Refugium/sump design..advice please

[Jaroby]

Thanks to input and yet further research (there is no end to it) I have designed my 65gal display's sump/refugium from a 30g aga (36x12x16). Without diagrams this may be tough to visualize but its not complicated....

Disply drains directly to sump drain/skimmer chamber that is 8x12x12 (5gal capacity). This flows over a 12" baffle under a hanging baffle 1" from bottom and over a 12" baffle into the pump return chamber also 8x12x12 (5 gal capacity). This so far takes slightly over 1/2 the total sump tank volume. The second half of the tank is a refugium 15x12x14 fed directly from a T in the main drain pipe with a ball valve. This allows the refugium to get direct water from the display with controlled variable flow and then overflow the 14" baffle, under hanging 1" from boottom baffle, and over a 12" baffle to the return pump chamber.

lll--drain chamber--l-l-l--return pump--l-l-l------------refugium-------------lll

lll----8x12x12-----------> 8x12x12 <------------- 15x12x14--------------lll

lll--chamber--3 baffles--> pump chamber <--3 baffles-----refugium---------lll

lll---main flow----------> pump chamber <------------adjustable flow------lll

Baffles: 2 - 12" baffles flanking middle baffle 1" from bottom on skimmer side to remove micro bubbles, and a 14" baffle on refugium side followed by 1" from bottom baffle and 12" baffle going to return chamber to prevent sand/debris from getting to pump.

Ok so i have read how a small drain chamber filled with liverock can be used instead of baffles to remove the microbubbles... making for easier construction (less gluing, less acrylic used). Will a 2"x3"x12" drain chamber filled with rock be effective enough for the removal of baffles? Pro's/con's to either design?

Also taking any advice on a better way (less space and acrylic) to protect the return pump from sediment coming from refugium rather than the over-under-over baffle configuration i have now (which incidentally will remove bubbles also but not main job).

Total flow going through sump will be about 600 gph, refugium being variable will only get a portion of that (main point to this design). Display is 65gal (36x18x24), positioned on stand with sump/refuge underneath inside stand.

Thank you for any inputs and i look forward to improving my designs for increased effectiveness.

 

[Maxx]

Moved this from the Workshop Forum to the Tank Design forum.

Couple of thoughts......

I dont like putting live rock as a mechanical filter like your planning in this case (Stop the bubbles etc). My rational is this, with that much flow through your sump, you're gonna get more than bubbles caught in your live rock, your gonna get debris. Its gonna get into the small spaces of your rock and be difficult to remove, and eventually become a collection of crap...literally.

I dont know what your trying to keep in your 65, but odds are, it will do better if you remove the detritus before it accumulates.

I also notice you have about 10X turnover through your sump alone...thats a fairly high turnover rate and will create some noise, as well as keep some things in suspension that would settle out if flow was less. Providing a settling out area allows the detritus to be more easily removed as well...

Can you reduce the flow through your sump and increase it through a closed loop/powerheads in the tank?

Nick

 

[Jaroby]

My intent is to get 25-30x flow total, getting about 10 from the main systyem pump and the other 15-20x overturn from a closed loop manifold i have not yet built, it will be in the near future. I thought the 10x flow would be good through the sump especially since the refugium is getting much less of that, but did not think of the enviromental noise it will create. Any rough figures/suggestions about noise dampening or how loud it really will be. I will need to balance loss of flow for positive loss of decibel's.

 

[Maxx]

Bes thing I could tell w/ regard to noise dampening, (especially in a smaller area like the inside of a 65 gallon tank stand, (36Lx18Wx 24H tank dimensions I believe), is to reduce as much as possible before trying to dampen whats left.

To that end, I would suggest going w/ 4-6 times total system turnover through the sump, and make up the rest through the closed loop.
As far as total decibels created by your system while its running, there are so many factors involved that its impossible to say with any realistic view towards a real number.

Things to think about (from hard experiance):

Over size your plumbing
Oversize any unions/Ball valves/ True Union Ball Valves beyond your already oversized plumbing....Unions/BV's/TUBV's all restrict down about 1/4 inch from the plumbing tehy are made to fit. IE a 1 inch union/BV/TUBV will constrict down to 3/4 inch inside. This creates more back pressure on your pump, reduces your flow, and potentially creates more noise.

What are you wanting to keep in this tank with that much flow?

Nick