How's this

[I need gills]

I have two biocube skimmers I plan to put in first chamber=4 inch 2nd chamber =12 inch refugium last chamber for return =4 inch. Is there any flaws in this and can I have a deep sand bed in this size fuge?

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[tnwillia]

IMHO as small as this will be a deep sand bed is going to take half your already small water volume. I'd run it bare bottom with Chaeto. Others will jump n to help. Have fun!

 

[I need gills]

That is a very good point. Prob go one inch sand bed for looks I guess but as far as chamber size im good?


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[castiel]

why not get a different skimmer? the biocube ones aren't that great, but as said above chaeto and some rock rubble would be the best choice.

 

[I need gills]

One works pretty great now for 29 gallons, crystal clear water and good parameters all around. I already have an extra laying around from my seahorse tank i got rid of and for only ten more gallons should be plenty ,so why waste money. If it aint broke dont fix it. Rock rubble good idea thanks


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[DaveK]

I think the return chamber may be too small. This is the area that's got to be able to contain all the live water the system will need to be able to run. With only 4 inches, it can be very easy for the pump to run dry before the main tank overflow is returning enough water to to keep the sump's return area filled.

I'm also not a big fan of combo sump/refugiums, with the refugium in the middle. In my opinion this is at best a compromise design. It's limitations are that the refugium usually gets too much water flowing through it too quickly. Generally a refugium should get comparatively low flow, so that what ever is in the refugium gets time to process the water. Also, refugiums have a lot going on in them. With this design, it is not possible to cut the refugium out of the filtration system while you maintain it.

If possible I think you'd be better off making the refugium in an additional tank, and using a T and valves in the return pipe to supply the refugium. You'll get a lot better control. Best of all, you can treat this as another display tank. There is a lot of interesting stuff going on in a well done refugium.

 

[I need gills]

I don't have the space for all that clutter though. I get where ur coming from though and will consider it, but plenty of people do this. if anything il add another 2 inches to return chamber and slow flow to refugium with sponge filters


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[I need gills]

Should turn out like this

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[BigAl07]

Here are my thoughts:

• A) Not a lot of volume to work with... you might be better off making this a dedicated Sump and fore-go the refugium portion. I just don't think the net results are worth the work.
• B) As Dave pointed out for best results you need the refugium to have time to "Dwell" which I like to see about 1/10th of the return volume going through the fuge. Any faster and you just have a cluttered up sump.
• C) You'll want to make the return chamber much larger. As large as you can or you'll have constant fluctuations and will not be happy and that's coming from experience.
• D) Rock Rubble is not in your best interest. IMHO it's ok to have a few pieces stashed for "Fragging" purposes otherwise you're creating knooks and crannies where detritus is going to pool and concentrate. Remember your sump/refugium is the lowest point of your system and as such this is where more "junk" collects. That's also why Bare Bottom is a good idea because it makes removing this junk from your system a LOT easier.

 

[I need gills]

Ok makes sense I will for sure go bare bottom but how much larger should return be. As long as the end result is enough cheato to absorb enough nitrates and phosphates and keep display clear of nuisance algae I'm more than happy. That's all I'm trying to accomplish, well that and clear tank of skimmer and add place for pods. I just want the returned water for flow with one powerhead on opposite side and one behind rocks. For a real clean look. I feel like adding extra tank as another display with PVC running around it defeats the purpose Of a sharp looking dt.

Is there anything wrong with this guys if not I will be copying his

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROG0JpkKlf4&feature=youtube_gdata_player

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[DaveK]

...
Is there anything wrong with this guys if not I will be copying his
...(link deleted)...

...

I'm not really impressed with the sump in the video. Biggest issue of all, not the extremely low flow of water through the whole thing. IOW, it's in effect a refugium only, especially with what seems to be a less than useless Seaclone skimmer on it. It will work on a system like that because the display tank isn't much larger. If your doing something similar you could copy it. I wouldn't attempt to use such a sump on a larger tank.

 

[I need gills]

The only thing I was gonna change was add baffles but yeah his tanks are the same size as mine. i really liked this one better than the last one the only thing i would change is baffle height and width,also bare bottom fuge http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOmub88CQCI how high do u think i should go on baffles for this one and is there any flaws u can see?

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[I need gills]

Bump hmm was supposed to be smiley scratching his head

 

[I need gills]

Buuuump


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[lcstorc]

I can't believe Al forgot one of his most used pieces of advice. Skip the eggcrate anywhere underwater. It attracts hair algae like there is no tomorrow. I have it under the sand in one of my tanks and that hasn't been a problem, but anywhere it is exposed gets covered quickly.

 

[I need gills]

Wasn't gonna uses egg crate just need baffle heights and chamber widths


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[sasquatch]

I can't believe Al forgot one of his most used pieces of advice. Skip the eggcrate anywhere underwater. It attracts hair algae like there is no tomorrow. I have it under the sand in one of my tanks and that hasn't been a problem, but anywhere it is exposed gets covered quickly.

mmmm mysteries revealed lol... Triphenyl Phosphate is a fire retardant added to polystyrene for UL listings, there are also anti static sprays applied to eggcrate that are phosphate based (supposedly a real good vinegar bath and a week long soak in ro/di reduces this a lot) Trivia... what spins the world haha

 

[I need gills]

Good info


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