My Octopus Setup! what do you think?

[mosthated]

This is how I plan on laying everything out and, plumbing it. What do you think? Any suggestion would be GREAT! I am picking the 100gallon tank up tomorrow. I made the sump/wet dry out of a 39 gallon tank, and the refugium will be out of a 29gallon I already have up and running.

 

[DWhatley]

How are you planning to work the fuge overflow into the main tank? We are lazily (primarily because of finances) planning another large tank and I want to do a mud fuge with overflow in hopes of encouraging pods and maybe even shrimp but we haven't dreamed up how to get the water successfully into the larger tank without a mess.

 

[mosthated]

my diy overflow. it take water out of the 100gl to the sump/wetdry and out of the refug to the 100gal.

 

[DWhatley]

I understand the flow out of the 100 gal but I don't understand the water into the 100 gal. How are you plumbing the water from the fuge to the main tank so that it will only go into the tank and not simply over the sides of the fuge?

 

[Thales]

You could also just drill a hole in the 'fuge, use a bulkhead and run pipe or tubing to the main tank.

 

[Paradox]

Having all the return goto the fuge first might be too much flow for it. A fuge works better with slower flow. Perhaps split the return so that some goto the fuge and some goto the main tank?

 

[mosthated]

D. the fuge will be elevated higher then the 100gall. and will have a over flow on it flowing into the 100gal.
Paradox i got that advice somewhere else as well, and i agree.. i am going to put a "T" in the return line with one of those ball vaulve cutoff's on both lines and i will use it to adjust the flow to the fuge.
Thanks for the suggestions.. I got the tank!!! and water cycling! i am going to build the stand for it monday and hopefully find something to dump all that water i got cycling into so i can move the aqurarium. I just couldnt wait to put some water in it! =) anyways.. i will post a picture once i have it all setup.. thanks again..

O! i got a question.. in my fuge, what would you use for substrate? i was thinking miricle mud or fiji mud but someone said crushed argonate would be better for filltering purposes?

 

[DWhatley]

Thales,
How is that mud doing with the nitrates and water clarity in the wunderpus (can't spell soft spot in a baby's head without looking) tank? I have been thinking about trying an overflow fuge with it when we build out a new tank next year since the "ads" claim the water gets better after a year or so.

 

[Thales]

The water is fine, but I see no compelling reason to spend the money for mud - I have gotten the same if not better fuge results with sand.

 

[mosthated]

Well, it is all setup. Not finished! but its up and running. I bought 150lbs of pool filter sand for the big tank, and took out all the live sand i had in my 29gallon tank and added it on top. After plumbing a setup like this for the first time, i learned a few things! one is my outflow line acts like a siphone is i unplug the pump so i have to get a large check valve and install it in the line in case of a power outage. second, i wasnt thinking about it but having the fuge higher then the main tank, when i split the return water line off the pump all the water wants to goto the lower tank. so i had to actully fully open the ball valve to the fuge, and slightly close the one to the main tank just to get a slow flow of water up to the fuge but it is all working great, and next time i am going to buy 20 of ever pvc piece i need and take back what i dont use lol. i think i made like 4 trips to lowes.. thats a 20min drive there and back! lol.. the stand is still unfinished and i will be painting all the exposed pvc black with that krylon h20 paint. still have to make lid's octo proof all the pvc and get a light and some rock, but its running!