sump/fuge help

[jones02]

So I'm going to build my 30g sump/fuge and need alittle help. This is what I was thinking on doing... 1st area have my inlet go into a filter sock and have my skimmer in the same area. Then baffel into a fuge and then baffle into my return with my pump. Now... Will that be a good set up? How far apart do I keep my baffels from eachother? 1"? Do I put anything between them? How high do I make the first one for water to go under? All info would be great help!

[Ron Reefman]

If you only have one drain from the tank to the sump, that design will work for you. If you have 2 drain lines (or want to split the one into two), I'd put the skimmer at one end and the fuge at the other end, with the return pump in the center chamber. That way you double the ability to run sock filters (and change them half as often) and you won't be running your nice clean skimmer water thru the fuge. The fuge is supposed to take stuff out of the water, but if you've already skimmed it, you're halfway defeating the reason for having it. They don't do exactly the same thing, but why not let both do as complete a job as they can (especially if you are going to put a DSB in the fuge... which I would recommend).

[Bens_Reef]

+1, this also allows you to put a valve in slowing the rate of flow through your refugium thus giving it more time to process the water going through it.

so starting from left to right

1. drain section with skimmer

2. baffles, i would use at least 2(this is what i have) but recommend 3. this will eliminate most of any bubbles that are present before getting to your return pump. space them about an inch apart and the one that lets water pass underneath can be an inch or two from the bottom.

3. return section with ATO if you are using one. this is where you will notice evaporation. make sure it is large enough to allow for this so you dont have to top off every 2 hours like mine. (i use an ATO)

4. baffle again. you can use only one here but if you want to use three it wont hurt it but i think its a bit of waste. you wont be putting any media in here. you want all the little pods and stuff that will grow in the fuge to be able to get to the DT without being caught in sponges or whatever.

5. refuge


have the drain split and drain into opposite sides of the sump/fuge and your return section will be center

[jones02]

Thanks for the help! Should I put any media at all in it? And what is a DSB? And what is the best stuff for my fuge? Deep sand bed somne LR and... I forget what its called but its like long algy looing stuff lol (sorry nood to SW) LFS was telling me but he does mostly fresh water. Thought I'd ask the experts!

[Ron Reefman]

Originally Posted by jones02

Should I put any media at all in it? And what is a DSB? And what is the best stuff for my fuge? Deep sand bed somne LR and... I forget what its called but its like long algy looing stuff lol (sorry nood to SW) LFS was telling me but he does mostly fresh water. Thought I'd ask the experts!

If by media you mean a filter material, filter socks work great as long as you keep them from getting too dirty. As in clogged to the point that water overflows the sock rather than running thru them. And you don't need to do socks on both lines unless you want to. I have 4 drains and run socks on 2 most of the time.

DSB is a Deep Sand Bed, if you have room for 4-6" of sand in your refugium it will develope an anerobic bacteria (no oxygen) in the deep sand. That bacteria will process nitrate (which is part of why you do water changes) into nitrogen gas and it will bubble out of your water. If you don't have room for the DSB, consider a coil de-nitrator. They are a diy system (easy and cheap to make) that effectively does the same thing.

My fuge has a DSB, LR and macro algae. The bigger you can make it, the better it works. Mine is 2' x 2' x 16" (about 35-40g). But then I'm running 250g of DT (Display Tank) water thru it. You don't need that much... but bigger is better in this case.

[Bens_Reef]

i have a 20L for my sump and just under half of that is fuge, a very small return section and maybe a third for sump/skimmer section.

the MOST IMPORTANT thing to do it make sure you have enough space, to hold your DT water thats above the overflow line, in the sump in case of a power outage. i left 2 inches above the baffles and it is just enough to contain my water if i shut the pump down.

2 inches as in my baffles are 10" tall and the tank is 12" tall

[briankmarsh1980]

Here is a pic of mine.
My drain is split with valves on each to control flow.
Skimmer on the left, fuge on the right with a DSB and macro, return pump in the center.