Busy day tinkering....

[fishinbuc]

Well I finally got around to actually making a real sump/fuge for my tank today. On top of that, I've been promising my daughter I'd set up her 10g tank in her room. So today was the day.

First on the list was the tank for my daughter. I tried and tried to talk her into a saltwater setup....maybe a anemone and clown, but she insisted on freshwater. She said, "But I don't want to have to work on it as much as you do on yours." I just laughed and said, "It's tour tank."

I wanted to do something a little different, so I built a corner stand, covered with some distressed hickory flooring I had left over from a job. Yes, it is sturdy. It held my 180lbs Just fine.

[scrmbld33]

looks good

[Mr. Brooks]

rad!

[fishinbuc]

Part II

Sump time. This is what I had. Just an old wet dry sort of converted to a fuge. Well it holds water and a little cheato anyway.



This is the new one. A 20L.
Marked lines on painters tape where the baffles will be.


Center (under) baffles in and siliconed. Tape on top is just to hold them in place while the silicone sets up a little.


Finished product. I should be underneath my DT by tomorrow evening. I'll post a pic when in place.

[Don-Coraleone]

very nice..

[fishinbuc]

So its been a little over 24 hours since the baffles have been siliconed. There is still quite a silicone smell. Should it be okay to run? Maybe after a wet test?

[fishinbuc]

Anyone?

[azcraig]

It should cure for 48 hours before you use it.

[fishinbuc]

Originally posted by azcraig
It should cure for 48 hours before you use it.

There was a thread about silicone, of course I can't find it now, where the majority of people said 24 hours was fine....that's how long they waited with no negative effects. Not that it would hurt waiting 48 hours.

[chucksta1]

If you've waited this long, what's another day?

I didn't wait long enough... now my sump is "baffleless"

Need I say more?

[widmer]

I think the time you have to wait depends on how thick your silicone is. I've siliconed things where the silicone wasn't fully cured for days.

[fishinbuc]

Well, I got my sump done and in, but I'm going to redo it......more on that in a moment.

In and running....



I decided I am going to use the middle compartment as a frag area, instead of a fuge. I've been wanting to set up a small frag tank to grow out some things, and I don't need a large area, so this would be the perfect size. For the fuge, I am Instead going to use a 5 gallon tank that I had drilled a while back. It is going to sit just above the sump. It is going to receive its water from the DT. The drain from the DT will be tee'd, splitting the flow to the sump and fuge. Then the fuge will gravity feed to the return area of the sump.

The 5.....


Tight fit, but it will work. There is 10+ inches above the 5g in the pic. That will give me enough room for a stand below the tank, and a light above it......


So with the sump in place already, I start to drill bracing into the stand to make a shelf for the fuge.....stupid, stupid, stupid. The drill slips from my hand, and....KA-RACK! I couldn't believe it.

This sucks......


So for the time being, my sump is a 2 compartment sump.....


This is how it will run until I pick up another 20g next week. I'll just stick a tub underneath while I take this one out to remove the baffles to build the next one.

Cracking the tank was totally my fault. I didn't plan my 5g fuge ahead of time. The thought came to me after I had the sump in place. I have all the material cut and ready to go for the 5g's stand but I won't be working on it until all glass is out of the stand.

One other thing I am changing. I am having some of the (over) baffles cut down a little. That way the water falls over them a little. Right now they are the same size, which causes the water to be level in the tank. This is probably how they should of been done in the first place, I just didn't think about it. Again....planning.

Hopefully next week I'll get pictures up of the new fuge and sump.

[TheMcs]

I've done the same thing with a 5g fuge on top of the sump. Only thing that comes to mind with how you placed it is, how do you plan on servicing your pump with a fuge on top of it?

[fishinbuc]

Originally posted by TheMcs
I've done the same thing with a 5g fuge on top of the sump. Only thing that comes to mind with how you placed it is, how do you plan on servicing your pump with a fuge on top of it?

In the pic, its just laying on the sump, towards the front. The sump will be slid to the front of the stand, and the fuge will be towards the back which will leave a 8"+ opening. Plus the fuge will will be about 4" higher than the sump. That should be plenty of room.

How is your setup working out?

[fishinbuc]

Well, another change in plans......imagine that.

At first, the fuge was going to go in long ways. I didn't think it would fit the other way due to where the tank was drilled, and the plumbing needed.

With a quick dry fit it looks like it should fit. That will give me more room if and when I need to get to the pump.

I have the tank turned around in the pics. The plumbing will be to the rear. The white piece will be changed with a 90 degree, so the length should be the same. Also, the 2x4's are just for reference to where and how high above the sump that the fuge will sit.

How it will go.....




A shot with the right side door closed. Yeah it's gonna be tight.......


This pic shows the space above the fuge. A little over 5 inches. Not a whole lot of room, but enough for a small PC.


I'm currently running a Mag5, but here's a shot of a spare Mag 3....same size pump.
Plenty of room.