Will this Work?

[reefnut]

I'm trying to make a home made overflow from the refug to the sump. Both the sump & refug are glass so I do not want to drill them.
Using 2" PVC Pipe on both sides and a 3/4" Tubing in between.

 

[reefnut]

DvSkiN, that's a good point. The water level in the sump (Left) will be below or even with the top of the PVC Pipe while running and the water level in the refug (right) will always be to the top of the PVC in that tank. So in theory, they should never equalize during operation.
The same concept as a hang on overflow. I think

 

[justinx]

How do you plan on getting water from the display to the fuge? Powerhead? If so, something that you need to consider is the flow rate of 3/4" tubing. Why not just ditch the siphon, and build a "drain ramp" (couldnt think of what else to call it) on the fuge. Put a powerhear pumping water into the fige at a slow rate. As long as the fuge is higher than the display, and your "drain ramp" (I cant help but laugh at myself for "drain ramp", man I am an idiot) goes into the display, it should overflow right back into the display, plus you fill have a slow enough flow in the fuge. This is what I plan to do with my nano eventually. It basically turns the fuge into a gigantic hang on powerfilter. Plus, you only need one pump to run it, and if power goes out it wont make a mess.

 

[reefnut]

Can you explain how to build a drain ramp?
I plan to tee the outlet from the main tank to the sump and refug with a valve on the refug side to control the flow. The refug will have a slow flow and the sump will have the "main flow". Someone posted a diagram of this and it looked like it would work well. If not, I will tee the pump return to feed the refug.

 

[justinx]

Thats where the problem comes in. It would have to be built out of acrylic, which is no big deal, it could be as simple as a tube cut in half. the problem is getting it below the edge of the tank so that the only water flows through it and not over the sides. If the whole thing is plastic, no problem. with glass, i am not so sure. i'll keep thinking though

 

[reefnut]

Maybe this better drawing will help???? The tube will not be as tall as it is drawn.

 

[reefnut]

One more try.

 

[justinx]

that makes more sense now. I thought the first pic was the display and the fuge. Now I get it!
why noy just comine thw teo into one unit? save some space, as well as some $$$ on equipment.

 

[reefnut]

That would be my first choice but the sump is only a 30g and I want to keep a kinda slow flow through the refug. Under my 55g I have a sump/ refug and it works ok. One side is the sump, the other the refug. A problem I have with it is room.
My RO/DI will be here Friday so over the weekend I'm going to fill the tank. I'll let you know if this works or not.
Thanks,

 

[reefnut]

I finally hooked up the refug last night and this overflow system works very well. I will get some pics up soon.

 

[justinx]

Cool! What happens when you shut the pumps off? Does it overflow at all? then whe restarted does the siphon stay?

 

[reefnut]

When the pump goes off the water to the refug stops and therefor stops overflowing. It does keep its siphon and starts back automatic.
As far as drilling the tank, it's glass and I don't know of anywere around here that drills glass. And yes, as with a external overflow there is a worry of it losing its siphon and flooding but I don't see how it could. About the only way is for a hose to come out.

 

[broncofish]

I would say call around to glass shops, I found an autoglass place by me that would do it cheap and with a no break promise. Lots of things can cause syphon breaks, massive algea growth, airbubbles, and the unexplainable "Fuge Gremlins". On the other hand if it works for you and your happy with your set up, cool DVS and I both tend to be paranoids, either that or we love to drill stuff.

 

[reefnut]

lol, Ya I don't disagree that it would be more "full proof" if it was drilled. I'm going to watch it and see how it preforms for awhile. If the next post you see from me is "How do you get 150 gallons of water out of your basement?" you'll now what it's about.

 

[broncofish]

LOL I sincerly hope that never happens, I can tell you after cleaning about ten gallons from my 90 out of the living room, IT SUCKS

 

[reefnut]

Ok, Ok... I bagged this idea. When I went to put the skimmer in the sump the other day I ended up breaking the 10g I had so I decided to do it right this time. I got a 20g rubber made from wal-mart and set it up next to the tank on bricks so it is higher than the sump. I used a NO strip light and mounted it to the cover. It is fed by a power head with a gravity siphon back. Using Plum's idea I covered it with a table cloth so my wife didn't kill me. It looks like a end table sitting next to the tank and it is working great with no worries. I'm much more pleased with it now.
No "I told you so" please

 

[justinx]

I told you so . . . Just couldnt resit, but seriously I hope that this works well for you. I am curious about the table cloth thing, whats that for?

 

[reefnut]

Thanks . The table cloth is for looks.
Well I had a link here but it didn't work. Plum posted a thread titled "Making things look pretty" in the Reef Tank forum. Take a look and you will see what I'm talking about.