Sump question

[craby]

I have a DIY sump w/ (2) options:

 

Option # 1) Water drains into skimmer chamber, then refugium, then return chamber.

- Positives: Larger refugium, linear flow, all water gets returned back to take.

- Negatives: Bowes out acrylic in the middle, can only hold (8) gal of additional water during power failure.

 

Option # 2) Water drains into skimmer chamber, then into return chamber, then return pump diverts water to refugium. Refugium dumps back to return chamber.

- Positives: Acrylic does not bow out in middle, can fit Kalk reactor & CA reactor in return chamber, can hold (14) gal of additional water during power failure.

- Negatives: Small, deep refugium (7"x10"x10").

 

Any suggestions on which layout? Which layout would y'all do?

[steveoutlaw]

All the research I did before I put my sump together said that you want raw (unskimmed) tank water going into the fuge. Reason being that pods and macroalgea consume the bad stuff in the raw water and put good stuff into the water. I have my 2 overflows converging into 1 pipe and I have a ball valve controlling flow to my fuge so I get about 10% of the raw water going into the fuge and the rest into the sump. I have my return pump in the middle chamber that both the fuge (on the left) and the sump/skimmer area both draining into the return pump chamber.

[emissary]

I'm all about sump capacity. I designed mine thusly:

 

http://reef.korff.org/pictures/Tank-In-Wal...0G_inwall_final

[craby]

Option # 2 - Do you think the refugium chamber is large enough @ 7"x10" in plan for a 70 gal?

This setup does not allow much flexibility for lighting such a small refugium foot print.

[rioreef]

Under either option unskimmed water will enter the fuge. Flows out of the main tank generally exceed the capacity of the skimmer pump, thus the chamber that houses the skimmer contains a mixture of skimmed and raw water, which then flows through the sump and eventually into the fuge. Unless, the tank drains entirely through the skimmer.