Refuge Feed - Open Channel or Return Manifold?

[SinCityReefer]

Hi RC,

I was originally planning on running the third chamber of my sump (the refuge) off a manifold coming from my return, but i came across a thread where someone directed the open channel drain from their Beananimal into that third chamber.

Whats everyone think, is that a better idea to redirect the open channel and conserve some return pump power? The tank is a 120g with a 40g breeder sump and ill be running a vectra M1.

Thanks!

[USC-fan]

When you say open channel. Do you mean plumb it into the overflow?

I only run things off my overflow. In my mind it a free pump. My skimmer is feed and my phosban/carbon reactor is all feed off my overflow. You just have to plan out the plumbing for overflow because water will flows downhill.

I do not to take away water from my return. This allow me to use a smaller pump that just matches my overflows.

stolen from google:


Mine looks a lot like this but i have another tee on the excess water to sump that feed into my phosban/carbon reactor.

To make this all flood proof you really want the final excess water to sump pipe to have no valve but be completely open pipe.

[SinCityReefer]

Yeah, im referring to the "Open Channel" drain in a Bean Animal system. The one that looks like a durso, it only takes partial flow from the overflow. So my main full siphon drain would run to left side of my drawing, along with the dry emergency, and the open channel drain would just empty into the far right, in the refuge section.

[ca1ore]

But isn't the idea that the open channel acts as your emergency and has little to no flow under normal circumstances? I'm all for taking advantage of gravity and running my return pump though a single, obstruction-minimized pathway to the tank. Maybe you can find a way to use some of the siphon volume for the fuge. That's essentially what I do with my ATS feed.