Help to make a sump without drilling my tank

flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by meowzer
http:///forum/post/3280369
I keep some snails in my refugium....I also have a pencil urchin in there too (he was bad).....
I would stilll want to divide the skimmer from the fuge, you should be able to do that with a short divider though....

Jstdv8..a video would be great..your pictures helped allot already.
Meowzer...he was bad...funny. Do you have rock and sand in yours? Did you set it up for looks or just tossed stuff in there any old way? Got a picture?

I have to go to work, so I will check back in the morning to see what you guys may have to say further.
Thanks agan for all the help!
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
I have sand and rock rubble...a little chaeto, and this is where I throw all my EXTRA Kenya tree...lol...the BAD Pencil urchin eats it.....you would be amazed the life that exists in there.....I can sit there on the floor with my head in the cabinet just watching all the critters run around

Here is a pic...Attachment 243692
Mine is in the cabinet so deco is not that important to me.....I'm getting a new skimmer, so I will be cutting the section on the left down, and soon I will be getting some macros too. The level in my fuge is also 9", and I will have to adjust it to 6 when I get the new skimmer.....
my skimmer is gonna be an external one...in about 3-4 weeks you will see that thread
(waiting for stock)
 
beaslbob

beaslbob

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by Flower
http:///forum/post/3280368
...
Would I need any kind of a CUC for a refugium? I want it to look nice but be functional at the same time.
No
You will get all kinds or interesting stuff like snails, pods, and possibly micro stars, all hitchhiking on the chaeto.
my .02
 
J

jstdv8

Guest
only part that scares me about having the tank on the outside unprotected is kids, either yours or someone elses could easily put something in there. or pets getting in the water for some reason. Other than that it would be super sweet to make a really nice looking decorative fuge. Ive seen some real beauties online. nice lighting, cheato and some of those bamboo looking things. some of them looked nicer than my dispaly tank.
 
J

jstdv8

Guest
is that a horzontal turf scrubber in the middle left of your sump meo?
 
acrylic51

acrylic51

Active Member
Originally Posted by Jstdv8
http:///forum/post/3280418
only part that scares me about having the tank on the outside unprotected is kids, either yours or someone elses could easily put something in there. or pets getting in the water for some reason. Other than that it would be super sweet to make a really nice looking decorative fuge. Ive seen some real beauties online. nice lighting, cheato and some of those bamboo looking things. some of them looked nicer than my dispaly tank.
My Rottweiler one time decided to drink saltwater......
Needless to say it wasn't pretty afterwards....
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
Originally Posted by Jstdv8
http:///forum/post/3280419
is that a horzontal turf scrubber in the middle left of your sump meo?
NO, all that is in the middle is the drip tray...and I have a stocking hanging with phospure stuff in it
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by Jstdv8
http:///forum/post/3280418
only part that scares me about having the tank on the outside unprotected is kids, either yours or someone elses could easily put something in there. or pets getting in the water for some reason. Other than that it would be super sweet to make a really nice looking decorative fuge. Ive seen some real beauties online. nice lighting, cheato and some of those bamboo looking things. some of them looked nicer than my dispaly tank.

I got home and took a nap before getting on the site…hard nights work.
Meowzer, had I of not seen this above post from Jstvd8 I would have scrubbed the whole thing…LOL..that is the ugliest refugium I ever dreamed of for ugly. Under your stand is fine and I’m glad it’s there. I also know that as far as critters go, ugly is preferred, we are the ones that want stuff to look good. Your bad urchin must think it died and went to salty heaven.
Jstvd8, what site did you see those on? So I can Google and find some ideas, because that is exactly what I want to do. I intend to put either egg crate over the top with a fish light or buy a hood with fish lights, and it will be on a stand too tall for my dogs to mess with. My grandchildren are very closely monitored around my home, a precaution I developed from 4 yr old Andrew the tank terror.
Beaslbob, glad you joined in. I have all those types of critters in the main tank and I still need a CUC. I bet a Red froma sea star would be happy in there (not right away) and the bamboo things, I think are called Mangroves would look awesome.
Acrylic51, My ex husband is going to be moving north to Wisconsin from Alabama at the end of the month, my son is expecting his third baby to come at that time (Grandbaby #13). Dan is moving back to be near the grandchildren, he said he will help me set things up and he can cut PVC pipe if I need the help. He knows nothing about sumps or fish tanks so he would be doing what I tell him I need. IF I can do this without Dan’s help I will…Bad Juju to hang out too much with an ex husband, things can go bad fast.
Thanks for all the help!
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
Originally Posted by Flower
http:///forum/post/3280487

Meowzer, had I of not seen this above post from Jstvd8 I would have scrubbed the whole thing…LOL..that is the ugliest refugium I ever dreamed of for ugly. Under your stand is fine and I’m glad it’s there. I also know that as far as critters go, ugly is preferred, we are the ones that want stuff to look good. Your bad urchin must think it died and went to salty heaven.
Thanks for all the help!
I'm hurt...:( I love my refugium
 
J

jstdv8

Guest
awww flower, you better throw meo a wavy hand smiley or something.
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by meowzer
http:///forum/post/3280493
I'm hurt...:( I love my refugium

I’m hurt your hurt…A good refugium looks nasty, you should be proud..

It is under the stand out of sight, fully healthy and functional..You were not trying to make it pretty but useful, so why be hurt? I knew refugia looked like that, it’s why I was so reluctant to entertain putting put one out in the open. That your picture reminded me
So I complement how great it works, and your urchin is so happy….are you still hurt?
P.S.
Oh and you have a working sump and a big tank so I am also jealous, and …LOL..wait, you have a bunch of tanks…and a husband to do the dirty work…I am sooo jealous! Do you feel better now?
P.P.S.
I hope so, because I would rather cut off my arm than insult you.
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member

Meowzer,
I was just reading about display refugiums and I came across someone talking about keeping sea horses in one...what do sea horses eat? Because I'm thinking it won't allow copepods to grow if you have critters that need that kind of food in there
.
Any thoughts?
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
How big of a refugium are you gonna have? and YES Seahorses eat pods....lots and lots of pods....they eat them constantly....
They also will eat frozen mysis, but pods pods pods
IDK if I would put horses in a refugium....I guess it all depends what size...
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by meowzer
http:///forum/post/3280604
How big of a refugium are you gonna have? and YES Seahorses eat pods....lots and lots of pods....they eat them constantly....
They also will eat frozen mysis, but pods pods pods
IDK if I would put horses in a refugium....I guess it all depends what size...

It was a 30g, that’s why it caught my attention… I like sea horses but if it is right there in the fuge the pods won’t be able to breed and grow and the horses will starve. The whole idea of a refugium is to give pods a place to breed without being eaten by the hungry fish..
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
Have you looked into any of the pre-built sumps with the fuge, skimmer and return chamber built in? Mayber there is a size out there that would fit under your stand. You said a 10G tank is the biggest that you could squeez in there?
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
What's the widest you can fit in your stand??? My sump is 12" wide.....
I just looked at a wet/dry for a 75-100G the measurements are 12"wide, 18" long and 16" high
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by meowzer
http:///forum/post/3280629
What's the widest you can fit in your stand??? My sump is 12" wide.....
I just looked at a wet/dry for a 75-100G the measurements are 12"wide, 18" long and 16" high

LOL ....my door opening is 16 inches tall, it is the center brace that makes maneuvering impossible. I give up on the under the stand thought.
It is still in the planning stage but I think I am going to set up a sea horse tank/refugium next to my Main tank, but I need money to set it up, so this will take time.
I need Plexigas, a tank, stand, regular fish lights and an overflow box, just to set it up. Then I will have to stock it with live sand, live rock and macro algae…after about 2-3 months of letting copepods grow free… some critters
The plan is to section a part for the skimmer..it can still hang on the back if need be, but with baffles in front of it, I can get rid of the micro bubbles either way. Two small sections divided on the opposite side containing the return pump at the far end and live rock and macro algae next to that, providing a haven for copepods to breed …stocking both the DT and the small one with copepods…a center section…when all is well stocked with the pods maybe one small type sea horse (not pregnant, I don’t want babies) a fish buddy or shrimp, some snails, and maybe a froma sea star
My space is 30 inches wide maximum, so with all that will be sectioned off, I will have a space of 22 inches to put the critters in...Thoughts?
P.S.
Never mind the sea horse, after doing some research...my tank is way too warm and not really big enough...I am going to do the refugium as I planned out but find a different critter. Any suggestions?
 
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