Plumbing in an external refugium

[hqgc]

Okay , final decision has been made. I can't fit a 'fuge in my sump so I am going to plumb in an external refugium. It is going to be a 10 gallon placed beside the main tank. I was planning to run 3/4 " pvc for pipe. Also I want to put the pump in the sump and then return it to the sump as well. Here are my questions:
1. Should I drill one or two holes in the ten gallon ( supply and return or just a bulkhead for the return?)
2.What size pump should I go for to supply my 'fuge ? From what I understand I am after low gph.
(F.Y.I. There is about two feet of "head" travel and four feet of horizontal travel.)
3. Will I need another heater in the 'fuge?
Thanx H.

[Funky_Fish14]

For the fuge, maximize it's use. Use large grain sand, it will allow more surface area, etc.. for pods to run around in, there are actually ALOT of pods in the substrate. Even crushed oyster shells would be a great substitute and IIRC, you should get good buffering from it? A simple single hole for an overflow bulkhead should do the trick, and you could probably just throw a strainer over it, although personally I would reccomend running pvc from the bulkhead down along the side/near the bottom inside the fuge, and put many holes. I have actually noticed ALOT of pods swimming around inside the PVC tube I use to put Nori on in my tank, and most pods dont swim around at the water surface, so you will 'harvest' more with the overflow 'intake' further down in the fuge. Dont forget to drill an anti-siphon hole as well. I use a Maxi-jet 1000 pumping about 3ft up for my 23g fuge, im guessing its only got about 50gph-100gph moving through it... I'd probably run 100gph or so, or maybe just less in your 10g. A maxi-jet 900 will probably do the trick, or even a 1200, and you can always plumb in a ball valve if your getting too much flow. I'd forget the extra heater, the water will be running all through your system and an extra 10g wont be a huge deal. Ohh, also, since you will be adding to the water moving through your main tank, make sure your not already pushing the limits of your drains.

Hope this helps... its just my 2 cents.

Chris

[hqgc]

Originally Posted by Funky_Fish14

Ohh, also, since you will be adding to the water moving through your main tank, make sure your not already pushing the limits of your drains.

I am going to return it right back to the sump. This won't put any strain on anything will it?

Also can you explain what you mean by running pvc down from the bulkhead or post a pic of yours?
Thanx

[Funky_Fish14]

Your fuge will only provide extra water volume, and any macros you have will suck up more nutrients, but you wont get anywhere near the amount of pods into your main tank with the fuge returning to the sump. If you gravity feed the fuge into the main tank, you'll have water from the fuge(therefore pods as well) flowing into your main tank.

Sorry, I wasnt clear on that. If your bulkhead was at the top, holding the water line, you would want to run PVC tubing from the 'in-tank' side of the bulkhead down to the bottom of the fuge. If you were to put the bulkhead on the bottom, or down on the side of the fuge, you'd have to bring the tubing back up to where you want the desired water level in the tank. Im getting at the fact that IMO water should be flowing out near the bottom/sides of the fuge, rather than going out or over an overflow at the top of the tank, as less pods occur free-floating in the water.

I will try to do up a diagram and post it.

Chris

[Johnny Reefer]

Is there room for you to "float" the 10g in your sump (ie: partially submerged, with the top edge higher than the water level in your sump). Then all you'd need is some "eggcrate" for the top to keep the macroalgae in and a powerhead to feed the 'fuge. The overflow just spills over the side of the 10g back into the sump. You could have it sit on some plastic baskets inside the sump. Then you could still have Live Rock underneath, if that is what you already have now. The local grocery store that I shop at is selling Japanese oranges that come in a plastic basket. Personally, I've got two uses planned for these handy items in the future. One is to sit a skimmer on top of and the other is to sit a canister filter on top of. This will allow for the shallow water depth the skimmer requires and for the canister it will facillitate it being in the sump but will lift it high enough to keep the filter head clear of the water (not that that is a problem the way they are gel sealed these days).
Anyway, I'm rambling.

Cheers,

[Funky_Fish14]

Here is a little diagram I did up. The Red is the bulkhead, the dark blue line is the water line, the grey is the pvc, and the black spots are just the holes in it.



Hope this helps clarrify?

Edit: A bulkhead in the bottom of the tank would need to be plumbed the same way as the one in the lower side, the PVC doesnt really matter on the lower one inside the tank though, you could simply put a strainer to keep macro algae/rock out.
Its in a more accesible position for pods nearer the bottom, and thus I dont think they need the PVC as a 'passageway' to the bulkhead further up the side of the tank.

[mark]

Originally Posted by Funky_Fish14

Here is a little diagram I did up. The Red is the bulkhead, the dark blue line is the water line, the grey is the pvc, and the black spots are just the holes in it.



Hope this helps clarrify?

Edit: A bulkhead in the bottom of the tank would need to be plumbed the same way as the one in the lower side, the PVC doesnt really matter on the lower one inside the tank though, you could simply put a strainer to keep macro algae/rock out.
Its in a more accesible position for pods nearer the bottom, and thus I dont think they need the PVC as a 'passageway' to the bulkhead further up the side of the tank.

I just can't figure how the water level stays constant

[hqgc]

Unfortunately I don't have the room in my sump. I was going to originally put it in the sump but it is so tight in there already and I have no room to move.