Stand and Sump Questions

[makai531]

I’m moving forward on setting up my 45g Tech Cube that I bought. I would like to place it in a niche next to my fireplace. I had a 20A dedicated circuit installed there. The previous owner of the tank, stand, and sump said that I might want to look into a different sump as the evaporation was significant. The problem with this is that the footprint of the stand is small and thus, cheaper, DIY solutions (can’t afford a custom sump right now) are limited. As I’m installing this in a niche, the side doors of the stand wouldn’t open. So I thought one idea would be to build a larger stand that could accommodate a larger sump.

 

Here are the measurements –

 

Tank - 24*18*24

 

Stand Interior Space – 22*13

 

Current Sump – 20*10*12

 

Niche Footprint – 31*23

 

Possible Replacement Sump – Eschopps RS-100 24*12*16, or a baffled standard aquarium

 

Plan on running Mag5 return and SCA 301 Skimmer in sump. Also neither of my available sumps have an area for a refugium which I may want in the future.

 

So looking for advice –

 

Should I re-use old sump and maybe rework baffles? If yes, please look at diagram of old sump and make recommendations.

 

Build new stand to fit niche, not tank? If so, would I need to build a box within a box to put 2*4’s under each corner of the tank for support?

Any help would be appreciated.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[matt]

I use a 15h glass tank as the sump on my 46 bow...and it was once in use on a 30 cube. The footprint is the same as a 10g, but taller. So, you could go bigger inside the same footprint is my point.

 

I would only put an inch gap between sister baffles. Also, you might consider a hang-on fuge and ditch the fuge portion in your sump.

 

Did he say how much evap he had? Be thinking ATO...and a place for a top-off reservoir...all in that little nook.

 

Btw, get the biggest of the sca skimmers if you go with sca...mine (303 I think) pulls plenty of gunk on a 46...not oversized.