thanks for all the advice!

[kpiotrowski]

Here is a diag of the plan for water flow through my tank. any advice?

I can explain for ever WHY I have chose this way to go, but prefer to seek advice first. TIA!

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[Skimmy]

looks good...
the only other option I see is if you put a bulkhead on the BACK of the overflow box instead of the bottom,
and then gravity feed into the refugium, then sumps, and then just pump back to the display

 

[kpiotrowski]

I have given great consideration to the bulkhead on the back idea as it seems much simpler, however have chosen to stay with the current plans becuase it gives me control over how much flow goes thru the fuge from 0% to 100%...which lead me to ask, how much flow should I have through the fuge in the above design? my uneducated idea was 200gph thru 100g fuge and 700gph thru display but am concerned of too little flow thru such a large fuge. any thoughts? I do plan to have addtition internal flow in both display and fuge. I like the current idea and how I can control the water flow for fish feedings and water changes. for feedings I can divert all flow to the fuge so no food goes over the overflow. for water changes I can divert all flow to the display and change as much water as I like in the fuge. then when I begin the flow again the new water will SLOWLY be incorporated into the sytem so there is less of a shock to the display animals. fuge animals/life will take all the hit of a major water change but, I am assuming they will deal with it better than more delicate things in the display.

am I wrong about any of these assumptions?

 

[Skimmy]

well, when your talking about flow through your refugium and sump it's a little opposite of what alot of folks think...
If you look at some of the most successfull reefs ever made, most of them have high flow in the display, but SLOW flow though the sump/filter.
Here's why;
your skimmer can only process about 300gph through the injector after air is added, (needle wheel skimmers even less) any media reactors can only process about 150gph, so providing more flow than that through your sump just means that any water molecules that arent going into the skimmer or media reactors arent getting "cleaned", they are just flying by the filtration devices and going back up to the display as dirty as when they went in.
now refugiums with macro algae are the same, the slower the flow through the refugium, the higher the contact time water molecules have with the algae.
it is one of the most common mistakes for folks to try to attempt to make their flow through the sump accomodate the high flow requirements of the display.
so the general rule of thumb most seasoned reefers follow is to deliver all the water from the display to the sump/filters about 3-5 times an hour.
mechanical filtration is the onlything that benifits from increasing the flow through your sump, like filter socks or polyester pads, both of wich probably shouldnt be used on a permanent basis, but only when you are cleaning the system.
so basically with your 700gph going through the sump, and 200gph going through the fuge should be pretty good, their could theoretically be a little more flow through the refugium and a little less through the sump though.

 

[kpiotrowski]

thanks, I get how you want more contact time with carbon so I can apply that knowledge to what you are telling me. soooo, with total water volume of around 250g and a 900gph pump I am actually...coincidently, in that 3-5 per hour range of flow through the sump, right?.

what do you suggest i flow through the fuge? also, I plan to use about an inch of 1-2mm aragontie in the display( can sea cucumbers proccess that size?). should I go BB in the fuge? I have some REALLY fine crushed coral sand that will blow through a display that I was wondering should I use it in my fuge...if any at all. I don't want a nitrate factory so is there any benifit to very fine sand in the 100gal fuge, and if so, how deep?

here is a pic of the set-up, display on right, fuge on left, sumps will be connected by 2inch pipe extending all the way to the return pump( so there will be 2inch pipe just kinda sitting over the 1 inch intake) so that it may send whatever flow I choose of fuge water up to the display


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[kpiotrowski]

this is a pic of the room, I pretty much get I'm gonna have to get rid of the black 125 fw or get divorced, since I have 4 tanks in the living room ( this is the family room) ( 100g,65,55,20) and 125g in the dining as seen in the previous pic. anyone looking for a black leather chair lol? (not for sale) ( don't flag me)


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[Frankie]

 

[Aquanaut]

Here is a diag of the plan for water flow through my tank. any advice?

I can explain for ever WHY I have chose this way to go, but prefer to seek advice first. TIA!

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Keep in mind...most refugiums are not visually apealing as a display tank, unless your intending a frag staging grow-out area as seen in Barrier Reef's local Renton store. Typical fuges conjest routinely and require cultivating of greenery to prevent it from die off. Again, visit Barrier Reef in Renton to see their open systems. My old 125g system's external fuge was fed by a 3100 Rio valve controled in the sump. Where it gently flowed return water to a bulkhead in the top frame of the tank (see attached pict). But, in your case you can either raise the elevation of the fuge to be high enough to drain across horizontaly via flex hose to the top side of your display. Or, allow fuge to return drain to the sump's return area following the skimming baffled section. Which should precede returned fuge water. I don't believe you need the 19g sump, it's not adding funcionality or much volume and if not properly plumbed can lose its water back to the 50g sump, overflowing it and leave the return pump on the 19g dry (dead!). You will want to use the 50g to host your skimmer--in-sump 7-9" depth or platform or externaly on separate bulkhead-- /heater/reactor/UV ect... and have the return pump supply a main feed return to the display tank that has a ball valved tee to also control the return water to feed the fuge. Then the fuge can either cycle back to to sump return section of the baffle or drain it to a bulkhead on the display tank. You'll want the overflow pipes to not over drain either DT or Fuge when system is shut down from time to time for maintenance or power loss. An added benefit to this suggestion is if power is lost over a given time, you can drive the entire system via a car/marine battery and RadioShack 500W converter pack. That's good insurance, and peace of mind! Corals and fish can go fine w/o lights for a period w/o harm. Heat and circulation are key.

 

[akunochi]

Keep in mind...most refugiums are not visually apealing as a display tank, unless your intending a frag staging grow-out area as seen in Barrier Reef's local Renton store. Typical fuges conjest routinely and require cultivating of greenery to prevent it from die off. Again, visit Barrier Reef in Renton to see their open systems. My old 125g system's external fuge was fed by a 3100 Rio valve controled in the sump. Where it gently flowed return water to a bulkhead in the top frame of the tank (see attached pict). But, in your case you can either raise the elevation of the fuge to be high enough to drain across horizontaly via flex hose to the top side of your display. Or, allow fuge to return drain to the sump's return area following the skimming baffled section. Which should precede returned fuge water. I don't believe you need the 19g sump, it's not adding funcionality or much volume and if not properly plumbed can lose its water back to the 50g sump, overflowing it and leave the return pump on the 19g dry (dead!). You will want to use the 50g to host your skimmer--in-sump 7-9" depth or platform or externaly on separate bulkhead-- /heater/reactor/UV ect... and have the return pump supply a main feed return to the display tank that has a ball valved tee to also control the return water to feed the fuge. Then the fuge can either cycle back to to sump return section of the baffle or drain it to a bulkhead on the display tank. You'll want the overflow pipes to not over drain either DT or Fuge when system is shut down from time to time for maintenance or power loss. An added benefit to this suggestion is if power is lost over a given time, you can drive the entire system via a car/marine battery and RadioShack 500W converter pack. That's good insurance, and peace of mind! Corals and fish can go fine w/o lights for a period w/o harm. Heat and circulation are key.
View attachment 42038

That's not necessarily true. There are such things as display refugiums. These are often "decorated" with the deep sand bed, some LR, Mangroves and nicer looking macros such as flame tongue or blue ochodites. So really fuges can be quite appealing to the eye.