Building refugium

[hottie79]

Hi Everyone I have a 30 gallon and trying to create a 10 gallon refugium (no sump). Here is a picture, thanks to Mr Bill.
My question is this: how do i get the water to pump from the refugium BACK into the main tank? Any ideas? Please excuse the really lame drawing and if this wont work please tell me.

 

[squidd]

trying to create a 10 gallon refugium (no sump).

how do i get the water to pump from the refugium BACK into the main tank? Any ideas?
Ummm...It "is" a sump...
Water goes down to seperate tank (overflow) then moves over to the left "chamber" where a return pump is located...
Only the part in the center is a "refugium",,,

 

[rangermonroe]

THe whole thing is a refugium if you light it. Put a little PC "smartlight" over it and watch the critters grow.
My unlighted sump has a lot critters that my 'fuge doesn't.

 

[rangermonroe]

A pump send the water back to the tank.

 

[granny]

The only way to get that water moving uphill is with pump assist. Siphone moves water to a lower level, not a higher one and you dont want to break siphon. If your power goes out, the siphon should stay intact on the intake overflow but will stop when the water level drops below the height of the intake box-the box is designed to hold water inside so the siphon action wont e broken.
In order to avoid a backwash from your discharge tubing, simply poke or drill a little hole in the tube right BELOW the water line, then the siphon action will be broken on the dishcarge side only so your sump wont backfill with water. When power comes back on, the pump will pump water back into the tank and water should continue to flow into the overflow and down to your refugium. The water level in the sump/refug/ should not be at the top of the tank (which may be hard with a ten gallon sump area) to allow for some backwash if power does go out or if you turn your pumps off for cleaning.