What is a Sump ?

[Daetarek]

Hi Guys,

I have seen this thrown around and on tanks etc, just not sure what it does and how it works :(

can someone enlighten me please ?

ta
Rob

[sharn]

well from what i understand you have a hole drilled into your tank at the height you want the water level to be (called an over flow) the water goes out there, down the tubes into the sump, which is normally a spare tank filled with media and other bits and pieces, sometimes heaters too! then a powerhead doing the required LPH pumps water out of the sump and back into the tank and it goes on and on like that. im not too good at explaining things so hopefully someone will give you a more indepth answer if you need it :wink:

most people only use them on large tanks, ones that arent practile to use normal filters with but they are excellent from what ive read!

[tommy110011]

Sumps are good for large flow rates but they are noisy as they are open loop system, meaning the water flow inside the sump is not enclosed and therefore not pressurised, unlike in a cannister filter.

Sumps are very useful for hiding equipment which would otherwise be inside the tank, such as heaters, CO2 etc.

Sumps also increase your total water volume and keep the level in your tank constant as it is the sump that evaporates and not the tank.

[Daetarek]

so useless on a 4ft tank ... but when we get to 6ft its not a bad idea ?

i also heard that they can have something to do with a water change system, whats that when its at home ?

[marg]

Hi Daetark,

I wasa talking to Goldenpigeon about Sumps yesterday and he informed me that he is going to set one up.

G.P. said that he was going to have a talk to Ben about it before he did, as Ben is apparently pretty smart when it comes to these things.

Maybe Ben will notice this and put in his two Bobs worth (perhaps do a diagram and provide types of Media, Pump sizes, Heater and U.V. size, where to drill holes etc. for those of us who are interested).

Also a realistic idea of the costs involved. Some people can afford to lash out - others like me have to budget carefully.

I am interested myself as I would like to set up a small Breeding setup of about 1/2 a dozen 2 foot tanks on a tier sometime in the future(with this type of setup, what is the situation regarding water changes?).

Would also be interested in Bens opinion on this type of setup compared to say 1/2 dozen 2 footers with sponge filters for a Breeding setup?

If I was to do a Sump setup I couldn't do it myself (have chronic shoulder disabilities) but know someone who would be prepared to give it a go if shown how to do it.

Is a Sump setup easy to maintain (the old shoulder problems once again).

I will p.m. Ben and bring this to his attention and we'll see what he has to say.

Regards,

Marg.

[Ringo]

One of the best sumps for discus is an ecosystem. Supplies a consistant amount of nutrients fot the fish and helps reduce algae. The center chamber also provides for a stable pH. For those not familiar with the system, check it out at www.ecosystemaquarium.com.

[ml29]

I thought the ecosystem sumps were for marine tanks :oops: , I'll have to give the link a read. Thanks.

[Proteus]

Tank & sump (usually kept out of sight under the tank)

HUGE filtration area

[discus000]

Speaking of ecosystem sumps,has anyone use this in their freshwater tanks.

I was browsing through the articles from the link and it sounds really interesting.

[Ringo]

I have had one up and running now for 8 months. So far I love it and will be converting my marine tank to one. If I can figure out how to post some pics I will.

[discus000]

That would be good Ringo

What are the advantages over a normal sump setup?

Cheers.

[kswong34]

Hi,

I am from Malaysia.

This is how our sump look like back home.
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b369/CoryFan/sump.jpg

Cheers :wink:

[Dacs]

I have a marine set up, and it is highly unlikely to come across a marine aquarium WITHOUT a sump, basically because you "need" to run a fair bit of auxilary equipment, BUT ALL OF THIS IS DEBATEABLE depending on what type of marine setup you have of course... On mine for example i run this list of gadgets on my 2 1/2 x 2 x 1 1/2 sump...

peristaltic top off (for automatic topping up)
peristaltic dosing (for automatic chemical and kalkwasser dosing)
ozone processor (feeds in via the protein skimmer)
protein skimmer and submersible pump to run it
DSB (deep sand bed) as the name suggest, were anearobic bacteria lives
submersible chiller pump runs from sump to chiller then back to tank
heaters (of course!)
and of course the submersible return pump

This equipment is big and ugly! sump = out of sight! not to mention you can house most of your filtration material there too.

Also inside the sump is a LOT of rock which is home to all the good bacteria

On a marine set up you will find the tank has heaps more water movement and turnover than a typical freshwater, mainly due to corals.
MARINE
8000lph of pumps in the tank
5000lph running thru the tank (via the sump),
TROPICAL
800lph of pumps in the tank (thats just 10% of a marine!)
1500 lph thru the tank (via the canister filter)

Of course you can run sumps in tropical setups, but its nowhere near as essential as is on a marine setup.

my two cents anyway...
Cheers