First time sump/refugium

truehle

truehle

Member
Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/2932231
I hope I am not over stepping my bounds, but I kind of feel like I have a personal stake in this project so yea I am impressed
When all is done, I really should put up some type of memento or plaque thanking everyone who contributed to the project. You know what? I think that's an awesome idea! Get a small brass engraved plate, and stick it on the tanks.
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by truehle
http:///forum/post/2932611
When all is done, I really should put up some type of memento or plaque thanking everyone who contributed to the project. You know what? I think that's an awesome idea! Get a small brass engraved plate, and stick it on the tanks.

nice idea
 
truehle

truehle

Member
I just got my sump and refugium tanks drilled yesterday. I couldn't believe how easy it was. I decided to go with a 2" bulkhead requiring a 3" hole.
Using plumbers putty, I created a reservoir to keep the bit cool and lubricated, and I taped up the inside of the tank to help prevent chipping.
Attachment 219122
Here's the 3" hole saw and portable drill.
Attachment 219123
Hole drilled out! Thank goodness I remembered to put a container on the bottom to catch the plug.
Attachment 219124
Attachment 219125
Bulkheads installed. Beautiful!

Attachment 219126




 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by truehle
http:///forum/post/2947500
I just got my sump and refugium tanks drilled yesterday. I couldn't believe how easy it was. I decided to go with a 2" bulkhead requiring a 3" hole.
Using plumbers putty, I created a reservoir to keep the bit cool and lubricated, and I taped up the inside of the tank to help prevent chipping.
Attachment 219122
Here's the 3" hole saw and portable drill.
Attachment 219123
Hole drilled out! Thank goodness I remembered to put a container on the bottom to catch the plug.
Attachment 219124
Attachment 219125
Bulkheads installed. Beautiful!

Attachment 219126
I like it. There is more then one way to skin a cat (what ever that mean) I would still like to see you have a way to isolate the refug from the sump. The valve does not have to be placed between the bulkheads. You can consider attaching it to the bulkhead INSIDE the refug Allowing you to shut the valve drain or perform maintenance and still operate your sump
 
truehle

truehle

Member
Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/2947519
I like it. There is more then one way to skin a cat (what ever that mean) I would still like to see you have a way to isolate the refug from the sump. The valve does not have to be placed between the bulkheads. You can consider attaching it to the bulkhead INSIDE the refug Allowing you to shut the valve drain or perform maintenance and still operate your sump
What about inserting a rubber plug or something into the bulkhead to isolate the sump from the refug (i.e. corking it)?
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by truehle
http:///forum/post/2947537
Or maybe this? Union plus ball valve..
Attachment 219130
Ok make it real easy glue a short piece of PVC pipe to the bulkhead and have the end coming out threaded so all you need to do is

[hr]
on a PVC cap. Total cost under $5.00 I would think LOL i guess you cant say

[hr]
so twist on the cap
 
truehle

truehle

Member
Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/2947542
Ok make it real easy glue a short piece of PVC pipe to the bulkhead and have the end coming out threaded so all you need to do is

[hr]
on a PVC cap. Total cost under $5.00 I would think LOL i guess you cant say

[hr]
so twist on the cap
Duh! Why couldn't I think of that? Great idea. $5 instead of $15-25, much better.
 
ilovemytank

ilovemytank

Member
Home Depot sells a plug big enough for the pipes you used. Juct curious : did you get the drill bit and bulkheads at the site I gave you ? looks great.
 
truehle

truehle

Member
Originally Posted by Ilovemytank
http:///forum/post/2947798
Home Depot sells a plug big enough for the pipes you used. Juct curious : did you get the drill bit and bulkheads at the site I gave you ? looks great.
Yes I did. Excellent reference. Thanks again.
 
truehle

truehle

Member
Well, had my first set back in awhile. I took my tanks outside for a pressure and leak test yesterday. Things were looking pretty good. I had a small leak from the bulkhead threads.
I went to the store to pickup more teflon tape. When I came back, a lot of water was drained. Yep, one of the tanks cracked. Who knows....maybe I didn't have it on level ground and too much stress was on the tank wall, or the small increase of pressure from the water was too much.
Now its not the first time I've flushed $50 on a project I messed up, but somehow this was rather disappointing. Probably because I was ready to do the baffles and plumbing this weekend. Eh, it wasn't really that bad. Better outside than in my living room, right?

So what do you guys think? Get another 20 gallon tank, and re-drill the glass with a new bulkhead. Or go with the slightly more expensive route and get an acrylic tank on order? One long tank instead of the two small capacity tanks.
I put a call in for quotes on a 60"L x 12.5"W x 14"H. Any thoughts?
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
Originally Posted by truehle
http:///forum/post/2973695
Well, had my first set back in awhile. I took my tanks outside for a pressure and leak test yesterday. Things were looking pretty good. I had a small leak from the bulkhead threads.
I went to the store to pickup more teflon tape. When I came back, a lot of water was drained. Yep, one of the tanks cracked. Who knows....maybe I didn't have it on level ground and too much stress was on the tank wall, or the small increase of pressure from the water was too much.
Now its not the first time I've flushed $50 on a project I messed up, but somehow this was rather disappointing. Probably because I was ready to do the baffles and plumbing this weekend. Eh, it wasn't really that bad. Better outside than in my living room, right?

So what do you guys think? Get another 20 gallon tank, and re-drill the glass with a new bulkhead. Or go with the slightly more expensive route and get an acrylic tank on order? One long tank instead of the two small capacity tanks.
I put a call in for quotes on a 60"L x 12.5"W x 14"H. Any thoughts?
pm me with your quotes. I also had to have a custom acryic refug made
 
truehle

truehle

Member
I've made some progress. I just received my 33gal acrylic (48"x12.75"x13") this past week.
I cut out all my baffles on Friday. I used my portable craftsman circular saw with 110T, 5-1/2" blade and a clamp on straight edge. Cutting the 1/4" plexiglass with this method worked like a charm. Very little melt, near zero chipping, and smooth edge. I just finished the edge with a little sanding and presto!
I glued in all the baffles yesterday with Weld-On #16, and checked on it this morning. Solid as a rock! Definitely a bond I could never expect from acrylic baffles in a glass tank held with silicone.
In some ways I'm a little happy that the previous attempt at a glass tank failed. I've got so much more peace of mind with the acrylic setup. Tonight after work, I'll be able to water test the system and note any problem areas.
If I do end up with some leakage thru my baffles, do you think touch up with weld-on is best? Since the structural support is already there, would a bead of silicone be a good alternative as a water-proofing method? Any thoughts???
After much consideration, I decided to make the entire tank into a refugium (minus the return section). I just didn't feel like I was getting the appropriate amount of volume in the refugium if I added sections for sump, protein skimmer, etc.
Pics to follow tomorrow!
 
truehle

truehle

Member
Finally, some updated pics! The first one is the saw and blade I used to cut the acrylic:
Attachment 223026
Good old weld-on #16 to glue the plexiglass baffles into place:
Attachment 223027
Full tank shot of the refugium. The left hand side is the return area, center area the refugium, and the right hand side is the inlet:
Attachment 223028
A close up of the baffles leading into the return section. Although you can't see it, I left adequate space above baffles for overflow from tank:
Attachment 223029
And for good measure, my cat giving me "the paw," as I call it. Can't get him to stop sleeping on top of my lights.

Attachment 223030




 
saltn00b

saltn00b

Active Member
that looks really good, but you may want to increase the height of the lowest area. the lowest area basically equates how much time you have before you need to top off. also, a big drop will cause microbubbles.
 
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