Sump free 55 gal

saltwaterjimbo · 01/29/2009, 07:38 AM

I am looking to set up a 55 gal with no sump just for selling coral out of my 90 gal tank. my question is has any body had any luck? i will put live rock in it but no fish.

VacavilleFC3S · 01/29/2009, 07:49 AM

i'd suggest a sump just to keep the macros from growing in the frag tank, it'll also maximize your surface space not having it crowded with a heater and skimmer

dwd5813 · 01/29/2009, 08:00 AM

is the 55 all tempered glass? also, is the 90 drilled and running a sump? what i might consider doing in your shoes assuming the answers to the above questions are no and yes respectively is teeing off the return and drilling the 55 for an overflow that drains back into the sump. it'd add water volume to your whole system and probably look cool at the same time. drill a siphon break in the overflow tube, toss a heater in the bottom of the 55, make an eggcrate platform, add a light, and you're off.

saltwaterjimbo · 01/29/2009, 11:57 AM

The 90 is drilled for a drain and a return. so i think what you are saying is use the 55 for the sump and my frags?

dwd5813 · 01/29/2009, 07:28 PM

sorta. i haven't slept in about 36 hours so bear with me here for a second and i'll try to run through the thought that flashed through my head in a little more detail.

since your 90 is a reef ready tank, i assume you must have some sort of sump already in place. i don't know what kind of space you're working with but if you're already considering setting up a 55 you must have some spare room. if you can drill the 55 and you have room next to the 90, this should work if you want it to.

what i was thinking was if you made a stand for the 55 but only maybe half as tall as the 90's stand, and set it up right next to the 90, you could either split the drain or tee the return to feed water into the 55 from your existing system. getting water out of the 55 after that is the tricky part. if you can drill it, you're golden. make a drain from the 55 that empties into the existing sump.

so you'd have your display, your existing sump, and the frag tank all running as one system. overall water volume goes up, stability goes up, extra space is used for frags, and you don't have to add any live rock to it. you could just make a pvc and eggcrate platform and set it in the 55, and you could easily set frag plugs in there and take them out whenever you get a sale without even risking any harm to anything. you'll still need a light for it, and you'll need to get some powerheads or something for flow. i'd probably toss a heater in there underneath the eggcrate frag rack.

now, if anywhere on the 55 is drillable it's going to be the side panes. i just looked and the aqueon 55 has a tempered bottom, and my old perfecto was all tempered. as you probably already know, that's not drillable. so if it's all tempered glass then my whole idea goes out the window. at least with that tank. if not, then you can buy overflow walls and make dursos out of pvc.

sorry if i'm rambling on with stuff you already know.

sunfish11 · 01/29/2009, 07:52 PM

Sumpless tanks are certainly doable and many people have them. If it is just for growout than visible equipment isn't really an issue. Frag tanks seem to do better IME with at least one fish. Maybe a sixline for pest control. You can always throw a ball of Cheato in the tank, wedged in the rocks, for nutrient absorbtion and use a 'hang on back skimmer' and power heads for flow.

Lisa

redfishsc · 01/29/2009, 08:26 PM

For a frag tank, sure you can go sumpless. I would still partition off a section of it for growing some Cheato.

However, just consider plumbing the 55 into your 90. Even if the flow rate is pathetically slow between the two (ie, if they are far apart), it still keeps your nice clean 90g water cycling through the frag tank, which won't produce much waste anyhow.

I am close to setting up a small frag tank on my nano, and I'm positive my nano can keep the extra "gallonage" from the frag tank plenty clean.

saltwaterjimbo · 01/30/2009, 03:30 PM

So is there anyway to find out if my tank is tempered? or do i try to cut and find out? and what is better to try first bottom or back?

saltwaterjimbo · 01/30/2009, 03:34 PM

Or I could drill a hole big enough for my fish to go back and forth from 90 to 55. just kidding

dwd5813 · 01/30/2009, 03:48 PM

do you know who the manufacturer is?
also, there's usually a sticker on the bottom saying it's tempered glass but that may have been removed at some point.

01/29/2009, 07:38 AM	#1
saltwaterjimbo Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 7	Sump free 55 gal I am looking to set up a 55 gal with no sump just for selling coral out of my 90 gal tank. my question is has any body had any luck? i will put live rock in it but no fish.

01/29/2009, 08:00 AM	#3
dwd5813 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: 813 Posts: 2,827	is the 55 all tempered glass? also, is the 90 drilled and running a sump? what i might consider doing in your shoes assuming the answers to the above questions are no and yes respectively is teeing off the return and drilling the 55 for an overflow that drains back into the sump. it'd add water volume to your whole system and probably look cool at the same time. drill a siphon break in the overflow tube, toss a heater in the bottom of the 55, make an eggcrate platform, add a light, and you're off. __________________ order some golf shoes, otherwise we'll never get out of this place alive. what can i say? in dog beers, i have only had one. - dublo8 Current Tank Info: 40B aiptasia farm

01/29/2009, 07:28 PM	#5
dwd5813 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: 813 Posts: 2,827	sorta. i haven't slept in about 36 hours so bear with me here for a second and i'll try to run through the thought that flashed through my head in a little more detail. since your 90 is a reef ready tank, i assume you must have some sort of sump already in place. i don't know what kind of space you're working with but if you're already considering setting up a 55 you must have some spare room. if you can drill the 55 and you have room next to the 90, this should work if you want it to. what i was thinking was if you made a stand for the 55 but only maybe half as tall as the 90's stand, and set it up right next to the 90, you could either split the drain or tee the return to feed water into the 55 from your existing system. getting water out of the 55 after that is the tricky part. if you can drill it, you're golden. make a drain from the 55 that empties into the existing sump. so you'd have your display, your existing sump, and the frag tank all running as one system. overall water volume goes up, stability goes up, extra space is used for frags, and you don't have to add any live rock to it. you could just make a pvc and eggcrate platform and set it in the 55, and you could easily set frag plugs in there and take them out whenever you get a sale without even risking any harm to anything. you'll still need a light for it, and you'll need to get some powerheads or something for flow. i'd probably toss a heater in there underneath the eggcrate frag rack. now, if anywhere on the 55 is drillable it's going to be the side panes. i just looked and the aqueon 55 has a tempered bottom, and my old perfecto was all tempered. as you probably already know, that's not drillable. so if it's all tempered glass then my whole idea goes out the window. at least with that tank. if not, then you can buy overflow walls and make dursos out of pvc. sorry if i'm rambling on with stuff you already know. __________________ order some golf shoes, otherwise we'll never get out of this place alive. what can i say? in dog beers, i have only had one. - dublo8 Current Tank Info: 40B aiptasia farm

01/29/2009, 08:26 PM	#7
redfishsc Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Wake Forest, NC Posts: 3,696	For a frag tank, sure you can go sumpless. I would still partition off a section of it for growing some Cheato. However, just consider plumbing the 55 into your 90. Even if the flow rate is pathetically slow between the two (ie, if they are far apart), it still keeps your nice clean 90g water cycling through the frag tank, which won't produce much waste anyhow. I am close to setting up a small frag tank on my nano, and I'm positive my nano can keep the extra "gallonage" from the frag tank plenty clean. __________________ "The measure of a life is not its duration but its donation." Corrie Ten Boom “The tyrant dies and his rule is over, the martyr dies and his rule begins” -- Søren Kierkegaard Current Tank Info: ghetto grad school reef.....11g rimless tank, 36X9X9, lit by Cree and Rebels scobbled together. Stocked mostly with free stuff I got from panhandling my fellow reefers.

01/30/2009, 03:30 PM	#8
saltwaterjimbo Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 7	cutting glass? So is there anyway to find out if my tank is tempered? or do i try to cut and find out? and what is better to try first bottom or back?

01/29/2009, 07:49 AM	#2
VacavilleFC3S Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Vacaville California Posts: 2,613	i'd suggest a sump just to keep the macros from growing in the frag tank, it'll also maximize your surface space not having it crowded with a heater and skimmer

01/29/2009, 11:57 AM	#4
saltwaterjimbo Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 7	The 90 is drilled for a drain and a return. so i think what you are saying is use the 55 for the sump and my frags?

01/29/2009, 07:52 PM	#6
sunfish11 Premium Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Weyauwega, WI Posts: 2,365	Sumpless tanks are certainly doable and many people have them. If it is just for growout than visible equipment isn't really an issue. Frag tanks seem to do better IME with at least one fish. Maybe a sixline for pest control. You can always throw a ball of Cheato in the tank, wedged in the rocks, for nutrient absorbtion and use a 'hang on back skimmer' and power heads for flow. Lisa

01/30/2009, 03:34 PM	#9
saltwaterjimbo Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 7	Or I could drill a hole big enough for my fish to go back and forth from 90 to 55. just kidding

01/30/2009, 03:48 PM	#10
dwd5813 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: 813 Posts: 2,827	do you know who the manufacturer is? also, there's usually a sticker on the bottom saying it's tempered glass but that may have been removed at some point. __________________ order some golf shoes, otherwise we'll never get out of this place alive. what can i say? in dog beers, i have only had one. - dublo8 Current Tank Info: 40B aiptasia farm