Peppie
Well-known member
I think you will find that it is about 1/3 of that, taking into account the skimmer displacement
.
My 90gallon Build!!
- Thread starter #1Reefkeepr
- Start date
Help Support Reef Aquarium & Tank Building Forum:
I think you will find that it is about 1/3 of that, taking into account the skimmer displacement
.
#1Reefkeepr
Well-known member
Ya your rite, when I get off of work ill measure and get water volume for that last chamber for you!!
Last edited:
Peppie
Well-known member
I already know approx what it is. Approx.
Your chamber is approx 12'' X 16'' X 10'' = 7.79 gal Approx.
Skimmer displacement 9'' tube X 10'' tall = 3gal Approx
So lets say you have approx 5 gal of water @ 10'' high, 1'' of water height = 1/2gal of water.
How much water evaporates out of your system between your top offs? The return/skimmer section could drop 1''-3'' between your top offs.
Will that effect the performance of your skimmer????
Your chamber is approx 12'' X 16'' X 10'' = 7.79 gal Approx.
Skimmer displacement 9'' tube X 10'' tall = 3gal Approx
So lets say you have approx 5 gal of water @ 10'' high, 1'' of water height = 1/2gal of water.
How much water evaporates out of your system between your top offs? The return/skimmer section could drop 1''-3'' between your top offs.
Will that effect the performance of your skimmer????
#1Reefkeepr
Well-known member
And yes you are rite that evaporation happens in the Return chamber and water does drop exactly 1-2"gallons every 2-3 days,No the water level will not change because I top off in the Retun/Skimmer chamber!! Till I fill just 1/2" under my sump "water mark"!! And after about an hour the water line raises another 1/2" to match the water mark that I marked on the tank glass!!! And this skimmer has little to no affect with little change of water level (I did a little research on this skimmer)!!
kpiotrowski
Kevin
Peppie is trying to help you here with something VERY important. with your rate of evap in that small chamber you will NEVER dial in that skimmer. you need an ato!
sedrostyle
Well-known member
Makes me wonder about my evaporation rate vs my skimmer dialing in. 
If I let mine go a few days all of a sudden its starts pulling massive black gunk and then when i top it off its not as good.
Of course my sump got broke when I moved so Ill have to find the IDEAL zone and keep my water topped off to have primo skim.
Good luck with finding yours out. These guys seem to be alot of help.
If I let mine go a few days all of a sudden its starts pulling massive black gunk and then when i top it off its not as good.
Of course my sump got broke when I moved so Ill have to find the IDEAL zone and keep my water topped off to have primo skim.
Good luck with finding yours out. These guys seem to be alot of help.
#1Reefkeepr
Well-known member
Yess I am in the process of buying an auto top off for my sump!! But again my funds are very low rite now only because the military Deffence is cutting back on the army!!! So I can only buy if its a "steal of a deal"!! But I am lookin for a refractometer and a auto top off!!! So if you have extra of any of these items let me know how much and if I can afford it I'm all in!!!
#1Reefkeepr
Well-known member
Yes Peipee,KPTrowski,And all others who are following and helping me tweek this 90bow build!! I thank you all for your time and opinions!! Thanks a lot!!!Makes me wonder about my evaporation rate vs my skimmer dialing in.
If I let mine go a few days all of a sudden its starts pulling massive black gunk and then when i top it off its not as good.
Of course my sump got broke when I moved so Ill have to find the IDEAL zone and keep my water topped off to have primo skim.
Good luck with finding yours out. These guys seem to be alot of help.
kpiotrowski
Kevin
for now just figure out where the manufactuer of that skimmer say the water height should be ( usually between 7-9 inches) put a line with a piece of tape, and top off several times a day to keep it as consistant as possible. do you have a controlle like apex of reefkeeper? thats the way to go and makes ato easy with no need to buy seperate ato, a simmple gravty ato will work for now and you could contact "senji" and ask if he still as the ato I sold him for $10 that would work and I'm assuming he has upgraded by now.
aslo my prefence with tuning a skimmer is to start dry and then work your way up ( most recomend this). this way you don't risk and event where the skimmer goes nuts and overflows dumpimng skimmate back into yoiur system.
lasly.....stop "liking" every post! lol. that is reserved for things your REALLY agree with and is used rarley, and usually in place of writing a response.
aslo my prefence with tuning a skimmer is to start dry and then work your way up ( most recomend this). this way you don't risk and event where the skimmer goes nuts and overflows dumpimng skimmate back into yoiur system.
lasly.....stop "liking" every post! lol. that is reserved for things your REALLY agree with and is used rarley, and usually in place of writing a response.
#1Reefkeepr
Well-known member
Ill get back on this thread when I get off of work!!! LOL KPtrowski you "Almost" got another like bro!!!
kpiotrowski
Kevin
Makes me wonder about my evaporation rate vs my skimmer dialing in.
If I let mine go a few days all of a sudden its starts pulling massive black gunk and then when i top it off its not as good.
Of course my sump got broke when I moved so Ill have to find the IDEAL zone and keep my water topped off to have primo skim.
Good luck with finding yours out. These guys seem to be alot of help.
usualy its the other way around where the higher the water level in sump causes higher water in skimmer and oveflowing. in your case I would have to guess that your skimmer needs more air and running a lower water level all the time may be that answer. how high is the water level in the sump that your skimmer sits in?
#1Reefkeepr
Well-known member
Ok I just took a couple of pictures of the sump "water level" and it seems to be the same since this morning!! Thank god!! But I'm very surprised on how this is going for this setup because on all my other setups I went with the skimmer in the first chamber!! Ok let me explain "WHY" I'm doing this "the opposite way", so in my first baffle It will drain into a sock then to my Chato/calurpa then under and over to the center chamber where all my coral pieces and porous live rock sit then down and under to the last chamber where my skimmer will Skim, then back into the system!! I put the skimmer on the end in this build because I thought that if I put the skimmer in the first chamber it will skim tooo much "Good" nutrients that my plants,rock,and livestock need!! Hope that explains my setup and you understand "WHY" I experimented with this!!
this is the water level now at 3:55pm!!!
Changed my rock around because today I am adding new Coral pieces I got from Mike!!
sedrostyle
Well-known member
Also something to think about, When I had my 20L as a sump, the water in the " skimmer chamber " was also the drain from the main tank chamber.
This chamber ALWAYS was at a constant height. Don't ask me how this was setup. But I think it was determained by the first baffle height.
I think this is what you want for your skimmer to have the constant skim your looking for.... RIGHT?
So with my sump it drained straight down... went over the baffle, under and over. say 8" first baffle second one was the same 8" but it was 2 inches off the bottom. creating the over and under. then the last baffle was at 8" also. but flat. So over under over make sense. all say maybe 1.5 inch spaced. THEN
for the refugium side.
once it was done with the last over it went into the refugium this second could've been better setup in my sump because the other side of the refugium wall was at say 5" then whatever was left was the return section.
Idk if this makes any sense but the only section that had fluctuating water level was the refugium/return parts.
Let me know and I can take pictures of what used to be my sump and I could explain more.
What im getting at is that if you have a similar setup, your skimmer section of your sump will be at a constant height.
That rules out one thing right?
This chamber ALWAYS was at a constant height. Don't ask me how this was setup. But I think it was determained by the first baffle height.
I think this is what you want for your skimmer to have the constant skim your looking for.... RIGHT?
So with my sump it drained straight down... went over the baffle, under and over. say 8" first baffle second one was the same 8" but it was 2 inches off the bottom. creating the over and under. then the last baffle was at 8" also. but flat. So over under over
make sense. all say maybe 1.5 inch spaced. THENfor the refugium side.
once it was done with the last over it went into the refugium this second could've been better setup in my sump because the other side of the refugium wall was at say 5" then whatever was left was the return section.
Idk if this makes any sense but the only section that had fluctuating water level was the refugium/return parts.
Let me know and I can take pictures of what used to be my sump and I could explain more.
What im getting at is that if you have a similar setup, your skimmer section of your sump will be at a constant height.
That rules out one thing right?
Peppie
Well-known member
Ok I just took a couple of pictures of the sump "water level" and it seems to be the same since this morning!! Thank god!! But I'm very surprised on how this is going for this setup because on all my other setups I went with the skimmer in the first chamber!! Ok let me explain "WHY" I'm doing this "the opposite way", so in my first baffle It will drain into a sock then to my Chato/calurpa then under and over to the center chamber where all my coral pieces and porous live rock sit then down and under to the last chamber where my skimmer will Skim, then back into the system!! I put the skimmer on the end in this build because I thought that if I put the skimmer in the first chamber it will skim tooo much "Good" nutrients that my plants,rock,and livestock need!! Hope that explains my setup and you understand "WHY" I experimented with this!!
this is the water level now at 3:55pm!!!
Changed my rock around because today I am adding new Coral pieces I got from Mike!!
My research on this skimmer says it is to run in 8''-10'' of water.
Doest look to me that you have enough water height in your skimmer section for this high end skimmer to do its job properly.
Do you get it yet? Sedro, Myself, Kipo, have all tried to tell you that the skimmer needs to sit in a chamber that has the CORRECT, CONSTANT water height,to perform as it was designed.
BTW your theory about having the skimmer in the last chamber is so you can grow pods and macros. You say you are concerned that your macros and pods wont have enough food. So then maybe you should use your fuge as the display. If it were me I would be more concerned with my display having the correct water quality.
Why dont you just pull that sump off line, hook the 25 back up, and redo the 55 so it is done right???
#1Reefkeepr
Well-known member
Here is the water level at 5:50pm and thanks Peppie and all others I did have time to read the spicifications on my skimmer and it says water level "Should Not" exceed 8" it's is best performed at 6-7"!!! Search this!!
http://www.saltvattensguiden.se/forumet/attachment.php?attachmentid=65953&d=1321388840
and when I said I put my skimmer on the last chamber to feed my corals MOST importantly!! And I wish I had the space for a FUGE DISPLAY that would be sick!! And as for the 25g under the tank I am using that as a quarintine!!
http://www.saltvattensguiden.se/forumet/attachment.php?attachmentid=65953&d=1321388840
and when I said I put my skimmer on the last chamber to feed my corals MOST importantly!! And I wish I had the space for a FUGE DISPLAY that would be sick!! And as for the 25g under the tank I am using that as a quarintine!!
#1Reefkeepr
Well-known member
kpiotrowski
Kevin
looks like an older ruler....like when they use to lead in paint (LOL)
#1Reefkeepr
Well-known member
Nope not made in 1950s!!! LOL made in America and got it in JBLM!! So no that ruler does not contain Lead!!! LOL man that would suck though!!! LOL
#1Reefkeepr
Well-known member
Never would've thought of that??? LOL
Peppie
Well-known member
So then you are saying that you are not going to reconfigure your 55 sump?
May be it would be a good idea if you sat down (with no distractions) and took 20min. and read your entire Thread. Then do it again.
It will have the overflow drop into the chamber on the left (which also hold my skimmer), then 3 baffles to the refugium area, then a single baffle to my return area. Here's that my current 20l sump looks like. This is just the way I learned how to set up a sump. quote from something fishy
#36
kpiotrowski
kpiotrowski is online now
Blenny
kpiotrowski's Avatar
Join Date
Jun 2011
Location
Buckley,wa
Posts
889
Yes exactly, you want skim the water as soon as it comes out of the DT.
Just curious on how many houses you have framed?????
Everybodys home is not built different in many many ways. There are codes that builders need to abide by. The joist that starts in the corner of a second floor framing system is 16'' away from the rim joist that is buried under the wall. So the joist that are in the center of the load bearing wall Will carry the same load as the joist running parallel to the load bearing wall.
Dude I was building homes before your Mom and Dad decided to start a family. I would be glad to hear about your 3 point theory!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Never seen a reply to this post??
There was a no effecient way to run the two Sumps without a disaster or a fail system!!! And why would you say my setup is insuficient I need to kno so if it makes sense I can correct and move on to the next of your worries about my setup??? Please go on???? QUOTE BY YOU
There has been more than two different ways give to you to run two sumps together
skimmer "skims it pushes water out which was skimmed and, "if I was going to put this skimmer in the first chamber" which god forbid everyone does, it would clean that water too good to where in the next chamber my pods or Bact. May not get enough food and dye off causing my system to crash???? QUOTE BY YOU
There is a reason why EVERYBODY does it this way
WHY" I'm doing this "the opposite way", so in my first baffle It will drain into a sock then to my Chato/calurpa then under and over to the center chamber where all my coral pieces and porous live rock sit then down and under to the last chamber where my skimmer will Skim, then back into the system!! I put the skimmer on the end in this build because I thought that if I put the skimmer in the first chamber it will skim tooo much "Good" nutrients that my plants,rock,and livestock need!! Hope that explains my setup and you understand "WHY" I experimented with this!! QUOTE BY YOU
Looks like you are saying you are more concerned about keeping your pods and macros in better health than the corals and fish in your DT??
I am going out on a limb here.
There are so many right ways to run a reef tank.
The way you are going about it, is not one of them!
May be it would be a good idea if you sat down (with no distractions) and took 20min. and read your entire Thread. Then do it again.
It will have the overflow drop into the chamber on the left (which also hold my skimmer), then 3 baffles to the refugium area, then a single baffle to my return area. Here's that my current 20l sump looks like. This is just the way I learned how to set up a sump. quote from something fishy
#36
kpiotrowski
kpiotrowski is online now
Blenny
kpiotrowski's Avatar
Join Date
Jun 2011
Location
Buckley,wa
Posts
889
Yes exactly, you want skim the water as soon as it comes out of the DT.
Just curious on how many houses you have framed?????
Everybodys home is not built different in many many ways. There are codes that builders need to abide by. The joist that starts in the corner of a second floor framing system is 16'' away from the rim joist that is buried under the wall. So the joist that are in the center of the load bearing wall Will carry the same load as the joist running parallel to the load bearing wall.
Dude I was building homes before your Mom and Dad decided to start a family. I would be glad to hear about your 3 point theory!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Never seen a reply to this post??
There was a no effecient way to run the two Sumps without a disaster or a fail system!!! And why would you say my setup is insuficient I need to kno so if it makes sense I can correct and move on to the next of your worries about my setup??? Please go on????
QUOTE BY YOUThere has been more than two different ways give to you to run two sumps together
skimmer "skims it pushes water out which was skimmed and, "if I was going to put this skimmer in the first chamber" which god forbid everyone does, it would clean that water too good to where in the next chamber my pods or Bact. May not get enough food and dye off causing my system to crash???? QUOTE BY YOU
There is a reason why EVERYBODY does it this way
WHY" I'm doing this "the opposite way", so in my first baffle It will drain into a sock then to my Chato/calurpa then under and over to the center chamber where all my coral pieces and porous live rock sit then down and under to the last chamber where my skimmer will Skim, then back into the system!! I put the skimmer on the end in this build because I thought that if I put the skimmer in the first chamber it will skim tooo much "Good" nutrients that my plants,rock,and livestock need!! Hope that explains my setup and you understand "WHY" I experimented with this!! QUOTE BY YOU
Looks like you are saying you are more concerned about keeping your pods and macros in better health than the corals and fish in your DT??
I am going out on a limb here.
There are so many right ways to run a reef tank.
The way you are going about it, is not one of them!
Last edited:
