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55g sump build


Duke

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Looks like the brands of tank can vary in sizes.

I got a petco brand 10g in which I should have gotten an Aqueon. My 55 is an Aqueon and maybe that's why it didn't fit?

Maybe I'll head to lowes and buy double for each baffle.

 

How am I going to explain these scars??

All that trim tearing, silicone cutting, glass breaking for nothing…

:/

Ah that has to be it then...all my tanks bought where Aqueon tanks. Sorry for all this work with no luck.

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Duke,

I have a 20G and 40GB tank that can be cut up if you need more glass. I'm not real close to you but if you need help cutting the glass let me know. I've cut glass for several people here on WAMAS.

 

If you cut glass sheets you need a wet saw with a diamond blade

No, a simple wheel cutter will work just fine. I've done it many times. Here is one type:

http://www.lowes.com/pd_239124-16878-50411_?PL=1&productId=3077867

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Duke,

I have a 20G and 40GB tank that can be cut up if you need more glass. I'm not real close to you but if you need help cutting the glass let me know. I've cut glass for several people here on WAMAS.

 

No, a simple wheel cutter will work just fine. I've done it many times. Here is one type:

http://www.lowes.com/pd_239124-16878-50411_?PL=1&productId=3077867

The only thing that's left for my 125 build is the sump. After that, it's ready to be filled, and cycled. Getting really anxious now. All I need is maybe 5 sheets for baffles.

 

I'd like to maybe salvage what I can from this 10g I bought and try and mod it to fit. How hard is it to cut like maybe half an inch off?

 

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IME, cutting half an inch is harder than cutting through the middle. I would just take it to a glass shop and get it cut if the cuts are so close to one side.

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Wow!! I got all three of my tanks from PETCO 1 55 and 2 10's and they fit absolutely perfect. Wish you weren't so far away I would help.

The second picture looks like it fits... How much space do you have between the baffle and the side? You are going to use silicon to bind the two glass together

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The second picture looks like it fits... How much space do you have between the baffle and the side? You are going to use silicon to bind the two glass together

The glass I took apart was from a 10g tank, it's 1/4 glass. Thought i could save money that way instead of getting it from a glass shop. They charge about $10 a cut for 1/4 glass.

The second picture is hard to see but it's slightly slanted to fit in the sump.

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How hard is it to cut like maybe half an inch off?

It is not hard to snap a 1/2" off. Since it will be in silicone on that edge it doesn't have to be a perfect smooth edge.

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How high should my water level be? I have an avast cs1 skimmer. From the glass I have now, looks like I can only have 10" height sections.

 

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runs in 5"-16" depth. The standard recirculating configuration allows the skimmer to run in any depth up to the level of the neck union

 

taken from: http://www.avastmarine.com/ssc/do/product/youbuilt/CS1-Cone-Skimmer-Kit

Good to go, thanks!

 

I'll keep everyone posted on the build.

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Posted Image

 

Here's the sump without baffles. My plan is pretty. Basic. Drain/skimmer/return

 

2 baffles between the drain and skimmer. Over and under.

3 baffles to the return pumps. Over, under, over.

 

What do you guys think?

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Update

Decided to go with a refugium in the middle

Posted Image

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Duke, make sure to set those filter socks just low enough that, should they clog and spill over the top, they don't spill out over the top lip of the sump. It looks like you have them sitting atop the trim.

 

Sent from my Rezound on Tachyon using Tapatalk

 

 

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Duke, make sure to set those filter socks just low enough that, should they clog and spill over the top, they don't spill out over the top lip of the sump. It looks like you have them sitting atop the trim.

 

Sent from my Rezound on Tachyon using Tapatalk

I cut a glass and wedged it to the filter sock and thought it was a good idea. Didn't even think about it clogging.

My next idea is to silicon a sheet of glass below so the sock can hang inside the tank rather than on top.

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I cut a glass and wedged it to the filter sock and thought it was a good idea. Didn't even think about it clogging.

My next idea is to silicon a sheet of glass below so the sock can hang inside the tank rather than on top.

They can fill up and overflow at times. Ideally, you're swapping them out with clean socks before then, but sometimes if you're cleaning the tank or stirring stuff up, they can clog quickly. Then water starts to bubble over the top of the sock.
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Update

Decided to go with a refugium in the middle

a3u7aru6.jpg

Why did you decide to use middle section as refugium? i put the return pump in the middle between skimmer section and refugium. My refugium get small amount of water directly from the DT to feed it and to let the algae and the pod clean it up the natural way.

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Why did you decide to use middle section as refugium? i put the return pump in the middle between skimmer section and refugium. My refugium get small amount of water directly from the DT to feed it and to let the algae and the pod clean it up the natural way.

This is where" if you saw someone jump off a bridge…" comes into play. I was looking into a lot of people's sump design and a majority of then had their refugium in the middle. I really hope that this can still work.
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  • 2 months later...

I used the 1/8" glass for my 30 gal sump but I glued 2 pieces together for the chambers that were holding water, the baffles were just 1 x 1/8" piece of glass, you can sand quite a lot off with 80 grit sand paper I was surprised. just be careful because the edges of the glass are really sharp.

 

I can upload a picture if you want 

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  • 4 weeks later...
(edited)

They are called bubble traps, the baffles reduce the bubbles, that go up the return pump to the Display Tank, giving a nice clean presentation for a DT.
 
    They are decided into sections, for a refugium, filter equipment, reactors, pumps, etc.... Which may rise another '?', guess we'll see.

Edited by TheyCallMeMr.703
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makes sense. I have mine set up with the overflow dropping 2" higher than the sump to generate bubbles that dump into a reef sock, that drains into a Tupperware container with my chemicals and the overflow goes into the rest of the sump. I have a lower flow return pump for split back end, my refugium thats another tupperware container with a single flow pump and seep holes that move water slowly across live sand bed, macro algae that feeds back to sump to skimmer and higher flow pump back to dt. I just wasn't sure what all the small sections were for - thanks!

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