Basement Sumps/Fishrooms

JCurry · 01/29/2008, 04:23 PM

HI all,
I'm really thinking about plumbing my new tank so that the sump is in the basement. Can some of you that have your tanks setup this way please share some pictures and details, so I can get an idea of what I'm getting into. Thanks.

RicGio · 01/29/2008, 04:28 PM

Here is a pic of the basement sump room. It's very small. I wish I had room for a sink.

JCurry · 01/29/2008, 04:35 PM

Nice and simple, very cool setup. How far is you main tank from the sump?

RicGio · 01/29/2008, 04:48 PM

Directly above it. About a 7' rise for my return pump.

plummike · 01/29/2008, 05:57 PM

I placed my sump on the concrete floor to help keep the water cool in the summer.

RicGio · 01/29/2008, 06:14 PM

I thought about doing that, but I did the calculations and it seemed any cooling effect would be minimal. It would also make the return pump work harder and be harder to work on.

sjm817 · 01/29/2008, 06:42 PM

Roy G. Biv · 01/29/2008, 06:54 PM

What size is your new tank?

JCurry · 01/29/2008, 07:05 PM

Thanks for the replies, my new tank is a 150 gallon 60" x 24" x 24".

DJChesnutRabbit · 01/29/2008, 07:06 PM

Here's my fish room...No basements in FL.

Arati · 01/29/2008, 07:32 PM

This is for my 36g display. pics are kinda old, from the first day it was running. its changed a bit but thats what it looked like at the start.

Roy G. Biv · 01/29/2008, 07:38 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by JCurry
Thanks for the replies, my new tank is a 150 gallon 60" x 24" x 24".

May I ask why 60x24x24. 5 foot tanks are hard to light properly. 72x24x24 is what I would do.

JCurry · 01/29/2008, 07:45 PM

Because, I already have everything already. Plus the room that it is going in is small and it looks huge in it. For lights I'm doing 2 175 watt MH with lumenarc minis and three 60" t-5s overdriven with an Icecap ballast. But if I can put the sump and other stuff in the basement I'll run 400 watt MHs and a chiller.

AquaReeferMan · 01/29/2008, 07:52 PM

Here is my setup. I have a 125g Perfecto tank, 50g Oceanic sump and a 20g long refugium. Sump and fuge are directly under the tank, about 12 feet below. Just out of view is a 45g brute trashcan(for saltwater) and a 55g drum(for top off water). I have a Turbo Sea 1740 as my return pump. I plan on adding acrylic covers to the sump and fuge to cut down on evaporation. Im losing about 3g a day. Moving everything into the basement was one of the best things I could have done.

vsnph · 01/29/2008, 08:09 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by RicGio
Here is a pic of the basement sump room. It's very small. I wish I had room for a sink.

Small, But clean !!

vette68 · 01/29/2008, 08:37 PM

Here's my setup.

It's kind of ugly, but that's why it's in the basement. Highlights are 48" venturi skimmer (1" Mazzei), homemade CA reactor, 60 gallon polyethylene sump, & 75 gallon refugium. I run an Endress + Hauser controller (mounted on the wall) for water makeup. The blue instrument on the floor next to the CA reactor pump is a level meter that transmits the height of the sump water to the controller. When sump level drops below 10.00", a relay turns on the solenoid valve (can't see in picture) and that starts the 5 stage R/O DI unit. When the water evel hits 10.25", the solenoid shuts off. Nice and automated, I love it. No level switches or makeup tanks, or extra pumps... The R/O water directly fills my sump. I also put a float switch on the skimmer bucket. If the skimmer overflows, it'll trip a relay that will shut off both the power head supplying the skimmer and the skimmer pump itself. So, no more overflows or flooding. But I basically plumbed everything through the furnace cold air return from the upstairs down into my basement. I wouldn't have it any other way. I love that all you see upstairs is my tank, and none of the BS equipment to run the system. So, if you have the means to do it, I'd definitely set things up in your basement. It'll allow you to have a lot larger pieces of equipment (instead of hiding a small skimmer under your tank) and generally lead to less distractions around the tank itself. And it was extra work to set up, but definitely worth the effort..

Good luck and I hope everything works out for you...

JCurry · 01/31/2008, 08:55 AM

Thanks vette68
Dose anyone else have any pics to share? I'm still tring to figuer out how to run the pipes.

SaraB · 01/31/2008, 09:40 AM

Here's an early shot of my fishroom. It's now a 21x10 foot enclosed fishroom that supports 2 independant systems. This is the system that runs the tank directly upstairs.

JCurry · 01/31/2008, 10:20 AM

Thanks Sara your a member of CMAS, whats it stand for? I'm a member of a CMAS, Chesapeake Marine Aquaria Society.

What size pump are all of you using? I was thinking of using flex-spa pipe flexiable PVC for both the return amd the over flow, should I up size the pipe? I was planning on 1.5" for the overflow and 1" for the return. what size did you all use? Thanks for all the help.

SaraB · 01/31/2008, 10:29 AM

CMAS is Chicago Marine Aquarium Society over this way!

The pump is a Sequence Barracuda Gold model.

If you are looking to use Spa Flex pipe, be careful as you will need to support it with the weight of the water coming down. It can sag, etc and I've read a few threads where they needed to add support for the lines ASAP!

01/29/2008, 04:23 PM	#1
JCurry Registered Member Join Date: May 2000 Location: Annapolis, Maryland, USA Posts: 378	Basement Sumps/Fishrooms HI all, I'm really thinking about plumbing my new tank so that the sump is in the basement. Can some of you that have your tanks setup this way please share some pictures and details, so I can get an idea of what I'm getting into. Thanks.

01/29/2008, 06:42 PM	#7
sjm817 On Yer left! Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Northern VA Posts: 18,777	__________________ - Scott

01/29/2008, 07:06 PM	#10
DJChesnutRabbit Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Kissimmee, FL Posts: 1,018	Fish room Here's my fish room...No basements in FL. __________________ Philosophy is a team sport! -Timothy Leary Freedom is something that dies unless it's used -Hunter S. Thompson Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils. -Louis Hector Berlioz Current Tank Info: Acrylic 25g BB mixed reef, AquaC Remora, AquaC media reactor, Aquamedic Oceanlight 250w MH, Mag 5 return, Iwaki MD-40RLT on closed loop, MRC CR-5, Tunze Osmolator

01/29/2008, 07:52 PM	#14
AquaReeferMan Got Reef? Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Under the Sea, Pa Posts: 4,593	Here is my setup. I have a 125g Perfecto tank, 50g Oceanic sump and a 20g long refugium. Sump and fuge are directly under the tank, about 12 feet below. Just out of view is a 45g brute trashcan(for saltwater) and a 55g drum(for top off water). I have a Turbo Sea 1740 as my return pump. I plan on adding acrylic covers to the sump and fuge to cut down on evaporation. Im losing about 3g a day. Moving everything into the basement was one of the best things I could have done. __________________ Couple SPS/Zoanthid tanks and a couple of FW planted tanks. Current Tank Info: 5 pieces of glass with some silicone and plastic frames holding them together

01/31/2008, 09:40 AM	#18
SaraB Coral Killer Join Date: May 2005 Location: Lemont, IL Posts: 4,461	Here's an early shot of my fishroom. It's now a 21x10 foot enclosed fishroom that supports 2 independant systems. This is the system that runs the tank directly upstairs. __________________ Sara

01/29/2008, 04:28 PM	#2
RicGio Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 658	Here is a pic of the basement sump room. It's very small. I wish I had room for a sink.

01/29/2008, 04:35 PM	#3
JCurry Registered Member Join Date: May 2000 Location: Annapolis, Maryland, USA Posts: 378	Nice and simple, very cool setup. How far is you main tank from the sump?

01/29/2008, 04:48 PM	#4
RicGio Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 658	Directly above it. About a 7' rise for my return pump.

01/29/2008, 05:57 PM	#5
plummike Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: near Pittsburgh Posts: 271	I placed my sump on the concrete floor to help keep the water cool in the summer.

01/29/2008, 06:14 PM	#6
RicGio Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 658	I thought about doing that, but I did the calculations and it seemed any cooling effect would be minimal. It would also make the return pump work harder and be harder to work on.

01/29/2008, 06:54 PM	#8
Roy G. Biv Premium Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: New Jersey Posts: 3,646	What size is your new tank?

01/29/2008, 07:05 PM	#9
JCurry Registered Member Join Date: May 2000 Location: Annapolis, Maryland, USA Posts: 378	Thanks for the replies, my new tank is a 150 gallon 60" x 24" x 24".

01/29/2008, 07:32 PM	#11
Arati Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: LI,NY Posts: 722	This is for my 36g display. pics are kinda old, from the first day it was running. its changed a bit but thats what it looked like at the start.

01/29/2008, 07:45 PM	#13
JCurry Registered Member Join Date: May 2000 Location: Annapolis, Maryland, USA Posts: 378	Because, I already have everything already. Plus the room that it is going in is small and it looks huge in it. For lights I'm doing 2 175 watt MH with lumenarc minis and three 60" t-5s overdriven with an Icecap ballast. But if I can put the sump and other stuff in the basement I'll run 400 watt MHs and a chiller.

01/29/2008, 08:37 PM	#16
vette68 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: North Olmsted, OH Posts: 68	Here's my setup. It's kind of ugly, but that's why it's in the basement. Highlights are 48" venturi skimmer (1" Mazzei), homemade CA reactor, 60 gallon polyethylene sump, & 75 gallon refugium. I run an Endress + Hauser controller (mounted on the wall) for water makeup. The blue instrument on the floor next to the CA reactor pump is a level meter that transmits the height of the sump water to the controller. When sump level drops below 10.00", a relay turns on the solenoid valve (can't see in picture) and that starts the 5 stage R/O DI unit. When the water evel hits 10.25", the solenoid shuts off. Nice and automated, I love it. No level switches or makeup tanks, or extra pumps... The R/O water directly fills my sump. I also put a float switch on the skimmer bucket. If the skimmer overflows, it'll trip a relay that will shut off both the power head supplying the skimmer and the skimmer pump itself. So, no more overflows or flooding. But I basically plumbed everything through the furnace cold air return from the upstairs down into my basement. I wouldn't have it any other way. I love that all you see upstairs is my tank, and none of the BS equipment to run the system. So, if you have the means to do it, I'd definitely set things up in your basement. It'll allow you to have a lot larger pieces of equipment (instead of hiding a small skimmer under your tank) and generally lead to less distractions around the tank itself. And it was extra work to set up, but definitely worth the effort.. Good luck and I hope everything works out for you...

01/31/2008, 08:55 AM	#17
JCurry Registered Member Join Date: May 2000 Location: Annapolis, Maryland, USA Posts: 378	Thanks vette68 Dose anyone else have any pics to share? I'm still tring to figuer out how to run the pipes.

01/31/2008, 10:20 AM	#19
JCurry Registered Member Join Date: May 2000 Location: Annapolis, Maryland, USA Posts: 378	Thanks Sara your a member of CMAS, whats it stand for? I'm a member of a CMAS, Chesapeake Marine Aquaria Society. What size pump are all of you using? I was thinking of using flex-spa pipe flexiable PVC for both the return amd the over flow, should I up size the pipe? I was planning on 1.5" for the overflow and 1" for the return. what size did you all use? Thanks for all the help.

01/31/2008, 10:29 AM	#20
SaraB Coral Killer Join Date: May 2005 Location: Lemont, IL Posts: 4,461	CMAS is Chicago Marine Aquarium Society over this way! The pump is a Sequence Barracuda Gold model. If you are looking to use Spa Flex pipe, be careful as you will need to support it with the weight of the water coming down. It can sag, etc and I've read a few threads where they needed to add support for the lines ASAP! __________________ Sara