Sump Overflow Question

[jnrom]

I have a question which is probably stupid, but I need to ask. I had a 55 gal tank, fish only. A couple damsels and a tang. I had a wet/dry filter with a berlin skimmer. Whenever I needed to feed the fish I thought I needed to shut the tank off because if I didn't the food would get sucked into the overflow box and down into the filter. SO, everytime I feed I shut the system down. THis mean that the sump filled up with water (the first time I did this it overflowed quite a bit but that's learning). So then, I poked a hole in the tube that took that water down to the sump. When the water dropped below the hole, a sucking nose began, and the sump couldn't suck any more water. I hope this makes sense so far. Basically, I want to know if there was another solution to my problem. I made the hole because if I didn't, all the water in the tank would have just been sucked out. ( at least to the water level of the pipe. I hope someone can help me here......I quite a beginner as you can see. Thanks in advance for your help!
Jess

 

[poiboy]

That was it, now make sure your overflow is adjusted. If your overflow box is lower than the hole you put in the tube (it will keep going) the overflow that is.

 

[heyoo]

You could install a check valve in your pipe from the sump. The anti-siphon hole you drilled should do the trick. Just make sure it doesn't clog with algae, coralline, etc before turning off the pump.

 

[zafirablanca]

You actually want to put the anti-siphon hole on the pipe that returns water to the main tank. Put it just below the water surface, inside the tank, under the water. This will ripple the surface of the water, but I believe that this is a good thing. I do not think that you want a hole in the pipe that goes down to the sump, I would expect that to be problematic. I also installed a pvc swing check valve from Mcmaster-Carr on my return line, just after the pump. This is a back-up/ redundant feature to the anti-siphon hole. If you choose to use a check valve, just dont get one with a spring in it, wrong kind.
Hope this helps.
Goos Luck,
-Christine

 

[fbihunter]

To help on the other end. Measure the outside of the sump and visit WAL MART. Find you a clear storage container that the sump will fit into nicely. Place the sump in the tub (storage container) on a couple of pieces of pvc to elevate it. This way if anything should overflow in the future it has a place to go instead of the floor. Just my 2 cents.

 

[jnrom]

Thanks to all for all these great suggestions and comments. I do hope they will help me in the future. This is a great site for help!