temperhead Posted April 13, 2009 Share Posted April 13, 2009 hello, i just got a vertex in-100 skimmer and a cpr 300 gph overflow for my 55 gallon, the largest thing i can get under the stand for a sump is a 6 gallon sterelite plastic tub. i tryed the a 10 gallon tank and it wont work even if i take the center brace out of the stand. the skimmer and return pump will fit, but i cant do baffles...the other option is doing 2- 6 gallon sterilite tubes some how linked together and using one for the skimmer and one for the return? i just need space for the skimmer and return pump, i am not trying to do a fuge or any thing fancy. so my ? is as long as the skimmer fits will this very small sump work? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
temperhead Posted April 16, 2009 Author Share Posted April 16, 2009 any one? i want some feed back from any one with a small sump on a 55 gallon..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsoz Posted April 16, 2009 Share Posted April 16, 2009 Sump size is only important for 2 things... #1 if the system shuts down, is there enough holding capacity to take all the water that will go into it (plumbing volume and siphon from tank). #2 Is there enough water in the sump so it is not affected by evaporation? When the evaporation occurs, it will affect the sump the most. Will water loss cause your pumps to start sucking air (microbubbles) or go dry (burn out)? I have seen some people with really small sumps, they just need to make sure that they stay full and water topped off enough. dsoz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lowman Posted April 16, 2009 Share Posted April 16, 2009 Can you do a sump alongside of your tank in a cabinet? You may get a bigger sump if you try that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
undrtkr_00 Posted April 17, 2009 Share Posted April 17, 2009 A larger sump also adds to your total water volume, helping stability. Another consideration is what you are trying to accomplish with the sump - is it big enough to hold your skimmer, grow algae, or whatever else you want to do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted April 17, 2009 Share Posted April 17, 2009 You could have a narrow long one made from acrylic. You could also use bulkheads to connect 2 of those containers, but because of their thin walls they are pretty flimsy and this might not be the best choice. A small sump is fine if you can work with it. I have a skimmer and heater in my sump and my auto topoff runs into it as well. But thats all i use it for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
temperhead Posted April 19, 2009 Author Share Posted April 19, 2009 thanks for the input thanks for the input guys, its just for the skimmer, but what about not having baffles? any baffle-less sumps out there.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsoz Posted April 19, 2009 Share Posted April 19, 2009 The sump on my small tank (40b with a 40b sump/refugium) does not have baffles. The drain is on one end, and the return pump is on the other, so there is almost 3 feet in between. Not a lot of bubbles go that far. What I have is more of a large refugium. All the sand is down there, and most of the LR. I am going to go for the uncluttered look in the display so I can easily remove anemones for propagation (ie cutting them in half). I had to remove the mother anemone out of one rock, and it was a very unnerving experience, and took more than an hour. I had to bust about 1/3 of the rock off to get it out. After I split the anemone the first time, one of the clones started to crawl inside a cave of a different piece of rock... Needles to say, I am only putting rock in the display that is rather smooth, and no big holes... dsoz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted April 20, 2009 Share Posted April 20, 2009 Baffles are mostly to eliminate any microbubbles. I only have 1 baffle and i don't really need it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wanareef Posted April 22, 2009 Share Posted April 22, 2009 Check out the TOTM on RC, his sump is pretty small Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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