New Build, 150 gallon w/ Sump

Lookin' good!

Nice work Nick.  You are quite the sump builder!

How's the tank going?

Very well.  Thanks for asking.  Biggest issue was the rapid rate of water evaporation due to surface agitation in the sump and the tank itself.  I was adding 5 gallons every 5-6 days.  I built some custom lids for the sump so that is taken care of.  And I have some make-shift lids for the tank to cut back on the evaporation for now.  Need more acrylic sheets to finish the job.

Another issue is having to switch out filter socks.  Poor me, right?  I have 50 and 100 micron socks, so part of that is my fault for wanting clear water--which I do have.  But I need to rinse out and change socks more often than I'd like to. 

 

If you go back to the early parts of the build, I Tee'd the supply side of the pump and added a valve.  The thought being that I could vacc the sand directly into the sump (socks) and hook up a drain line to the nipple on the Tee to keep draining the sump.  It drains just fine but due to the hole placement on the baffles, it doesn't work as I originally thought it out.  The sump has to be high enough to fill the last chamber in the sump.  But it works well enough to do a quick ~30 gallon water change so not a total waste.

I'm also getting a few more fish for the tank this weekend.  

Nick - thanks for sharing this build process with us. Have you thought about switching out the felt filter socks with mesh bag filter socks that can be rinsed and reused for a much longer timeframe? This would minimize the expense of the socks and what you will lose in water clarity by switching to the 200 micron mesh sock can be mostly made up by adding batting to the sock or another chamber for polishing. Additionally the mesh bag will also provide a place to occasionally add carbon etc. for short term applications (if and when appropriate). Good luck!

- Bruce

I've been using a sponge filter insert lakely, letting the water trickle through it.   When I want to clean it out, I just walk over to my sink and squeeze out the water and most of the detritus exits into the sink with the water.  I don't wash it with fresh water though (it is a brackish tank) because I don't want to kill the remaining bacteria in the sponge.  I figure it's part of my biological filtration.  Anyway, it's an easy process.  Maybe there is some way to incorporate that into your system and still use the socks, by using the sponge to catch the bigger stuff, then your sock won't clog as fast?

Thanks Bruce/Kevin--good suggestions.

I have been using the felt socks because I had a bunch of new, hand-me-downs so the cost was right.  Being as thick as they are, and with only a 5" opening it is time consuming and difficult to invert and rinse.  But switching to mesh may be the way to go.  There really isn't anything in the way of a prefilter other than the bulkhead strainers in the tank and some enkamat on the sock tray to disperse the falling water from the overflows.  That leads to uneaten pellets and shredded plants clogging the socks quickly.

 

I do have 2 large sponge filters in the middle of the sump still.  For chemical removal, I have a Fluval 207? hooked up that I keep loaded with carbon and Phosban.  But I like the idea of potentially adding it to a mesh sock to reduce the need for an extra piece of equipment.  

 

Although years away, I look forward to converting this back to a native tank.  

I do have 2 large sponge filters in the middle of the sump 

 

Hmmm, that's a good idea...will apply that to my tank as well.

 

Hmmm, that's a good idea...will apply that to my tank as well.

The reason they are still in there is that I was using them to seed the bioballs in the same chamber.  I'm setting up a 10gal in my daughters room this weekend and will poach one.  I'll likely remove the other one as well.  Then, I'll put airstones on the lines to aid in beneficial bacteria growth in the bioball chamber.