catholicteacher Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 Sorry if I am becoming a pain, I just want to get a good setup. I am seeking advice on where to go from here: I have the 55 setup as a reef right now, I have a wet/dry under it that I have taken the bioballs out of and turned into a sump. I am thinking of taking my 35 and turning it into a refugium, running the 55 to the sump to the 35 then back over to the 55. Is this a good idea or no? I am assuming the sump is just overkill and will be needless to the setup but I figure since it is already there I might as well use it. Any thoughts? Thanks again for all the help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowman Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 On my system, I have a dedicated line that goes from the tank to the refugium. The refugium then flows into the sump. That simplifies things and there is no chance of anything flooding if the power goes out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoughPat Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 Hey, if you got it, flaunt it! The added volume of the sump will only help keep things more stable. I hate tanks without sumps. I feel like you end up with more "junk" in the tank (heaters, probes, etc.). Actually, now that I re-read your post, I'm not sure exactly what you mean. Where does the water go? From the 55 to the 35 to the sump, back up to the 55? You might be asking for a flood in there somewhere.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smann Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 Agree more is always better, plus if you set it up behind you will have easier access for water chg, macro algae, etc. however you do it make sure it tiers down to a final return chamber, then do some test, shut the pumps off to test that it will contain the drawdown Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
undrtkr_00 Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 I'm not sure I followed the flow, but if you only have one return pump going and the rest of the flow dictated by gravity/overflows, you should be OK. If you are trying to get more than one pump to match flows, it will be difficult, and could be disastrous. My $0.02 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salty419 Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 This sound like my setup on my 125 gallon reef and it works great and you can all ways throw a cool fish in there thats not ok for the display its like haveing two tanks in one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jreese Posted March 5, 2009 Share Posted March 5, 2009 You can of course run the 55 and the 35 side by side each with their own overflow to the single sump, and then T your return to feed each tank provided that you are satisfied with each tanks turn over volume with your present sump return pump. My .02 cents Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catholicteacher Posted March 6, 2009 Author Share Posted March 6, 2009 I really like the idea of having the 35 display refugium with a pair of fish in it or something larger with life other than microscopic animals. I am going to be using the help of the Man, the Legend=John Manrow to get this up and running so I am sure it will be awesome, I will update when it gets all set up. Thanks again for all the advice guys, youre awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowman Posted March 6, 2009 Share Posted March 6, 2009 I like to keep pipefish in my refugium once it is established. The dragon faced ones are really cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andy Posted March 6, 2009 Share Posted March 6, 2009 Wouldn't the pipefish chow down on your pods, making the refugium redundant? I mean, that's cool if you just want to keep pipefish but seems to eliminate the whole point of having a refugium in the first place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catholicteacher Posted March 6, 2009 Author Share Posted March 6, 2009 What fish would work to put in there that wouldnt deplete the pod population? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowman Posted March 6, 2009 Share Posted March 6, 2009 I have a refugium for nutrient export, so the pipefish are bonus. As long as the macros grow, so do the pods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krux Posted March 6, 2009 Share Posted March 6, 2009 I would personally do as mentioned earlier, run them both as tanks into one sump, put the macro in the sump with a cheap light, and use the 35 for a frag/grow out/study tank with a couple of fish that would be hard to keep in a main tank, like hawkfish that eat crustaceans for example or the above mentioned pipefish that don't appreciate a lot of activity and flow. That would open up room to study things like growth rate and shape under different flow and lighting, and allow you to get in and out without disturbing the reef. All you would need for this to work is a return pump for the 35, and a light fixture for it appropriate for whatever will grow in it. You get to increase overall volume, and create a whole other setup to study the morphology with your students with minimal increase in equipment. If you choose to go this route i may have an extra mag pump, i think it is a 5 or 7, that you can have to help facilitate the setup. **edit** just noticed this was for your home setup... i have no opinion on that, do what looks best to you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
albertareef Posted March 6, 2009 Share Posted March 6, 2009 I would personally do as mentioned earlier' date=' run them both as tanks into one sump, put the macro in the sump with a cheap light, and use the 35 for a frag/grow out/study tank with a couple of fish that would be hard to keep in a main tank...[/quote'] I have always wanted to try this as well as there are some fish, coral, and inverts that just won't work in the "big" tank but I would love to keep - plus, you have the added stability of the extra volume that you wouldn't normally get with a stand alone small tank. As mentioned previously, one caveat would be making sure you sump/refegium would be scaled correctly for the combined systems. Cool idea in my mind... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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