freshwater sump Question

[RichE]

Ok I know most of you by now think im Bi-polar because I change my mind so much LOL

Well after walking thru the greatest fish room on earth, and coming to the realization that I am a freshwater guy, I am going to nix the saltwater tank idea.

Ok so I have a 90 gallon with a built in over flow plumed to a 40 breeder, the only ting I would be removing is the protein skimmer.

I have done some goggling and people are say in the fuge area put some sand,and floating plants. The area where the skimmer was, is where the water comes into the tank. This is where I am a little lost, what should I put there for filtration?

I was thinking of a egg crate shelf with bio media on one level,carbon on a second level and filter floss on the top level.

Then in the fuge area laying down a layer of eggcrate put a sand bed over top of it then more filter foam/pot scrubbes or bio balls then a layer of egg crate, then the plants, then in return area just have the return pump.

I will have black gravel in the show tank with decortive lace rock and others types of rocks and all Male Peacocks.

Anything I should do different in the lay out of the sump?

[danielratti]

Just do bio media like bio balls,scrubber, pond filter, or lava rock. Putting carbon onto of bio media will kill good bacteria because it absorbs oxygen out of the water as well you always want to put it after bio. I don't know about the fuge thing all I know is in saltwater you run the lights for the fuge after your normal lights are off so it doesn't bounce around the ph. Easyest way is if you have a bucket that will fit in the breeder use that as your tower and have the bio in that with a filter
 pad over media to prevent it from becoming a nitrate factory.

[RichE]

Just do bio media like bio balls,scrubber, pond filter, or lava rock. Putting carbon onto of bio media will kill good bacteria because it absorbs oxygen out of the water as well you always want to put it after bio. I don't know about the fuge thing all I know is in saltwater you run the lights for the fuge after your normal lights are off so it doesn't bounce around the ph. Easyest way is if you have a bucket that will fit in the breeder use that as your tower and have the bio in that with a filter
 pad over media to prevent it from becoming a nitrate factory.

So if I was to use carbon, use it in the return area?

As for the bucket, are you saying make the layers in the bucket (like 3 level's) put that under the pipe that drains from the tank and let it overflow into the sump and let the water run like it would if it was being skimmed? Put in a layer of egg crate to have the bucket sit on and put bio media under it?

The fuge area is a area where I was going to put floating plants to absorb nitrates. I have a small gfo unit I was going to use on the return line just for added filtration

[danielratti]

To be honest you will need a couple buckets. Keep one whole and cut the bottom off the other to use as your drip tray where you filter media would go. Drill holes in the bottom of the bucket you are keeping whole. Fill the bucket you kept whole with bio media up to where you would need to have it for the drip tray you made.

You would want to have this raised up from out of the water with the eggcrate and a pvc frame. The carbon would go under the tower you just made with the bucket. If there is any other media you would like to use in there as well add it in where you feel it would do the best. In mine i have bio balls sponge and pond filter. On top of that I use carbon and phosguard as well.

[RichE]

Do you have a picture of your set up?

[danielratti]

no I do not. I used a 55 and put it together like a wet dry thought. So it just looks like a really big wet dry

[four_by_ken]

Do you have a picture of your set up?

Check out Youtube... there are tons of videos on how to make this.

I would post a few, but Youtube is blocked from work and I dont feel like searching it on my phone.

Just dont over complicate it.  Fine floss or the like first... then through a courser media... these two you can clean or replace, depending on what you use.  The onto the bio.

Thats all you need for freshwater.

[RichE]

Ken, funny you say that I was on you tube this morning and found a great idea. I'm in the process if building it, big I had to take kim to the dr. I will take a before and after picture.

[RichE]

ok the tank I was using, When I had the glass cut, i had it cut to long, and went ahead and installed it anyways.

So the chambers are on angle's, 10" at the shortest width and 16" at the widest. If I was to fill this chamber with bio-balls and then take a rubber made tub lid and cut it to fit these dimesions would that work, if I cut two lids i could put one on top of the bio balls and then filter floss on top of the lid and then another lid(trip tray), and on the second chamber could I just fill it with lava rock/biomedia and that water would flow over to the return area where I will have a hob filter with carbon.

I kinda jumped the gun and started building and getting the sump(tank) in place before thinking this out

[Ron]

I don't have first hand experience and prefer to let Dan and Ken roll with the good advice. One comment I wanted to make is that the plants in the sump aren't necessary. They are just a bonus and to some (me) trying to keep plants going in the sump might be more of a PITA than is necessary.

[danielratti]

Yeah keeping them in there would be more work then good to be honest. The lights would have to run with the systems lights are off. So it will also run your electric bill up. The other thing is for a wet dry to work good you need it to have good area for oxygen excange so you would still need to build a tower some how. I am sure you said you did and I didn't read it because I'm good at missing the important parts. Some of your bio balls can be in the water sure but the bacteria does a lot better when there is more oxygen present that is why they keep the drip rate even as they pass over the balls as long as they are staying damp the bb will do good.

I've noticed too a lot of people do the plant thing to try to skip out on water changes and such you still have to do them just not as often.

[PowerCerg One]

I've noticed too a lot of people do the plant thing to try to skip out on water changes and such you still have to do them just not as often.

Is that pointed at me? Cuz I feel like that's pointed at me.

[four_by_ken]

I would suggest not to do anything with plants in a sump system.

Just a headache waiting to happen.

[four_by_ken]

I should stop over on my way home from work.


You are planning on a hob IN the sump?  Total waste in my mind.

[danielratti]

No you do water changes sometimes dom. Like some of the people who came in today wondering why everything was getting sick in there tank...