Help setting up a 20g long

catfishcity

catfishcity

Member
I am in the process of setting up my 20 gallon long aquarium and need some help. I am going to make a sump and was wondering how i should do the "plumming" to get the water down to the sump so that when the power goes out it doesnt overflow. also, what return pump should i use? i am doing a heavy reef so i am getting a 150w metal halide lamp. i was also wondering if anyone that has a 20g setup could post some pics of theres and also some pics of how to setup a sump.
 
natclanwy

natclanwy

Active Member
You need to setup an overflow to get the water out of the DT, You can drill the tank and install prebuilt overflow from Glassholes or build your own, you can buy a HOB overflow box (Eshopps is a good brand) or build a DIY PVC overflow and there are instructions for a DIY PVC overflow in the equipment section of this website.
What size sump are you planning?
Are you going to be using a skimmer in the sump if so what type and size?
These two things along with the type and size of overflow you choose will help to determine what size return pump you need to use.
 
natclanwy

natclanwy

Active Member
It will depend on the size of PVC that you use but I would say you are looking for about 300-400gph of flow so a mag 7 or quietone 3000 would be a good choice.
 
catfishcity

catfishcity

Member
so what size pvc should i use. i dont want to much flow coming down so should i just use like 1/2" or should i use a whole 1"
 
natclanwy

natclanwy

Active Member
I would go with 1", the water draining will match whatever your return pump is sending to the tank. You might be able to get away with 3/4" but when dealing with siphons there seems to be more issues with smaller plumbing.
 
natclanwy

natclanwy

Active Member
You have to subtract for headloss, how many feet of pipe you have verticle plus horizontal feet plus any valves elbows ect... also the size of the returns will make a huge diferance as well.
 
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