Looking For A Sump For 55 Gal (cheap If Possible :)

jessica47421

jessica47421

Active Member
Hello I am looking for a sump at a cheap price, i was thinking about building one but just dont think my husband is up for it ( hes getting fed up with the tank) so i thought i would see about buying one. im not even sure what all i need. i think the sump, pump, light, plumbing, overflow box????
 
larryndana

larryndana

Active Member
would cost less if you build it yourself by buying a 55gal and putting the baffles in yourself.
if you want cheap you may want to look for one someone wants to get rid of, or sell.
 
jessica47421

jessica47421

Active Member
yes that is what i was using this for in the classified for someone that might want to sell their whole set. i just want about 20 gal.
 
larryndana

larryndana

Active Member
i'm sorry, didn't realize this was posted in the classified section. i was looking at new posts, lol. sorry.
 
jessica47421

jessica47421

Active Member
i would build my own but i dont have any idea how or what all i would need. do you have any idea on how much it would cost to build the whole thing? with pump and all?
 
reefforbrains

reefforbrains

Active Member
empty tank.
Count and then have you baffles cut to size at a glass shop, then glue in place with a tube of silicone from HD.
Whole thing should cost you under 100 bucks for tank, materials, and even pump. Grab a pump from the classifieds and then just DIY. Very very easy build.
 
jessica47421

jessica47421

Active Member
where will i be able to get a pump that cheap? someone told me if i built my own with light pump and all it would be around 250-300. i know this is going to be a really really dump question but what kind of pump do i need to look for?
 
reefforbrains

reefforbrains

Active Member
your tank is only 55g, the dump being around 20g
figure you dont want ALL your tanks flow coming from just your return line but if using this math heres my opinion for whatever thats worth.
Display Tank - 55 gallon x around 15x turnover= 825 GPH and even thats on the high side.
825 gallons per hour would be target.
So-
825gph
-235gph from Maxijet 900 actually in the tank
-235pgh from 2nd Maxijet 900 in the tank
335 gph unaccounted for to reach a good GPH in display.
Dont forget your skimmer and ect
so a nice clean Mag 3.5@350gph for return will work fine. or stepping up to a mag5@500gph and then just remove a powerhead from the display.
The smaller pumps are all over the boards for 20-30 bucks.

[hr]
As for a light, a 20g tank is pretty small and a light from Home depot, the clip on aluminum shop lights and then a screw in style Flouresent swirly style bulb from Walmart in the 6500k range should be under 10 bucks for yoru whole light.....
 
kiharaconn

kiharaconn

Member
I agree with with reefforbrains has said. I purchased my sump tank from my lfs but it would be easy to make. It's just a 55 gal tank with a glass divider glued in about one fourth of the tank. It is shorter than the tank walls by about 3-4 inches. If you have a tank that is already up and running use the return pump you already have. I use a small power head to pump the water into the smaller side of the tank which has algae and either lr or lr rubble. The water will fill that side and then flow back into the larger side. The light I use is just a fixture that I already had that was from a 20 gal tank. Doesn't have to be anything special. The tubing you can get from Home Depot or lowes. I paid about $120 for the tank with the divider already glued in, then about 15 for tubing. My tubing was probably alittle more expensive since I ran it thru my walls into a back room where the fuge is located.
 
brandan

brandan

Member
Im in Indy also, I am building my own sump out of a 20gal long, and I'm using a mag9.5, but It is also feeding a fuge as well. let me know if you need any help locally building anything.
 
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