Bought a used tank...help!

lmforbis

lmforbis

Well-Known Member
You can turn it into a refugium you just need a good light for growing plants.

Is the pipe from the overflow above or below the water line in the sump?
 
silverado61

silverado61

Well-Known Member
The chamber with the rock and sand IS the refugium. Is all your water at the same level? It looks like all your baffles are resting on the bottom glass. I don't see an "under, over, under" path for the water to travel. Odd. And yes, as long as the sump/fug is open to the rest of the room, your going to hear running water.
 
lmforbis

lmforbis

Well-Known Member
It looks like there are over and unders between the first and the fourth chamber, they are just over under over instead of under over under. Not between the fuge and the skimmer chamber which makes sense since there is sand in the fuge chamber.
 
sberto

sberto

Member
Your correct Imforbis, there are over under over between the first and fourth chambers.

The noise wasn't coming from the sump itself, it was from the Upside down U shaped pipe from the overflow that sounded like it was gurgling. But this morning it seems to have stopped.

As for the fuge...I'll take some of that Rock and sand out and add
Some chaeto then with a nice little light. It was just jammed pack with sand and rock.

Last question, how clean are sumps supposed to be? This one is filthy. Are they ok to clean?
 
silverado61

silverado61

Well-Known Member
lmforbis said:
It looks like there are over and unders between the first and the fourth chamber, they are just over under over instead of under over under. Not between the fuge and the skimmer chamber which makes sense since there is sand in the fuge chamber.
Click to expand...
Over under over makes it hard to clean that area.
 
silverado61

silverado61

Well-Known Member
sberto said:
Your correct Imforbis, there are over under over between the first and fourth chambers.

The noise wasn't coming from the sump itself, it was from the Upside down U shaped pipe from the overflow that sounded like it was gurgling. But this morning it seems to have stopped.

As for the fuge...I'll take some of that Rock and sand out and add
Some chaeto then with a nice little light. It was just jammed pack with sand and rock.

Last question, how clean are sumps supposed to be? This one is filthy. Are they ok to clean?
Click to expand...
Is there any livestock in the tank already? If not, now is the perfect time to clean it. Or do anything to it for that matter. Do you have a picture of the tank yet?
 
sberto

sberto

Member
no livestock in the tank yet....theyre in a Rubbermaid container on the floor (hoping to get them back in today). I've attached a picture of the tank / sump.

I can't take the sump out as it's all full of water. Gotta get my little arms in there somehow lol. Picture is attached.

How do I get the air out??
 
silverado61

silverado61

Well-Known Member
sberto said:
no livestock in the tank yet....theyre in a Rubbermaid container on the floor (hoping to get them back in today). I've attached a picture of the tank / sump.

I can't take the sump out as it's all full of water. Gotta get my little arms in there somehow lol. Picture is attached.

How do I get the air out??
Click to expand...
A shallower tank for the sump would have helped. Oh well.
A small water pump with a length of flexible hose. Shove it in the pipe (Inlet side) and turn it on letting it run for a few minutes. That should help force the air out.
 
lmforbis

lmforbis

Well-Known Member
Sometimes pushing a piece of 1/4 airline tubing through the overflow pipe will allow the trapped air to leave. Doesn't have to go the whole way just till the noise stops. Then leave it there.
 
lmforbis

lmforbis

Well-Known Member
A lot of people just use a shop vac to clean out their sump a couple times a year.

Can you post a pic of the overflow from the top. And side with out the hood?
 
lmforbis

lmforbis

Well-Known Member
Before you add any animals test your ammonia. If you detect any wait. Because things got all stirred up when you moved the tank your ammonia may go up. Not a big deal if there are no animals. Just wait till it drops to zero before you add them. I would also purchase some Prime. It is good to have on hand. If ammonia goes up after you add the animals you can add it to detox the ammonia. Just a note, the Prime will give you false positives in your ammonia tests. Because of that I'd suggest a Seachem ammonia badge. It just hangs in the tank and gives you realtime ammonia readings. It still works in the presence of prime.
 
sberto

sberto

Member
Yea. A shallow sump definitely would have helped. I also should have cleaned it before setup. But for whatever reason I didn't.

I've taken all the rock out now and am trying to scoop some of the sand. What a mess. But it's coming. There is still a ton of "crap" all over the sump though. I'm trying to figure out a siphon hose but it won't connect to my tap of corse.

If I can figure out an efficient way to suck the water from the sump I should be OK.

here are more pics. Holy cloudy water too. Everything is off while I clean.
 

Attachments

silverado61

silverado61

Well-Known Member
lmforbis said:
Before you add any animals test your ammonia. If you detect any wait. Because things got all stirred up when you moved the tank your ammonia may go up. Not a big deal if there are no animals. Just wait till it drops to zero before you add them. I would also purchase some Prime. It is good to have on hand. If ammonia goes up after you add the animals you can add it to detox the ammonia. Just a note, the Prime will give you false positives in your ammonia tests. Because of that I'd suggest a Seachem ammonia badge. It just hangs in the tank and gives you realtime ammonia readings. It still works in the presence of prime.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't add all the animals at once either.
 
sberto

sberto

Member
Good to know thank you! I was going to test it for sure before adding any little guys. I'm sure a few days in a Rubbermaid won't hurt. I have searchem prime as well. Again. What a mess.

I'll keep ya posted. How long until the water clears do you think?
 
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