New guy with first saltwater tank (1 Viewer)

[bryanearlmitchell]

Greetings everyone!

I've been in the aquarium hobby for about 10 years, but never had a saltwater tank. After moving into a new home, I started browsing for used tank deals. I ended up getting a great deal on a 105 gallon acrylic aquarium drilled with an overflow. Over the last few weeks I have slowly acquired additional equipment.
https://imgur.com/4BscqAd

My current list includes:
-Apex classic controller
-15 gallon acrylic sump
-return pump
-Reef octopus classic skimmer
-Reef breeders Photon V1 24" LED x2
-Sump plumbing

This past weekend I bleached my rock and this week I have it soaking in RO/DI with a power head. This weekend I plan on adding a heater and completing a full water change to start to cook the rocks until I have the tank plumbed. Since I am almost ready to plumb the sump I started thinking about my tank drain. Right now I have a single 1" drain with an odd fitting on it in the overflow. Can anyone tell me if this grated piping will work well in the overflow? I'm primarily concerned with noise and now is the time to make a change.
https://imgur.com/NkdAKu2

As I set this tank up I will update with pictures. Nice to meet you and looking forward to your thoughts!

 

[Miller]

Welcome to the forum and hobby! I suck at plumbing so can't help you there.

 

[heavy]

Hi! Cute tank! I am cooking rock right now, too, so I can have more aquascape options (read: space for shrooms and shadows) in my tank. I'm sure someone can help you with plumbing.

 

[DeepBlueSomething]

Welcome to MARSH! Great to have you here and sharing your build. Great looking tank -- and floors!

I am not that familiar with your specific set-up but I would think that with that pipe noise won't be an issue as long as you run a siphon. That would require the drain line to be submerged below the water level in the sump by an inch or so. My overflow runs out the back (not bottom) and so I have some noise if there is insufficient water volume above the drain and there is a 'sucking sound' as air is drawn in. I don't have much experience with flows through the bottom, but assume the same principles apply. Someone here will no for sure!

 

[Clownfish Chris]

For that setup, I would recommend a durso overflow. They are easy and very quiet.https://www.dursostandpipes.com/

 

[webster1234]

Hey there and welcome. You might need to do a little math but a 15 gallon sump seems a little small for a 105 gallon tank. I'm thinking you will have a skimmer, possibly a return pump, maybe a reactor, and some other things in there. Make sure than when your tank shuts off and the overflow box drains down, that you sump is large enough to handle the extra water. Some people don't consider that and end up with a mess on the floor.

 

[sneezebeetle]

Welcome to MARSH!

+1 on above comments!

I have the drain line on my tank about an inch under the water sump water level, definately cuts back on the noice.

I also have the durso drain on my other tank and it is super easy. Great video!

Definately check your sump size! Couldn't agree more with James on the sump. You need to figure your max fill line on your sump to help ensure that in the event of rtn pump failure you have enough space in your sump to catch extra water until your tank drains down below level.

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[SantaMonicaHelp]

Welcome to the forum!

-Kamran

 

[bryanearlmitchell]

Thanks for a great response everyone. In my original post I said I have a 15 gallon sump. This is incorrect and the total volume for my current sump is just under 20 gallons. I do agree I need to plan for a return pump failure. My overflow holds about 5 gallons which I will just be able to contain.
https://imgur.com/cu1zM8p

I was very close to buying a new sump because I dislike the layout of the one I got with the Tank. The largest sump that will fit into my stand is a 28x13x16. The best option I saw was the Trigger Systems Crystal sump 30 (https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/crystal-sump-30-trigger-systems.html). The planted tank enthusiast in me likes the idea of a refugium. I would have pulled the trigger on this, but if I did so I would need to also buy a submersible return pump. The plumbing I will install is designed to be able to swap to a larger sump system when I am ready.

I had seen the Durso design before, but after thinking about the sump size I agree with you all I should make one. It will serve the dual purpose of quieting the system and reducing the volume that would drain into my sump for a failure.

 

[DeepBlueSomething]

Great information from the Marsh members!

Also, future planning is a great consideration as well.

 

[Paul Buie]

Was that a grated standpipe drain I saw? If it is you may not want that. Let me know if that is correct. Welcome to saltwater!

 

[Paul Buie]

If that’s the return drain the natural water level (depending on return rate) will be deep in that overflow box and a waterfall like noise will be created if the water level is down there. Look to create a drain type where the water level in the box is 1-2 inches from the top when draining. There are drain types that keep the water level higher than the intake of the standpipe. That’s what you want.

 

[bryanearlmitchell]

Greetings everyone, hope your holiday was great.

I've been working hard to make progress on this tank and I'm glad you all sent me down the right path. Based on your feedback the grated drain I had was going to cause noise. I have purchased plumbing to make a 1 1/4" Durso standpipe.

It took awhile to finish repainting the stand, but I finally have the whole tank back inside of the house. Originally I was going to use the sump/pump I had, but a fellow Marsh member happened to have a used Crystal Sump 30. This was the absolute largest sump I could fit in the stand so I feel pretty good about it. The Eheim 1262 submersible pump is on the way and I plan to use a Home Depot hanging lamp fixture with a 24 watt LED red/blue grow light in the refugium.

My next step is installing all of the sump plumbing and mounting my Apex. I'm going to need to either build a box or find a cheap alternative. More to come soon so stay tuned. Have a great one!

 

[oneasianguy]

Welcome to the hobby. I only did plumb once for my saltwater tank. So won't be able to help on this issue.

 

[DeepBlueSomething]

Bryan
Sounds like you are off and running. As much as I was in a hurry to get past the planning stage and get my tank wet--I actually enjoyed that time quite a bit. Have fun and keep the questions coming!

 

[bryanearlmitchell]

Since my last post I installed my Apex, plumbed my sump, filled the tank and started my cycle. I'm now 3 weeks into the cycle and have had a pretty steady 2 PPM Ammonia, but 0 nitrate/nitrate. Hoping to see those soon, stabilize and then add a small clean up crew when they drop down.

Most recent pictures can be found here: https://imgur.com/a/KLupe

Happy New Year!

 

[sneezebeetle]

Sounds like you've been busy!

Happy New Year!

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