kjlife Posted October 24, 2018 Share Posted October 24, 2018 Hello I have had fresh water tanks for years now set up a 29 gallon reef last year had ups and downs getting the hang of it now recently bought a used tank at a great deal most everything is included to start it up been preparing for that now and figured I might have a few solid questions to ask First of all I do have an rodi unit but getting almost 100 gallons of saltwater for set I think I'll need help does any have advice or source for this I'll throw in some current tank pictures for fun 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albertareef Posted October 24, 2018 Share Posted October 24, 2018 Welcome! Looking forward to seeing the new tank setup. Most of the LFS around town have either DI or premixed salt water available for purchase if you want (eg Cuttlefish and Seahorse). A lot of folk just run their RO/DI output directly into their tank and wait it out but that can require a bit of extra tubing. Someone would probably lend you some extra tubs for water if you can’t go straight to the tank. Just a few ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 24, 2018 Author Share Posted October 24, 2018 I guess I do have enough rodi tubing would take days but then could i mix the salt straight into the tank ?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NateDawg Posted October 24, 2018 Share Posted October 24, 2018 I mixed my salt strait in the tank but I measured how much water I put in the tank so I knew how much salt to add. If you decide to go that rout, I'd suggest just making sure the water temp is about 78°F and have a couple powerheads moving the water so the salt doesn't concentrate to one point. And make sure to put in less salt at first so you don't go over the salinity level that you want, and just add small amounts till you get too your desired target salinity. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 25, 2018 Author Share Posted October 25, 2018 And what about plumbing this one has to barbed fittings on the bulk head so does that mean I should us all plastic tubing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albertareef Posted October 25, 2018 Share Posted October 25, 2018 1 minute ago, kjlife said: And what about plumbing this one has to barbed fittings on the bulk head so does that mean I should us all plastic tubing? A picture might help in understanding what you are asking here. Not sure if this is related to the RO/DI question, sump return or ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 25, 2018 Author Share Posted October 25, 2018 Unrelated to rodi in terms of the drain and return to sump bulkheads that came with this setup at barbed fittings in the past I've always used PVC from bulkhead to drain and return pipes I send another pic once I'm back out there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 25, 2018 Author Share Posted October 25, 2018 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 28, 2018 Author Share Posted October 28, 2018 Would any one be interested in a light fixture 2 metal haildes and 6 t5's ? Let me know Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albertareef Posted October 28, 2018 Share Posted October 28, 2018 On 10/24/2018 at 5:43 PM, kjlife said: Unrelated to rodi in terms of the drain and return to sump bulkheads that came with this setup at barbed fittings in the past I've always used PVC from bulkhead to drain and return pipes I send another pic once I'm back out there Sorry I missed this. If you wanted to hard plumb it you could easily swap out those bulkheads. I have used both flex and hard pluming alone and in combination and they both have their advantages. You typically can get higher flow by avoiding right angles that PVC sometimes requires but hard plumbing can be cleaner depending on the path you have to take. Really a matter of taste in my mind. I would recommend laying it out with your sump, filters and return pump in place and see what it would look like. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 28, 2018 Author Share Posted October 28, 2018 Just went straight up and down I guess it might work hopefully lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albertareef Posted October 28, 2018 Share Posted October 28, 2018 14 minutes ago, kjlife said: Just went straight up and down I guess it might work hopefully lol Those are pretty straight runs. Having had that same sump, the original layout had a filter sock holder in that back-left chamber. Looks like you may have reversed the flow with the return pump in that compartment (based on the tubing size)? That might cause you problems as, if I recall correctly, you would need to run a really high level in that large chamber where you skimmer is sitting to push any water to the “return”. This is likely to affect your skimmer function as well as limit your shutdown holding capacity in the sump - making it prone to an overflow if you return pump stops. If the intent was to return from the main chamber (where your skimmer is) you might want to consider changing up the two lines. You will generally want a larger diameter drain line that return line so as not to limit the overall flow. Sorry if I am off base here and misreading the arrangement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 28, 2018 Author Share Posted October 28, 2018 The sump setup does seem werid to me but I think you might be seeing it wrong return pump is hooked to 3/4" tube and drain is 1"-1/4 I could reverse them by switching the bulk heads around should I be draining into that chamber and returning from the other side? I My initial thought was also having return next to skimmer it's going to pump bubbles up and I really appreciate you advice or input Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 28, 2018 Author Share Posted October 28, 2018 Does any one else know the answer to that would the return pump being in that chamber with the skimmer work or no because of bubbles ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 28, 2018 Author Share Posted October 28, 2018 There is a small sponge spot down there for some reason Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albertareef Posted October 29, 2018 Share Posted October 29, 2018 56 minutes ago, kjlife said: Does any one else know the answer to that would the return pump being in that chamber with the skimmer work or no because of bubbles ? Sorry - I was going to take a picture of my exact same sump for you and the return pump is in the same compartment as the skimmer - no problems with bubbles. Typically the drain line will be wider than the return to allow for sufficient flow with just the gravity feed. If I get a chance later I will try and send you a pic - just dealing with some family stuff right now. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 29, 2018 Author Share Posted October 29, 2018 Awesome thanks I'm going to test fill with water probably will switch them though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albertareef Posted October 29, 2018 Share Posted October 29, 2018 39 minutes ago, kjlife said: Awesome thanks I'm going to test fill with water probably will switch them though If you test fill I think you will see what I mean about the chamber levels. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 29, 2018 Author Share Posted October 29, 2018 It does seem high I worry about bubbles going up but I think that's what previous owner told me but I think it makes more sense as a drain chamber would like to see yours for refrence Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 29, 2018 Author Share Posted October 29, 2018 Also seems like now this return pump downs push enough water also lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 29, 2018 Author Share Posted October 29, 2018 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 29, 2018 Author Share Posted October 29, 2018 I also realise now I made the top of the return to high because the shpion break hole makes a terriable peeing sound this is why I'm test filling lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albertareef Posted October 29, 2018 Share Posted October 29, 2018 Here is a pick of my setup with the same style sump (although reversed). Flow is drain on left which then flows to back chamber, across back and into large chamber at front with skimmer and return. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 29, 2018 Author Share Posted October 29, 2018 So the water height doesn't fluctuate in that skimmer chamber ? And no micro bubbles in display I'm going to switch it up that way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjlife Posted October 29, 2018 Author Share Posted October 29, 2018 18 hours ago, albertareef said: Here is a pick of my setup with the same style sump (although reversed). Flow is drain on left which then flows to back chamber, across back and into large chamber at front with skimmer and return. Set up this way makes sense now thanks so much o couldn't seem to figure this sump out lol thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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