This is such an informative series! Within the next month I'm going to set up a nano reef and I've been super nervous bc my knowledge isn't super extensive but your channel has really helped!
My questions: 1. Do you place a top of some sort on top to reduce evaporation? 2. What about filtration? Does the skimmer take care of this or do you still have an HOB up on the main tank? 3. I have a 29 gallon im adding a 10 gal sump to. Would the protein skimmer be able to handle it if its made for 30 gallons? (since it would become 40)
Great video. This is JUST what I was looking for. I will definitely be taking this to heart as I set up my sump. I do have a question though...I want to have ONE sump for FOUR 20 Gallon tanks. How big should the sump be? I am not limited on space.
Not limited on space huh....well, the larger the sump, the more stable your system...but also the larger water volume you have for water changes etc. A nice balance would be half of your display tank volume...40 gallons? That's just a suggestion though. Go with your gut :)
Glad to hear it, I hope it will help you if you take on a similar project! My 20g sump video is even a bit better as I learned from the 10g sump video series.
Ok, well it ultimately depends on what you'd like for turnover through your sump. If you'd like my opinion, anything from 5x-10x turnover in a sump should be just fine. That means you want between 50gph and 100gph flowing through your sump. You'll need to get a return pump that will pump that volume of water up and into your display tank (after accounting for some loss due to height and any angles)...and subsequently you'll want to make sure your overflow can handle 150gph or more. You can always have a larger overflow, it won't hurt anything...too small of an overflow will cause bigtime problems though :) P.S. If you are using my design as your guide, please reference my newer videos about a 20g sump. The design of the baffle is MUCH better and easier. You can apply the same design to a 10g no problem. Hope this helps.
+MrKolossos1 A Ramp Pro Timer? You certainly can, but the lights that come standard with the Biocube don't support dimming. You'd have to have LED installed in order to get the gradual lighting effect.
hi, I'd like u to talk about the exact way a protein scimmer works. so what is happening with the water, and what physical and maybe chemical reactions are goin on.
Congrats! It's a project, but is very rewarding after you have it setup and finished. I've been recommending to folks in the comments to add another baffle before the first one, raised off the bottom of the tank. That forces the water to flow through the first chamber completely.
I'm having a hard time visualizing your suggestion with an additional baffle in the first chamber. Would you please explain a little bit more? Thanks in advance. I've liked all your videos on this particular build. Thank you!
GREAT videos. how to you choose a return pump? i'm worried if i go too many GPH it'll suck more water out of the tank than it's taking in.. or if i go too low on GPH, it won't push out enough water and the tank overflows? how do you choose? thank you very much if you can answer this question.
+injection6930 the flow of water going into your tank does not need to match your outflow. Outflow just needs to be higher! If it are drilling a tank, just make sure your plumbing out off the display tank can move MORE water than your return pump is...well, pumping. A good turnover ratio for a sump is 5-10x as a guide.
What skimmer is that? I’m building a 10 gallon sump and want to make sure I have room for a skimmer, ref, and return section. Any advice on what skimmer to get that will fit? I plan on having a 10 gallon sump for a 20 gallon tank
Macro algae is a great idea! I've already built my sump, turns out it's almost identical to your build so it struck my interest. I have a 55 gal brackish tank and wanted to pull all the hardware out of display. In chamber 2 I want fluidized k1 media, could I get away with live rock and macro algae in my return chamber?
+Matthew Marshall Well, it ultimately depends on the setup of your sump and how much space you have. If you can create some type of barrier (egg crate maybe?) in that third chamber, you can definitely make it work. Just need something to keep the macro-algae from getting sucked into the pump :)
Of course! Any sump is better than no sump...and the bigger the sump, the better. If you have the space to do a 20g sump, go for it, if not, 10g will work just fine.
i have a 3ft tank and i had 2 plastic tubs the bottom one with my heater pump and bio media in and the top one had a sprinkler with a syphon coming down from my tank to mechanical media it poured out of a spout into the bio media got heated up and pumped back into the tank with a 1500lph pump and 2 stop taps to adjust the flow but i could never match the flow so i am getting a small glass tank like this tomorrow and i have glass sheets and a glass cutter to build a setup like this as i need to basically pull everything out and re design what im doing my tanks been sat still for a good month or so ... need to get moving i guess and wheres the mini skimmer from
Do you remember the dimensions of the glass baffles that you got cut? If you do could you tell me? I am working on making a sump and I want mine just like yours. Thank you!
nice sump build. Thinking about getting that skimmer to put into my 10g display tank (Temporarily). Do you think it would be okay in there or does it create too many bubbles?
+TheKJV BibleAdvocate To be honest...too many bubbles. Once it was up and running for a while the bubble production definitely curbed off a bit, but it's still enough that it would be very noticeable in the display. If it's temporary though and you don't mind it, it won't hurt anything.
Aw I thought that would be the case.. I guess I'll hold off on it for now. Just got an aquaclear and going to run some phosguard to keep the phosphates down. Hopefully that does the trick. And cleans up the tank a bit more because the top fin filter sucks.
I want to build a 10G sump just like yours for my 36gallon freshwater tank. I was wondering what kind of Pump motor would i need. Also, where did u get the glass?
+AuSZhao I got the glass from a local glass shop. Call around because you'll get a wide variety of prices, even though you'd think they would all be pretty comparable. In terms of a pump, there are multiple factors that come into play, most important the distance the water will be travelling from the sump to the display tank, and also how many elbows, angles, etc. you'll have in your piping.
will you be making another video of everything put together and how to do the plumbing from the return chamber to the overflow box? I'm using your sump method in a 10G for my 29G reef tank and I'm having trouble figuring out how do the plumbing! awesome channel btw, huge help!
+robbbcruzzz Well, ultimately it depends on what size sump you have and where your display tank is located in relation to your sump. You going with a 10 gallon sump build?
Protein skimmer is just a piece of equipment you put INTO the sump. I used it as a gauge for how big to make the first chamber because I wanted to make sure it would fit.
+edgar17vargas It's still setup on my 10 gallon nano reef and working great. All of my corals are thriving (after a brief "holy crap this is a lot of light" break in time)!
+jerry ebner Not at all... And not a requirement at all either. Just buy some chaeto and a light. I talk about a great inexpensive light option in the refugium video.
+Michael Wescott Well, essentially it cuts down on the microbubbles that get wicked into your return pump and pushed into your aquarium. Honestly, unless you want a pristine display tank, they aren't that big of a deal. My upcoming 20g sump build simplifies things a bit.
This is such an informative series! Within the next month I'm going to set up a nano reef and I've been super nervous bc my knowledge isn't super extensive but your channel has really helped!
I'm glad to hear it! You can definitely do it, good luck!
A sub is a waist of money. For most. As electric has went up NO matter or what. A jewl inside container. Is the best
you made it easy for beginners like me. thanks dude!
Glad to hear it...thank you for checking it out!
Plus am not going to buy a glass container gust to make my tank feel more expensive.even so i can afford. But that is a waist of time. Being truthful.
Hi you have a very informative video series I made a copy of your sump for my 15 gallon reef tank setup thanks information thumbs up
Glad I was able to help. Hope you noticed my note about the baffle setup between chamber 1 and 2!
@@TheFishTankGuy i did take notice lol im going to to build a trigger system sump for my 250
My questions:
1. Do you place a top of some sort on top to reduce evaporation?
2. What about filtration? Does the skimmer take care of this or do you still have an HOB up on the main tank?
3. I have a 29 gallon im adding a 10 gal sump to. Would the protein skimmer be able to handle it if its made for 30 gallons? (since it would become 40)
This is identical to what I want to do. Very helpful
Glad to hear it!
Great video. This is JUST what I was looking for. I will definitely be taking this to heart as I set up my sump. I do have a question though...I want to have ONE sump for FOUR 20 Gallon tanks. How big should the sump be? I am not limited on space.
Not limited on space huh....well, the larger the sump, the more stable your system...but also the larger water volume you have for water changes etc. A nice balance would be half of your display tank volume...40 gallons? That's just a suggestion though. Go with your gut :)
very good. well presented. learned a lot.
Glad to hear it, I hope it will help you if you take on a similar project! My 20g sump video is even a bit better as I learned from the 10g sump video series.
How do you calculate the pump and overflow size you need ...like let’s say I have a 29 gallon what would my pump and return be
Good question, not a straight forward answer. I'm assuming you have a sump? How big is your sump? Is it 29g or a different size?
The Fish Tank Guy I’m planning on making a tank for my 29 gallon out of a 10 gallon
Ok, well it ultimately depends on what you'd like for turnover through your sump. If you'd like my opinion, anything from 5x-10x turnover in a sump should be just fine. That means you want between 50gph and 100gph flowing through your sump. You'll need to get a return pump that will pump that volume of water up and into your display tank (after accounting for some loss due to height and any angles)...and subsequently you'll want to make sure your overflow can handle 150gph or more. You can always have a larger overflow, it won't hurt anything...too small of an overflow will cause bigtime problems though :)
P.S. If you are using my design as your guide, please reference my newer videos about a 20g sump. The design of the baffle is MUCH better and easier. You can apply the same design to a 10g no problem. Hope this helps.
The Fish Tank Guy and would your over flow and return pump match or should one lag a little
awesome videos....I have a 29g biocube, and I was wondering if I could use a rump pro timer for my lighting?
+MrKolossos1 A Ramp Pro Timer? You certainly can, but the lights that come standard with the Biocube don't support dimming. You'd have to have LED installed in order to get the gradual lighting effect.
hi, I'd like u to talk about the exact way a protein scimmer works. so what is happening with the water, and what physical and maybe chemical reactions are goin on.
thanks for the info dude!! thanks to you im building my own
Congrats! It's a project, but is very rewarding after you have it setup and finished. I've been recommending to folks in the comments to add another baffle before the first one, raised off the bottom of the tank. That forces the water to flow through the first chamber completely.
I'm having a hard time visualizing your suggestion with an additional baffle in the first chamber. Would you please explain a little bit more? Thanks in advance. I've liked all your videos on this particular build. Thank you!
Here's a sub-par Paint drawing to help you visualize, hope this helps!
twitter.com/RealFishTankGuy/status/7818524
GREAT videos. how to you choose a return pump? i'm worried if i go too many GPH it'll suck more water out of the tank than it's taking in.. or if i go too low on GPH, it won't push out enough water and the tank overflows? how do you choose? thank you very much if you can answer this question.
+injection6930 the flow of water going into your tank does not need to match your outflow. Outflow just needs to be higher! If it are drilling a tank, just make sure your plumbing out off the display tank can move MORE water than your return pump is...well, pumping. A good turnover ratio for a sump is 5-10x as a guide.
What skimmer is that? I’m building a 10 gallon sump and want to make sure I have room for a skimmer, ref, and return section. Any advice on what skimmer to get that will fit? I plan on having a 10 gallon sump for a 20 gallon tank
I would add another baffle right after the first one so the water would flow up through the refill instead of over/across.
Macro algae is a great idea! I've already built my sump, turns out it's almost identical to your build so it struck my interest. I have a 55 gal brackish tank and wanted to pull all the hardware out of display. In chamber 2 I want fluidized k1 media, could I get away with live rock and macro algae in my return chamber?
+Matthew Marshall Well, it ultimately depends on the setup of your sump and how much space you have. If you can create some type of barrier (egg crate maybe?) in that third chamber, you can definitely make it work. Just need something to keep the macro-algae from getting sucked into the pump :)
Nice what kind of pump are you using ? GPH on the pump
wow.. great I was searching for this...
Glad to hear it, good luck man!
Great vid bro. Love it
Would a ten gallon work for a 60 gallon?
Of course! Any sump is better than no sump...and the bigger the sump, the better. If you have the space to do a 20g sump, go for it, if not, 10g will work just fine.
i have a 3ft tank and i had 2 plastic tubs the bottom one with my heater pump and bio media in and the top one had a sprinkler with a syphon coming down from my tank to mechanical media it poured out of a spout into the bio media got heated up and pumped back into the tank with a 1500lph pump and 2 stop taps to adjust the flow but i could never match the flow so i am getting a small glass tank like this tomorrow and i have glass sheets and a glass cutter to build a setup like this as i need to basically pull everything out and re design what im doing my tanks been sat still for a good month or so ... need to get moving i guess and wheres the mini skimmer from
enjoying your videos !!!
I'm glad...I appreciate you taking the time to watch!
Do you remember the dimensions of the glass baffles that you got cut? If you do could you tell me? I am working on making a sump and I want mine just like yours. Thank you!
What’s brand and size of the skimmer that you used in this video and how many gallon for your return pump ?
nice sump build. Thinking about getting that skimmer to put into my 10g display tank (Temporarily). Do you think it would be okay in there or does it create too many bubbles?
+TheKJV BibleAdvocate To be honest...too many bubbles. Once it was up and running for a while the bubble production definitely curbed off a bit, but it's still enough that it would be very noticeable in the display. If it's temporary though and you don't mind it, it won't hurt anything.
Aw I thought that would be the case.. I guess I'll hold off on it for now. Just got an aquaclear and going to run some phosguard to keep the phosphates down. Hopefully that does the trick. And cleans up the tank a bit more because the top fin filter sucks.
I want to build a 10G sump just like yours for my 36gallon freshwater tank. I was wondering what kind of Pump motor would i need. Also, where did u get the glass?
+AuSZhao I got the glass from a local glass shop. Call around because you'll get a wide variety of prices, even though you'd think they would all be pretty comparable. In terms of a pump, there are multiple factors that come into play, most important the distance the water will be travelling from the sump to the display tank, and also how many elbows, angles, etc. you'll have in your piping.
quick question- in the first chamber with the protein skimmer, are you going to add a mechanical filtration device or just purigen/chemi pure elite?
Great question and a definite oversight when I made this video! I do have a filter sock in the first chamber :-)
will you be making another video of everything put together and how to do the plumbing from the return chamber to the overflow box? I'm using your sump method in a 10G for my 29G reef tank and I'm having trouble figuring out how do the plumbing! awesome channel btw, huge help!
I am in the process of creating this.
Please make note of my adjustments... I have a twenty gallon build that is a more effective and easier to build sump design. Good luck!
Awesome video...
+Mike Ramos Thank you sir!
Is protein skimmer required for fresh water aquarium too?
Pretty good video, guy.
+NYCity Cichlids Thank you sir!
how many GPH is your return pump in the 3rd chamber ?? im taking notes to build my own soon..
+robbbcruzzz Well, ultimately it depends on what size sump you have and where your display tank is located in relation to your sump. You going with a 10 gallon sump build?
well im starting a 10 gallon nano reef.. that question was for a buddy of mine.. i will comment on some of your 10 g nano reef vids..
thanx for replying..
How do you make one without a protean skimmer
Protein skimmer is just a piece of equipment you put INTO the sump. I used it as a gauge for how big to make the first chamber because I wanted to make sure it would fit.
what ever happened to the ebay full spectrum light
+edgar17vargas It's still setup on my 10 gallon nano reef and working great. All of my corals are thriving (after a brief "holy crap this is a lot of light" break in time)!
what brand is your protein skimmer?
From where I can buy this product. ..
Where can you buy a return pump?
I am new to the hobby and microalgae went over my head lol. Not too hard to setup? in the second compartment
+jerry ebner Not at all... And not a requirement at all either. Just buy some chaeto and a light. I talk about a great inexpensive light option in the refugium video.
for those wondering if you need protein skimmer or not..
if you have freshwater aquarium you dont need this
Why is a bubble trap important?
+Michael Wescott Well, essentially it cuts down on the microbubbles that get wicked into your return pump and pushed into your aquarium. Honestly, unless you want a pristine display tank, they aren't that big of a deal. My upcoming 20g sump build simplifies things a bit.
i have a10 gallons tank and i want to build a sump for my 55 gallons tank...i have a octopus 100 skimmer..you tink that will work..
It's all about the foot print in the sump. I think it could work, you just need to design your chambers accordingly.
hows the skimmer
This skimmer is great, it works really well!
Your Sump is Wrong
you talk a lot!!!!!!
+pedram rayan Yep, I know!
+The Fish Tank Guy that isn't a bad thing though. I meant no offense 😉