Ultimate sump ideas?
 

hey guys, i was going to build a massive sump using 100 or 150gallon water troughs. i was looking at doing 3 troughs

before i start modeling it i wanted to get some ideas from people on sump design.
ive been reading up on
remote DSB
mangroves
refuge
pod havens
water change volume

the idea right now i have in my head is to have one container for refuge/coepod haven with mantis maybe, one for return (maybe frag area), one for skimmer, reactors, etc.

since im using biopellets it looks like the mangrove idea might not be a good one? i was also going to add a 33g container for quick water changes.

im hoping to get added nutrient removal and a place to put extra live rock which is in my DT (i have way too much).
so what would you make sure you have in your ultimate sump?

wow canreef didnt get me 100 posts before morning?! im shocked!

Use one of the troughs to do an old school algae turf scrubber, that would be cool.

whats that?

You could elevate the trough on an angle and use gravity to run water over it, you basically put a screen on the bottom for algae to grab onto and then run the water over it, and provide light.

The kinds of algae that will thrive here will provide massive nutrient export. Maintinance is essentially removing the algae which is easy to do.

It is kind of like a wet/dry environment, like the sludge that is in intertidal areas in the ocean. Huge public aquariums used this method for nutrient export for decades, though I suspect they may have moved on to something more high tech.

can you explain bit more?

basically i need a screen and light on it with turbulent water?
Why wouldnt I just run a PVC pipe over the screen with a slit in it?

The purpose is to have the algae exposed to air and to maximize the surface area. You achieve this by using a surge bucket and gravity.

People do construct vertical turf scrubbers utilizing a vertically mounted screen with a pipe dripping over it, but constructing one of any kind of large size is problematic.

Truf scrubbers take up a lot of space and are not practical, hense why people use macro algae refugiums, but if you are looking at 300+ gallons of space for this sump it is something you could do.

If you search online, there is the standard reef related hooplah with idiots arguing to the nth degree blah etc. There is a company that tried to take control of the idea and sell a product, when really it is just a biological process.

The truth, I think, about the turf scrubber system is that it isn't really viable for 99% of users and which is why you don't hear much about it.

I just mention it because it is something I thought would be fun to try out

Here is a sample I found quickly,

http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/at...0&d=1195939140

http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/at...9&d=1195939140

for the Turf Scrubber here but also look for RC basement sump threads (here's one), lots of pictures for ideas. There's a water trough thread too somewhere on RC.

this might actually be fun to build

im thinking a big pieces of eggcrate in one of the sumps with a surge bucket fed by DT drains. then underneath this whole design ill just have tons of rock and rubble for pods to hang out in.