planning on building a sump need help

[ryan]

Im planning on building a sump for my 46 gallon tank. I will probably be posting a lot for help on this project. The first thing I need to know is how much flow rate should my overflow be. Also I need to know how to pick out a water pump that will get the water back up at decent flow rate. I will be pushing the water about 5-6 ft up. Can you by a pump that is to big, and regulate is with ball valves? This will be my first sump, and diy project so any info anyone has learned along the way will be helpful. I also want to add a refugium as part of the sump. Is this a good idea, and will I be able to fit it into a 20 gallon tall or long sump along with a skimmer, and place for media?

 

[justakid]

you need to have a lot of water flow for a stable reef tank. I have 1200 gph on my 125, so i would suggest that you shoot for 9 to 10 times the water in you tank per hour. That may be a bit much, you could settle for 4-5 times if you needed, but the more the better.
Look for a mag drive return pump, they are quiet and effiecient submersible pumps. You should buy one that pumps more gph than you decide to use. From here you can build a "T" in the plumbing with ball valve after the "T". This way you can open the ball valve and allow water to bleed back into the return section of your sump, allowing you to find the balance of flow.

 

[ryan]

That makes since. I found an overflow that is rated at 600gph. This sounds like it would be a good size. If I bought a mag drive that is rated for 950ghp and has a max head of 14 feet does that mean the flow is 950gph after the 14ft, or at level ground? Would this pump be plenty enough to handle a 600gph overflow?

 

[engineer]

I like the mag drives myself, here is a chart to help you determine the flow rates at whatever head feet!