Does my piping design look right?

[viodea]

I'm new to this hobby. I'm going to get a 90G RR tank. This is my plan for my Sump/Refug with piping.

1. Does it look good? Anything I can do to improve it?

2. I want to use the Ball Valve 1 for water change. I hook a hose up to it and turn it on to change water. My plan is change 5-10 Gal each time. The problem is if I do this, only the compartment on the left side of Plane A will be pump back up the the display tank. The volume in there is less than 10 Gal for sure. This mean my plan is not going to work. The only way I can do water change like this is drill holes on Plane A to a lower point, so, both compartments next to Plane A will be pump back up to the display tank. Then, enough water will be coming down from the overflow for my water change.

What is the main purpose of Plane A? If I drill holes in it as I just described, will I defeat the purpose of it?

3. Would siphon water out from the main tank a easier and better way to do water change?

thanks

[Toddrtrex]

Little busy right now to add more, but...

Design your set up so that you don't have to count on a check valve to prevent your sump from flooding when the power is out -- it will fail in time.
Use an anti siphon hole on your return line right below the ( normal running ) water line of your display tank.

[AlexB650]

no, there is no need for a T off the return line. That would defeat the purpose of having a T; they are supposed to be off your feed line so you can control the flow to your fuge--you don't want that much. Normally, the return goes in the middle so that way you can control the flow better using a T.

and yes, siphon drom the display so that you can blow off your rocks and remove it from the tank

don't rely on the check valve. I made that mistake once and I ended up with 100+ gallons on the floor of the house.

I don't see a point in ball valve one. honestly, you'll probably just end up scooping water out of your sump, even if you do put one in.

since you're doing an external pump, you should put a ball valve between the pump and the sump so that you can shut the water off, if you ever needed to do some maintainance

also, give yourself more room for the skimmer. it's ok to take away from the fuge. trust me, you'll appreciate doing so in the long run. it wont limit you on the kinds of skimmers you can get, and also it will just be easier to work on your skimmer. i don't know how tall your stand is, relative to the height of your skimmer, but you may not even be able to get it in there to begin with.

[viodea]

Originally posted by Toddrtrex
Little busy right now to add more, but...

Design your set up so that you don't have to count on a check valve to prevent your sump from flooding when the power is out -- it will fail in time.
Use an anti siphon hole on your return line right below the ( normal running ) water line of your display tank.

I'm going to use something like Durso Standpipe. I think it's going to prevent siphon. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

[Toddrtrex]

Not from the return line it won't --- the part that puts the water back into the tank.

See the white PVC pipe in the back left corner -- that is the return line, and since it is under water, it will pull tank water back into your sump when the power goes off. I have a little hole drilled in the back of it that breaks the siphon when the pump is off.

[viodea]

Originally posted by AlexB650
no, there is no need for a T off the return line. That would defeat the purpose of having a T; they are supposed to be off your feed line so you can control the flow to your fuge--you don't want that much. Normally, the return goes in the middle so that way you can control the flow better using a T.

The reason I add a T off the return line was controlling the return flow rate. It in turn controls the rate of water going into the overflow. I thought this would let me adjust the perfect balance to make it more efficient and quite. Also, add a little flow to my refug. Does it make sense? Is it going to work? If not, I need to redesign it.

I don't see a point in ball valve one. honestly, you'll probably just end up scooping water out of your sump, even if you do put one in.

I guess I just siphon water out from the display tank when making water change then. Is this the common practice for a tank this size?

since you're doing an external pump, you should put a ball valve between the pump and the sump so that you can shut the water off, if you ever needed to do some maintainance

I'm debating wether to use external or submerge pump. I've heard submerge pump may heat up the water a little bit. If I use submerge pump, I'll put the return pump in the middle compartment and have the refug on the left instead. This way, I can make the whole sump/refug longer. What do you think about this idea?

also, give yourself more room for the skimmer. it's ok to take away from the fuge. trust me, you'll appreciate doing so in the long run. it wont limit you on the kinds of skimmers you can get, and also it will just be easier to work on your skimmer. i don't know how tall your stand is, relative to the height of your skimmer, but you may not even be able to get it in there to begin with.

The skimmer is not to scale. I haven't decide what skimmer to use yet. My cabinet size is about 48"(L)x18"(W)x36"(H). I think I do have some head room to play with. I'll make the compartment for skimmer bigger.

[Cheekymonkey]

I think the water change T should be off of the return pump, otherwise when the water won't flow out for the water change after it gets below the overflows...

[viodea]

Originally posted by Toddrtrex
Not from the return line it won't --- the part that puts the water back into the tank.

See the white PVC pipe in the back left corner -- that is the return line, and since it is under water, it will pull tank water back into your sump when the power goes off. I have a little hole drilled in the back of it that breaks the siphon when the pump is off.

oh... I got it now. I'm a little sloooow

[viodea]

Originally posted by Cheekmonkey
I think the water change T should be off of the return pump, otherwise when the water won't flow out for the water change after it gets below the overflows...

wouldn't it be the same? If I T off the return pump, it's going to empty the sump. Once it's close to empty the compartment, I have to shut off the pump and add water. Either way, the amount of water I can change is depended on the volume of my last compartment before the pump.

I think I'll just use a hose and siphon water out for water change instead of being fancy.

[viodea]

This is my new design.

I have the return pump inside the middle compartment. It's going to be a submerged pump (PLEASE let me know if this is a bad idea).

Ball valve on the feed line is to control how much water going into the fuge.

Ball valve on the return line is to control how fast water pump back to the display tank to achieve the perfect balance of water flow to create a efficient and quiet system. In addition, it's going to create more flow in the fuge to turn/roll chaeto.

Should I submerge feed lines all the way into the water or do it in a angle and about the water level?

thanks

[AlexB650]

Originally posted by Cheekmonkey
I think the water change T should be off of the return pump, otherwise when the water won't flow out for the water change after it gets below the overflows...

this kinda defeats the purpose though, since it would give you water that has gone through your filter sock, skimmer, etc. and i agree with the other guy who said that the water wont drain after it falls below your overflow. i just stick a hose in there and drain it that way. i also shut of my fuge return and let my filter sock(s) grab whatever detritus is left in the water column--then into the wash.

as far as your returns go, you don't have to do a U tube pvc deal. I just drilled the back and use locline--looks really clean and is good cuz i can adjust it. i have them all the way up so as to create surface agitation and also to keep from draining when the power goes off.

[viodea]

Originally posted by Toddrtrex

See the white PVC pipe in the back left corner -- that is the return line, and since it is under water, it will pull tank water back into your sump when the power goes off. I have a little hole drilled in the back of it that breaks the siphon when the pump is off.

Should I drill the hole on or above the water level? I'm thinking on water level to prevent min. water siphon out with less noise level (cause by water drip down / shoot out of the hole above water level).

[Toddrtrex]

I personally would go just a bit below the water level.

[AlexB650]

i split the waterline with a 90. here's how it looks