Will this filtration setup work?

[Blue80]

This what I am planning for my filtration on my 125. Welcome thoughts, questions and advice.

I am using the standard marineland durso system that came with the tank. Given the wall space into the workroom I had available I do not think anything else would have worked. In the workroom I am curious if you think my configuration will work. I teed off the intake going to the left for the sump (lower pipe). I then planned to use the straight portion of the intake to travel to my refugium (using the gate valve to regulate the flow as needed). I would connect my refugium (wet/dry filter from a previous setup) via bulkhead back to the sump (strainer in bottom pipe, top pipe for safety in case of a clog). The return chamber is on the right side of the sump, so not sure if the travel distance to the refugium will be too far to keep up with the return pump (current USA 1050 gallons per hour DC pump), hence the gate valve to reduce flow as needed. The piping is just dry fitted right now for the layout.

 

Will this work? Thanks.

Edited April 25, 2020 by Blue80
Added photos

[DFR]

That could work, but out of curiosity, why not just leave the sump below the tank?

[Blue80]

2 hours ago, DFR said:

That could work, but out of curiosity, why not just leave the sump below the tank?

I unfortunately did not build the stand wide enough to accommodate the right sized sump. Plus I like the freedom to not have to root around below the stand to pull things out and put them back in. I also have a gfci plug that everything is hooked up to in the workroom. I figured I would have more space to add additional equipment back there as needed. I appreciate the feedback that I am not totally out in left field! Thank you

Edited April 26, 2020 by Blue80

[GraffitiSpotCorals]

I would move the refuge pipe over the baffle and not right next to the skimmer. You should leave as much room for pulling the skimmer out as possible. 

[sethsolomon]

9 minutes ago, GraffitiSpotCorals said:

I would move the refuge pipe over the baffle and not right next to the skimmer. You should leave as much room for pulling the skimmer out as possible. 

+1 to this.  making it easy to remove and clean the skimmer is a big time saver.

 

 

I would also put a foam pad under the sump to help keep it level and reduce stress on the acrylic.

[WheresTheReef]

I would hate to drill the side of that nice sump. Have you considered elevating the refugium by putting it on the 2nd to bottom shelf on the left? You could use gravity to drain into the sump's drain chamber on the left w/o modifying the sump. You can also use the shelf to mount a light over the refugium. It would also make access to the sump easier to not have to work around the refugium and its pipe.

 

Also, have you thought about future plans (e.g. adding reactors or other auxiliary equipment  etc.)? Where would you add those if you wanted to expand? It pays to think ahead even if you don't add it in now. It is much harder to make changes once the tank is fully running. 

[Blue80]

7 hours ago, sethsolomon said:

+1 to this.  making it easy to remove and clean the skimmer is a big time saver.

 

 

I would also put a foam pad under the sump to help keep it level and reduce stress on the acrylic.

I put a foam pad down under the skimmer and refugium (wife’s old yoga mat). I will look at moving the pipe. But right now it is pretty easy to pull the skimmer in and out. I put the pipe there when I had the skimmer in the sump to make sure. Thank you for the feedback.

Edited April 27, 2020 by Blue80

[Blue80]

6 hours ago, WheresTheReef said:

I would hate to drill the side of that nice sump. Have you considered elevating the refugium by putting it on the 2nd to bottom shelf on the left? You could use gravity to drain into the sump's drain chamber on the left w/o modifying the sump. You can also use the shelf to mount a light over the refugium. It would also make access to the sump easier to not have to work around the refugium and its pipe.

 

Also, have you thought about future plans (e.g. adding reactors or other auxiliary equipment  etc.)? Where would you add those if you wanted to expand? It pays to think ahead even if you don't add it in now. It is much harder to make changes once the tank is fully running. 

I actually added in a second manifold on the return pipe based on a separate recommendation. I just did not update the photo. But I will definitely consider moving the refugium as well based on your suggestion. How would you recommend I get the water to the refugium if I elevated it? Add a pump? Thanks

[WheresTheReef]

4 hours ago, Blue80 said:

I actually added in a second manifold on the return pipe based on a separate recommendation. I just did not update the photo. But I will definitely consider moving the refugium as well based on your suggestion. How would you recommend I get the water to the refugium if I elevated it? Add a pump? Thanks

On second pass, here are my thoughts.

 

I feel that the size of your current pump is too small to drive the DT, refugium and additional support equipment. It is 1050 g/h at 0 head height. Assuming I found the correct pump (https://www.aquacave.com/current-usa-eflux-dc-flow-pump-1-050-gph.html) at 6’ it will be just under 500 g/h. As the pump gets dirty it will drop even further.

 

If it were me I would either 1) sell that pump and get a larger one to drive everything , or 2) dedicate that one to the DT and get a second pump to drive the refugium and other support equipment (or vice versa). Just my 2 cents.

 

What are you planning to drive with the manifold?

 

Also, what size pipes do you have for return and drain? They look like the same diameter in the pics. You typically want a bigger diameter pipe on the drain side to avoid flooding due to a clog. Especially if you plan to restrict the drains with those valves. I would personally separate the 2 drain pipes for 2 reasons. 1) If one clogs you have the other drain working. 2) I think you are going to have a hard time tuning your flow to reduce noise with 2 drains collapsing into 1 pipe.

[WheresTheReef]

BTW the link above has a flow rate vs head pressure chart if that is the correct pump.

[Blue80]

Thanks again for the feedback. The return and drain are both 1”. I could reduce the return to 3/4”. I am not planning to restrict the drain with the bulkheads. They are on there to make it easier to take apart and clean the pipes when needed given the long horizontal runs. You definitely have the correct pump in your link, so I will definitely look into getting a larger pump or a second pump to make sure I have enough flow in the tank. The second manifold was a recommendation to have just in case I want to add additional equipment (no plans to do so right now, unless I add a second pump). 

 

i am not too concerned with noise given the tank is in the basement, but I will look into splitting the pipes and reducing the return to 3/4”.

 

Do you think the next model up will suffice, the 1900 gallon per hour? Or should I go with the 3170 gallon per hour? 
 

I can then put the current one on my mixing station.

Edited April 28, 2020 by Blue80

[WheresTheReef]

If you separate the drains then I would just leave the return plumbed as is. You will have 2x1” drains vs 1 split 1” return.

 

I would go with the 3170 g/h pump. Since it’s DC you can dial it back as needed. It will also be able to run everything. The price difference is not very significant. Also looking at the flow vs head chart it is a good bang for your buck difference.

 

Doesnt look like the footprint is that much different, but make sure it fits your sump.

 

With a larger pump, you can tee off the return into a manifold and the refugium. Maybe supported along that back wall? A manifold placeholder can be plumbed in using a union with a small piece of pipe that is plugged. This way in the future you can glue a manifold together, let the glue cure and use the union to hook it in. You won’t have to shut the return for hours to allow the glue to cure. This is just a suggestion, but it worked great for me.

[Blue80]

5 hours ago, WheresTheReef said:

If you separate the drains then I would just leave the return plumbed as is. You will have 2x1” drains vs 1 split 1” return.

 

I would go with the 3170 g/h pump. Since it’s DC you can dial it back as needed. It will also be able to run everything. The price difference is not very significant. Also looking at the flow vs head chart it is a good bang for your buck difference.

 

Doesnt look like the footprint is that much different, but make sure it fits your sump.

 

With a larger pump, you can tee off the return into a manifold and the refugium. Maybe supported along that back wall? A manifold placeholder can be plumbed in using a union with a small piece of pipe that is plugged. This way in the future you can glue a manifold together, let the glue cure and use the union to hook it in. You won’t have to shut the return for hours to allow the glue to cure. This is just a suggestion, but it worked great for me.

So it is better to tee off the refugium from the return pump? I originally had it teed off from the drain. So I thought I would split the drain then tee off the right side drain to go into both the sump and the refugium and regulate the flow to the refugium with the gate valve. The have the left drain just go straight into the sump. I would move the right side drain to go over the baffle as others suggested vice through the sump section. Does this work also you think? Or even have the right drain go straight to the refugium and the left side to the sump?

Edited April 28, 2020 by Blue80

[WheresTheReef]

You can certainly feed the refugium (fuge) from the drain line if you keep it at floor level. Water going down the drain will want to take the path of least resistance. I can't tell you how easy it will be to control the flow to the fuge. You will be able to use the drain valve(s) and possibly the fuge valve to tune the flow as you like it. Feeding it with the drain will cut the water going through your filter socks. It will likely lead to more detritus from the DT to collect in the fuge and maybe skimmer section. No big deal, and you can clean it out from time to time. Either way detritus will build up in the sump over time.

 

If you elevate the fuge then you could tee off the return pump. You could then tee off that pipe to create your manifold. You use valves to regulate the flow for each device and fuge. Here is an example. You could leave out the manifold part for now and add later. As you add devices you can bump up the flow on a bigger pump if needed. You can support the pipe along the wall. Remember these are all suggestions.

[WheresTheReef]

In the picture I forgot to add the union right before the fuge that you have. It would be useful to disconnect.

[Blue80]

I appreciate the recommendations you have provided and will definitely look into that for the return and the manifold. The shelf placement may be a little tough based on the height of the sump and the heights of the shelf. But I definitely really like the set up you recommend. I actually do have a filtration pad in the black portion where the water feeds into the refugium, so the water from the DT will always be going through filtration.

[GraffitiSpotCorals]

or you could add a union instead of moving the drain but you would just have to shut the return down when you need to clean the sump which I guess some people do anyways.