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BuiltWithNOF

The sump/filter was built from a kit purchased on ebay from usa aquarium (a.k.a. Bill Heil).  The portrayal of the EcoSystem sump kit on ebay was somewhat misleading, but in the end, it built up into an entirely serviceable filter. The kit consisted of cut and drilled pieces of acrylic, a bare minimum of Weldon #4 and #16, a booklet of instructions, and two pieces of PVC intended to function as bulkheads. I replaced the faux bulkheads with the real thing and ended up drilling a hole for a second bulkhead when I decided to add a second return pump after doing a head-loss calculation on a single pump. The acrylic is probably a bit thin for the size of the sump (44 gallons if filled to the brim), but the sides only bow very slightly when full.  The last time I built a sump, I used donated acrylic that I had a local plastics shop cut to my specs.  Having priced acrylic sheets, I might have saved a bit doing the project myself, but not much.

The basic box is glued together. No, the liquid is not Weldon #4. It is Brew #1. By the way, I built this on a sheet of melamine-sheathed particle board, which was later used in the construction of countertop in the equipment room. Melamine is impervious to the solvents in Weldon cements.

The partitions are in place. The Ecosystem filter has 3 sections. The returns from the tank overflow are plumbed into the first section, which contains submersed bioballs. This provides some gross particulate filtering and breaks up the diffuses the flow of water, aiding in the elimination of bubbles. The second compartment contains the EcoSystem mud bed, which performs much the same function as a deep sand bed [my interpretation]. After going through some baffles and more bioballs, the water flows into the last compartment, from which water is pumped back into the tank.

All the planning in the world and i only had about 1/2” to spare.  The pump just clears the backsplash on the shelf and only because I reversed the bulkhead and put the threaded side in the sump.

The chiller coil and heaters are in the last compartment of the sump, where they are accessible and sit directly in a high flow of water.

The tank is plumbed with a combination of spa-flex and schedule 40 PVC.  The unions and ball valves are from Savko.  The AGA 210 gallon tank has a 1” drain and a 3/4” return in each overflow. The drains can handle about 1200 gph.  Dual Gen-X PCX-40 pumps bring water back to the tank from the sump. The pumps are throttled back using ball valves because the combined output is more than the overflows can handle. A PVC Tee on each return provides the capability to divert some of the water for future use. One will eventually supply circulation to a frag growout tank.

This is the view from the tank side. The Brute container is for makeup water. Topoff is controlled by a Tunze Osmolator.

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