an acrylic sump or a tank that has thicker glass but you should be fine with what you have. I again say make a chicken scratch sketch of you plans, it will help.

Wow seems like you know a lot about these kinds of stuff. I just recently joined and wanted to learn more about fish keeping as Im quite interested in it. Any tip you can give me as a starter?

 

[Scooterman]

Wow seems like you know a lot about these kinds of stuff. I just recently joined and wanted to learn more about fish keeping as Im quite interested in it. Any tip you can give me as a starter?

We have a dedicated forum with loads of information for those just starting out, patients is very important in my opinion, learn first it will save you a ton of money before you jump in and spend a lot it isn't easy starting out it is a lot of trial and error until you succeed.
This link will have some good starting out information to help answer your questions, then from there post more questions to help you understand or clarify things.

http://www.reeffrontiers.com/forums/124-New-To-Reefkeeping