Fuge drain to DT worth it?

RedStangGA · 12/11/2016, 08:39 PM

I'm in the process of putting together my new build. I decided to not include a fuge section in my sump because I want something larger than 5-10 gallons.

DT is a 220. 72Wx24Dx30H. Sump is a 40 breeder located in the stand. I can either place the fuge, a 35-50 gal plastic bin, in the stand and just raise it a little to have the fuge gravity drain to the return pump section of the sump, or, I can place the fuge high up in a closet in the room and let it gravity drain to the DT.

A bonus to putting the fuge in the closet is that the closet is on the other side of the garage. I can place the ATO container and easily run my AWC lines through the wall into and out of the fuge. I will have a water mixing station and fresh water storage in the garage anyway, it's just shorter to run all the lines to the closet. I would also have significantly more room in the stand, not sure for what though.

Is there any real benefit from a fuge perspective though to have it drain to the DT instead of the sump? Does the return kill a meaningful % of pods and other sources of food?

thegrun · 12/11/2016, 08:48 PM

There may be a very small advantage to have the five gravity drain into your display tank, the the majority of pods will survive the trip through your return pump. I would set it up which ever way is most convienent. I would think about a larger sump, a 40 gallon tank will barely handle all your drain down water when your return pump is off.

JonezNReef · 12/11/2016, 11:52 PM

I had a above tank fuge and mine put to many bubbles in the DT after a power outage at first. I finally got the tank to a level I could get a full syphon after a power outage and that killed the bubbles. I took it down after a while because it was a pain to maintain at such a high height. When I broke it down it was crammed full of pods. Now I just have a lot of rock rubble in my 40gb sump and honestly I don't see a difference as far as the DT. The sump has just as many pods as the above tank did too.
I think a remote fuge would be easiest to maintain long term and could locate it where ever you need.

Meshmez · 12/12/2016, 12:42 AM

I think generally the only benefit people say about having the fuge gravity feed to the dt is to not kill pods in the pump...

I added pods to the sump of my tank and within days there were tons in my DT, and they are very much alive.

in my opinion, the less water i can have up high, the better. i vote for fuge into return section.

RedStangGA · 12/12/2016, 07:06 AM

Thanks for the feedback guys.

Thegrun: Surprised you think the 40 isn't enough. I've seen a large number of builds for 180-225 use the 40b. I'll be using a "ghost" style overflow so the volume from the overflow and piping will be minimal. I'll also be drilling a couple of siphon breaks in each of the return loc-lines. Thank you for the warning though so I will certainly pay extra attention when I do the loss of power test and see how much it fills up the sump.

Jones, great to hear from someone who's actually used a fuge setup how I was considering.

Mesh, yes, not killing pods has always been the reasoning that I've heard as well but I've been skeptical that it really makes a difference.

Thanks again.

Grayhead · 12/12/2016, 07:28 AM

I had a 20 long fuge on my old set up. I had it directly above the display. Setup was in wall. To be honest, it wasn't really practical, but it worked. It will be much easier to maintain if it feeds back to the sump. My issue was not having enough room to put it anywhere else. My new setup has a remote fuge draining into my sump. I only us it for growing chaeto. With the older setup, I was constantly adjusting the drains mainly due to one pump pushing water to the display and fuge.

JonezNReef · 12/12/2016, 08:22 AM

Also I have a 40gB as a sump for my 180 DT and it does fine in a power outage. Its all on how tall you make the baffles.

ericarenee · 12/12/2016, 08:28 AM

I like the idea of it draining down into the Display tank .

My display and coral tank drain down into my fuge then to my sump.. of course only some of the water goes into the fuge some bypasses right to the sump that is int he basement my fuge is under the display in the open

12/11/2016, 08:39 PM	#1
RedStangGA Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: Winter Garden, FL Posts: 1,052	Fuge drain to DT worth it? I'm in the process of putting together my new build. I decided to not include a fuge section in my sump because I want something larger than 5-10 gallons. DT is a 220. 72Wx24Dx30H. Sump is a 40 breeder located in the stand. I can either place the fuge, a 35-50 gal plastic bin, in the stand and just raise it a little to have the fuge gravity drain to the return pump section of the sump, or, I can place the fuge high up in a closet in the room and let it gravity drain to the DT. A bonus to putting the fuge in the closet is that the closet is on the other side of the garage. I can place the ATO container and easily run my AWC lines through the wall into and out of the fuge. I will have a water mixing station and fresh water storage in the garage anyway, it's just shorter to run all the lines to the closet. I would also have significantly more room in the stand, not sure for what though. Is there any real benefit from a fuge perspective though to have it drain to the DT instead of the sump? Does the return kill a meaningful % of pods and other sources of food? __________________ Marineland 220, Marineland 60 Cube

12/12/2016, 07:06 AM	#5
RedStangGA Registered Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: Winter Garden, FL Posts: 1,052	Thanks for the feedback guys. Thegrun: Surprised you think the 40 isn't enough. I've seen a large number of builds for 180-225 use the 40b. I'll be using a "ghost" style overflow so the volume from the overflow and piping will be minimal. I'll also be drilling a couple of siphon breaks in each of the return loc-lines. Thank you for the warning though so I will certainly pay extra attention when I do the loss of power test and see how much it fills up the sump. Jones, great to hear from someone who's actually used a fuge setup how I was considering. Mesh, yes, not killing pods has always been the reasoning that I've heard as well but I've been skeptical that it really makes a difference. Thanks again. __________________ Marineland 220, Marineland 60 Cube

12/12/2016, 07:28 AM	#6
Grayhead Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Posts: 581	I had a 20 long fuge on my old set up. I had it directly above the display. Setup was in wall. To be honest, it wasn't really practical, but it worked. It will be much easier to maintain if it feeds back to the sump. My issue was not having enough room to put it anywhere else. My new setup has a remote fuge draining into my sump. I only us it for growing chaeto. With the older setup, I was constantly adjusting the drains mainly due to one pump pushing water to the display and fuge. __________________ 240 Gallon mixed reef, Apex Controlled Radion gen4 pro/T-5 hybrid combo, TBS Liverock Lifereef sump, skimmer, and Fuge 2- MP 40, 1- Vectra M1 return pump, Build thread below http:

12/12/2016, 08:28 AM	#8
ericarenee Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Louisville Kentucky Posts: 3,110	I like the idea of it draining down into the Display tank . My display and coral tank drain down into my fuge then to my sump.. of course only some of the water goes into the fuge some bypasses right to the sump that is int he basement my fuge is under the display in the open __________________ 240+G Mixed BB Reef tank.. 350 G Marine Pond. And the expensive stuff that runs it. Chic's are for Chic's You silly men Go Fishing or something... Current Tank Info: 240= gal Reef /550 Gallon Saltwater pond 72 G Bay front Tropical aquarium

12/11/2016, 08:48 PM	#2
thegrun Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Garden Grove, Ca Posts: 17,023	There may be a very small advantage to have the five gravity drain into your display tank, the the majority of pods will survive the trip through your return pump. I would set it up which ever way is most convienent. I would think about a larger sump, a 40 gallon tank will barely handle all your drain down water when your return pump is off.

12/11/2016, 11:52 PM	#3
JonezNReef Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Florida Posts: 782	I had a above tank fuge and mine put to many bubbles in the DT after a power outage at first. I finally got the tank to a level I could get a full syphon after a power outage and that killed the bubbles. I took it down after a while because it was a pain to maintain at such a high height. When I broke it down it was crammed full of pods. Now I just have a lot of rock rubble in my 40gb sump and honestly I don't see a difference as far as the DT. The sump has just as many pods as the above tank did too. I think a remote fuge would be easiest to maintain long term and could locate it where ever you need.

12/12/2016, 12:42 AM	#4
Meshmez Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: San Jose, CA Posts: 1,030	I think generally the only benefit people say about having the fuge gravity feed to the dt is to not kill pods in the pump... I added pods to the sump of my tank and within days there were tons in my DT, and they are very much alive. in my opinion, the less water i can have up high, the better. i vote for fuge into return section.

12/12/2016, 08:22 AM	#7
JonezNReef Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Florida Posts: 782	Also I have a 40gB as a sump for my 180 DT and it does fine in a power outage. Its all on how tall you make the baffles.