Need Help with Setup for 155 - Squid?? (Your help would be much appreciated!)

msd2

msd2

Active Member
Originally Posted by HowieUMD
Any recommendations for a good protein skimmer? This Seaclone that I currently have isn't good enough for what I'm setting up. I'm looking to spend around $400 max for a skimmer. Does anybody have a good recommendation on a good in-sump skimmer around that price range? If I have a 155 gallon tank and a 50 gallon sump/fuge, I should be looking for a skimmer that can accomadate around 205 gallons, not 155, correct? After doing a little more research, would you recommend having the fuge on the right, skimmer on the left, and return in the middle? I just saw a setup like that. How would that be divided up, as in how much space for each spot? Also, which part would the water from the chiller go into? Please help. Thanks.
I suggest Euroreef, works well and low to maintain for the skimmer, and u want the skimmer to handle 200gal. I run a sump/fuge like u describe and personally would run the chiller through the sump side so the poor lil pods dont get a cold blast of water coming in on them. Also because its a higher flow it is going to disp. the water faster than if u put it in the fuge. As far as dividing up the space for the sump/fuge its kinda a personal choice. The best suggestion would be to decide on your skimmer first then go from there. They can take up considerable space. My skimmer and additional powerheads to run the reaction chambers its pretty full.
 
howieumd

howieumd

Member
Squidd, I have everything up and going, but my drains are really loud. There's not really a flushing noise, which tells me it's probably not the actual draining. I ended up going with Durso standpipes, as they did end up fitting in my overflows. What's loud is the water fall sound. Before I put the return pump on, I had about 1" to the standpipe from the top of the tank. Once I put the return pump on, the water level raised about 1 1/2 - 2'', which I didn't take into account. The water is now dropping about 2 1/2 - 3'' before it drains. Could this be why the noise is so loud? Should I just make the standpipes about 2'' taller? Thanks!
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
Yep...experiment with taller stand pipes till things quiet down and you still get good flow..
My water runs about 3/4" from surface of main tank to level the overflow stabilizes at ...including the 3/8" or so MT water "rises" to get over overflow edge
Not much of a drop at all, so no "waterfall" noise...
 
howieumd

howieumd

Member
Squidd, I originally posted the below in the new forum, but figured you might be best to answer, so I just pasted it below. Thanks again for all the help, I'm up and going and everything seems great. Now, I'm just looking to do some tweaking.
I'd like to reduce the amount of power I'm using. Right now, I have a 240 gallon main tank with a 120 gallon sump/fuge, which is directly below my main tank in my basement. My 3 pumps that run all day are what take the biggest dent into my electric bill.
I have a Mag 36 as my return with about 13.5 feet of head, so it returns about 1500 GPH, a Mag 18 feeding my AquaC EV 240 protein skimmer with about 1 foot of head so 1800 GPH goes into the skimmer, and a Mag 12 feeding my chiller with about 5 feet of head so about 1100 GPH go into my chiller. The skimmer only requires a Mag 12, but came with a Mag 18 as an option, so I went with that.
Would it be possible to cut out maybe the Mag 12, and have the Mag 18 run to the chiller first, than directly into the skimmer? It'll change the GPH going into the skimmer from 1800 to 1200 GPH, but would cut a significant amount of electricity usage. My only concern would be the water going into the chiller before it's cleaned, but is that a problem or not?
My next thought was to maybe buy an additioanl Mag 18, and cut out both the Mag 12 and Mag 36. The first one will do what I just mentioned, and the 2nd would replace the return to the main tank. Only problem is that at 13.5 feet of head, instead of 1500 GPH for my return, I'd only get about 600. The positive is the Mag 18 uses less than half the electricty that the Mag 36 does and will also slow the flow between the sump and main tank, so it'll be a little quiter. I have 2 Tunze 6100 in the main tank, so I'm still going to get over 20X turnover if I cut out 900 GPH of return from sump.
Do you have any good recommendations? Thanks!
 
howieumd

howieumd

Member
By the way, below is a pic of my sump/fuge that I set up, with your help. It works great. Thanks. The chiller has just been plumbed in and goes through the wall to the right of the tank, into another room.
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
What gph do need/want to run through the chiller...?
I'm thinking "split" a Mag 18 to skimmer and chiller rather than "run through" both...
Second option is to look at some of the low amp draw "external" pumps for the return..to maintain flow at head, at less amp draw....
 
howieumd

howieumd

Member
The skimmer needs at least 1200 GPH and the chiller needs at least 750 GPH. If I split a Mag 18, I don't think that's enough for both, unless you know of a creative way to get the flow I need out of it that I'm not thinking about.
I can't really do an external pump for return because of the way it's setup. It's right against the back of the wall, and not really any room on sides either. I'd also have to drain and drill a hole in back, at this point. Even if I did do that, there's not a place to put an external pump.
You don't think 600 GPH returning from the sump is enough to main tank, considering my Tunze 6100's are 3,175 GPH each and I also have 2 Tunze 7400/2's that are 1,055 GPH? I have the Tunze's working on rotaiting intervals of 70% on one side and 30% on the other, so it's technically about 4230 GPH at one time between all 4 pumps, not 8460 GPH, but I can tweak the way those work as well.
Everything works fine as is, but it just uses a ton of electricity. My pumps alone are running at a total of 615 watts and on all day (Mag 36 = 360, Mag 18 = 145, Mag 12 = 110), which is going about $52 per month for just those 3 pumps. If I can cut that in half, somehow, that'd be great. If I can't, oh well, it's an expensive hobby, LOL.
Thanks again.
 
howieumd

howieumd

Member
Squidd, another question I just asked in the forum, that you might be able to answer:
Does anybody have any experience using eductors? Will this increase the flow output on the return? Will they be effective with Mag pumps? Thanks.
 
howieumd

howieumd

Member
Squidd, one other one I was looking for some help with.
If I want to get away from using the Mag 36, because it's so loud, are there any other options for submersible that will give me at least 1500 GPH at 13.5' head? Even 1000-1200 GPH would be fine, I would think. 1500 GPH makes the water actually splash over the top of the tank a little, so it seems like a little much. Obviously 600 GPH I can get from the Mag 18 isn't enough though. I did give it a try and it was so much quieter, actually my system is completely silent with that and putting out more than half the wattage, but I need to double that flow through the sump somehow. Are there other types of pumps I can use, other than aquarium pumps? I know there are a lot of basement sump pumps that will put out really good GPH. Do people use these? Or is saltwater the issue?
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
Originally Posted by HowieUMD
Squidd, another question I just asked in the forum, that you might be able to answer:
Does anybody have any experience using eductors? Will this increase the flow output on the return? Will they be effective with Mag pumps? Thanks.
I haven't used eductors personally, but in theory, when set up correctly, they can increase flow by up to 5X by drawing in additional water via a venturi effect...
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
Not much available in subnersible that does high head...may have to look into external...
Basement sumps (not aquarium rated) have metal parts/screws/etc... and are not suitable for salt water use..
 
howieumd

howieumd

Member
Hey Squidd, it's been a while. I hope all is well. I have a question. I just moved to a new house, and had to tear down the tank, which was doing very well by the way, and am getting ready to get things going again. This time, with my basement sump/fuge, I want an external pump. The only option is drilling the tank, right? How large of a hole would you drill? I have a 240 and it's a 120 that feeds it? I'd drill toward the bottom of the back of the tank where the middle chamber is, which is where the fuge and sump feeds to for return. My question, how hard is it to drill a tank? I think it's .25'' glass. I've looked around, glass companies, etc, and can't find anybody willing to drill this. I need to get it set back up soon, what do you suggest? Can I do this myself, or not recommended? Thanks.
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
Still looking for something in the 1200-1500 range 10'-12' head...Thinking the Dolphin Ampmaster 3000...1 1/2" inlet (so you'll need at least a 1 1/2" bulkhead drilled in...
You can do the drilling if your up to it...takes a little (lot) longer than 1/8" glass though...But I'm sure if you keep asking around, ther has to be a glass company (home windows/Mirrors/Shower doors) that could drill your tank...I get mine drilled for $8 to $12 a hole...No Guarrentee, but they'll try their hardest not to break it...
 
howieumd

howieumd

Member
So if I do it, for a 1 1/2'' bulkhead, I need to make a hole of 2 3/8'', correct? I've called about 8 places and they won't do holes that big. I really want to do an external pump. Do you know where I can get a bit that big, or have a better idea how to do it? I can't remember if the glass is 1/2'' or 3/8''. I think my 240 is 1/2'' and the 120, that I want to drill the hole in, is 3/8''. It could even be 1/4'', but I don't think it's that thin. I'll measure it tomorrow, but either way, my hole needs to be 2 3/8'', right? Thanks again!
 
bronco300

bronco300

Active Member
just to say my two sense from the two sense i got from squid....i'm also drilling a 2 3/8in hole...and if you are trying to find a bit that big, good luck, i havent found anything that big under $70...usually around 90 i think it was...so i decided to take my dremel like squid and others and drill it that way.
Luke
 
howieumd

howieumd

Member
Squidd, I found a place that will drill holes for 1'' bulkheads. I can't find anywhere that can do the 2 3/8'' hole for the 1 1/2'' bulkheads, which is what I need. The guy who does the 1'' holes charges $10 per hole, no guarantee, but assured me he's done several hundred holes and has barely broke any. It is 1/2'' thick glass, so not sure about doing it myself, plus for a one time thing, I don't want to pay $100 for the bit.
I came up with an idea, that might work. Tell me what you think. My return chamber is 8'' across. Would it work if I drill 2 holes for 1'' bulkheads side by side, about 2-3 inches apart, attach a short piece of 1'' PVC to each of the bulkheads with 1 1'' elbow on each to a T that will go from 1'' on each end and out to 1 1/2'' opening into the 1 1/2'' inlet of the dolphin pump? It's 2'' coming out, since 2 1'' holes, but due to the elbows and T, it might realistically be about the same pressure as a 1 1/2'' bulkhead. Thoughts? Other than that, I can't figure out any other way to do this. Thanks.
 
squidd

squidd

Active Member
2 X 1"pipe will get you "close" to the output of a 1 1/2" pipe, but the extra expense, hole, pipes, etc... might be more hasle than it's worth...
I'm thinking you might be better off to have this guy drill the 1 3/4" or better yet, the "biggest" hole he can (maybe 2"??) and then use the diamond Dremel Rasp to open it up for a single 1 1/2" bulkhead...
Once the "hole" is punched in (that's the tricky part) the rest is easy...all your doing is grinding an edge...
 
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