Adding a Refugium/Sump TO Existing Setup

[chrisnym]

Hello. I have been in the hobby for 3+ years. I set up my 75 Gallon tank with an Eheim 2227 wet/dry, Remro Pro Skimmer, 15w Aqua U.V., 75+ Lbs. of Live Rock. I have entertained the thought of adding a sump/refuguim to my existing set up. I have been doing some general research and have possibly decided on using a rubber maid tub. I just wanted to know if anyone has DIY plans to create this. If any one has a similar set up, I am curious as to what overflow (my tank is not drilled) you use? what flow rate? pump? etc. I appreciate any feed back or help. Thanks.

 

[oceanjumper]

Hi, here is an old drawing picture of my DIY design with some of the values you were asking for. In the meanwhile I redesigned the sump so it has a separate chamber for the fuge return, and separte chamber for the return pump and a separate chamber for the skimmer. I still use the same Excaliber but modified it from a hang-on to a in-sump placement. The return pump has also been replaced by a MAG 7. The "real" pictures shows how I still have it.

 

[tim_12]

www.melevsreef.com
He's made tons of sumps /fuges

 

[flux]

I made a hang over back overflow for my tank out of acrylic and in all honesty if I had to do it again I think I would just buy it. It cost around $55 to make ($10acrilic $15Glue $10bulkhead $10tubing $5J-tube $5PVC). They are on the auction site for $65ish. The extra $10+shipping for a nice one and not having to worry about it seems worth it. I would recommend 2 bulk heads in place of 1. I like the reassurance of knowing it will keep running even if 1 clogs for some reason. I also hooked the J-tube up to a Venturi so it’s self priming (nice little extra). Although it was a nice small beginner DIY project to learn on.