# MAKE YOUR OWN SUMP SYSTEM



## Guest (Jan 29, 2004)

okay, i was asked to start a post because of a reply i made in the buy/sell forum. maybe this can help someone save some money. basically what i did was buy all my equipment from "Target"....except for the pump and overflow box (cause my tank isnt pre-drilled for a sump system).

First i bought a over flow box big enough for a 125gal tank. Flowing about 600gph. and i bought a Rio 2500 powerhead(748gph). The outlet from the overflow box was a 1.25" connection . and the discharge on the Rio powerhead fitting was a 3/4" i think. either way, just take the fittings to a place that sells rubber tubing to get the right size. From "target" i bought a small "sterilite" three drawer organizer and cut a hole in it big enough to fit the 1 1/4" elbow that is connected to the overflows 1 3/4" tubing. the water then flows into the first drawer that has some foam and cotton-nylon batting (you can get this very cheap at any fabric store) in it to trap debris. the first drawer has a bunch of small holes drilled in it so the water flows through the foam and cotton batting into the second drawer. in the second drawer i have 2 nylon bags that hold my activated carbon and ive also got bioballs in it as well. you could pull the third drawer out and let the water flow into it an also have some kind of subtrate or ph balancer if you want. ill probably utilize the third drawer when i use the system for a saltwater tank. all this equipment sits in a rubbermaid underbed storage box that is 76.8quarts (19.2gal.) i still need to get a bunch of "bioballs" for the sump area for more bio-filtration....you could also just use something like "Legos"....or anything with a lot of surface area.....

i hope this has helps at least one person....im sure that someone else could take this idea and make it even better. theres a lot of smart people on this site...


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## tecknik (Jul 18, 2003)

I was actually just reading about this same setup, http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/diy_wet_dry.php Cheap, but highly effective.


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## Guest (Jan 29, 2004)

heres the first drawer with the foam on the nylon batting for the mechanical filtration....


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## Guest (Jan 29, 2004)

first drawer again...


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## Guest (Jan 29, 2004)

again


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## mr_meanor (Nov 5, 2003)

I did the same thing in my salt setup excpet I didn't use the drawers I just used one container, very cool idea, I will indeed borrow that idea, good stuff


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## Guest (Jan 29, 2004)

second drawer...bags with activated carbon for chemical filtration. i just tried some stuff that is a mixture of carbon and zeolite granules to absorb ammonia. also, some bioballs are there too for bio filtration.....


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## Guest (Jan 29, 2004)

the tank is to the left. it would be under the tank but i made it after the tank was set up so....


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## Guest (Jan 29, 2004)

the over flow box


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## Guest (Jan 29, 2004)

last pic. the rio pumps are cool cause you just set em in the sump and your good to go.

PS the string is tied around the sump to keep the sides from bowing out....hehe


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## Sir Nathan XXI (Jan 29, 2003)

you need alot more bio balls man


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## sweet lu (Oct 3, 2003)

not really if the sides of the containers are rough then the bacteirs can stick to that

i like the idea but i think that adding a 3rd door and put in some bio-balls and some ceramic tubes


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## Sir Nathan XXI (Jan 29, 2003)

sweet lu said:


> not really if the sides of the containers are rough then the bacteirs can stick to that
> 
> i like the idea but i think that adding a 3rd door and put in some bio-balls and some ceramic tubes


 one gallon of bio balls per 7g-15g of tank or something like that is what you are supposed to use. it looks like he might have 20 bio balls.

I use a new material called cell pore which has incredibelly high surface area per volume which basically means it doesnt take much of it to handle a tank. If intrested contact me and I can hook you up with some for a good price


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## Guest (Jan 29, 2004)

there is a third drawer, i just havent utilized it yet. and i am getting more bioballs.


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## ViBE (Jul 22, 2003)

YO MAN! That is KICK ASS! Nice job. Will save this thread for future ref. Good work


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

This is the best thread made!








Thanks for posting this man!

this should be pinned!


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## Guest (Jan 30, 2004)

gratis rigor rhom.....did it just for you. hope your have a good experience with your set up.


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## khuzhong (Apr 11, 2003)

ha.. thats pretty nifty pdaddy.


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## boxer (Sep 11, 2003)

very nice, where do they sell overflow boxes? i never looked for em. i doubt i can find a place to that will fit my tubings


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## jovons (Jul 28, 2003)

Sir Nathan XXI said:


> I use a new material called cell pore which has incredibelly high surface area per volume which basically means it doesnt take much of it to handle a tank. If intrested contact me and I can hook you up with some for a good price


 yup, cell pore is good. i can testify to that. i bought two cell pore bio cartridges for each of my pinguine 330's and it's has been very nice...

try it... they're a lot cheaper...


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## rbP NUT (Dec 2, 2003)

yes definately the way to go in the future


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

I just went and bought all of the tuperware parts. and I am waiting for an overflow to arrive. I already have a powerhead. I cant wait!


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## Guest (Jan 31, 2004)

i actually got my overflow box from my local fish guy for only 45 bucks! i did give him 3 pacus and an oscar a while back. but i dont give a poo about those fish. my wife liked them hehehe.

for BOXER....you can order them from HERE

but id look locally to save on shipping







<----i love that little guy!


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## nitrofish (Jan 14, 2003)

I heard that chopped up drinking straws will work well as a substitute for bioballs


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

What is the best powerhead to get for a 125 gal tank??? I have a 840 gph is that too much?!?! thanks in advanced man!


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

I have this setup on my 180g tank also, works great. Check out pfish saved topics for more info on it.


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

draws


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

2nd draw, filter fuzz


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

bioballs


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

another pic


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

ammo chips(these are no longer in it, i replaced them with lava rock


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

another draw with more bioballs


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

teh thing i like about it is that its easy to clean, dont even have to stop it


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

pumps on the right(2)


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

filter pad/foam i use


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

overflow box


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## FuZZy (Apr 18, 2003)

Very nice work. Im thinking about making one for my 55.


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

Oh wow... lava rock is a hell of a good idea!









I am using different types of sponges and some cotton that i got at walmart for $2.50. It was a good price.

I just dont know what to use for bioballs. Im thinking maybe that lavarock or even gravel or sand with a netted bottom.

what do you guys suggest?


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## Guest (Feb 3, 2004)

ive head sir nathan...aka supernate...suggest legos once before.
but ive also considered lava rock also. it seems like a good idea because of how porus it is....


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## nitrofish (Jan 14, 2003)

piranhadaddy said:


> ive head sir nathan...aka supernate...suggest legos once before.
> but ive also considered lava rock also. it seems like a good idea because of how porus it is....


 I have never done it, but i would try lava rock over lego's


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

it seems that it would have more of a surface area than legos... and mix the water more. I wonder if the point is to mix or what...?

anyways... im using one level with cotton, another with carbon/ammonia mix and the other probably lava rock. what you guys think??

hope this comes out right!















walmart may not take some of this stuff back after I drill holes in it...


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## steveling (Jun 6, 2003)

i was just curious about this , when the water is coming out of the main tank does it come out at the same speed as when syphoning water out during a water change? and does the water go back in a t the same speed as well, other wise u would see the water level drop and the filtered water wouldnt be pumped back in time to replace what has been taken out ?! if that makes sense !!!


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## Daddy O (Jan 16, 2004)

What was your total end cost?


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## Tchr7 (Jun 6, 2003)

You guys are friggin rocket scientists!!!








I just might have to do this!


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## 360 (Dec 3, 2003)

AWESOME INFO MAN! THANKS!


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## Tchr7 (Jun 6, 2003)

can you guys estimate energy usage vs a emp 400?


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

I'm intrigued at this, way to go!!


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

hmmm.. total cost is about $120, but that is for any size tank! Its way clear and very powerful. I got a HUGE powerhead on ebay for cheap. the whole system is great. Still putting things into it tho.


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

Ok... i have used lava rock and started the system. It works, but the sump tank keeps emptying and turning off the head. what do I do? i think its because the head is too strong... or do you think there is enough drag through media???

thanks for the help...


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## Red Bellied Bad Ass (May 25, 2003)

I have always used sponge as a bacteria harbor. Buy some of those cheap porous sponges like you would use to wash your car and tear them into small chunks. If they ever do get clogged with gunk you just rinse and wring.


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## Dasu95 (Oct 18, 2003)

Awsome job!







Lets see some pics after a couple of months running!


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## Dr. Giggles (Oct 18, 2003)

steveling said:


> i was just curious about this , when the water is coming out of the main tank does it come out at the same speed as when syphoning water out during a water change? and does the water go back in a t the same speed as well, other wise u would see the water level drop and the filtered water wouldnt be pumped back in time to replace what has been taken out ?! if that makes sense !!!


 If you buy a pump that is made for the particular size tank you will be fine. If you buy a pump that is to powerful you can add a ball valve to control output flow.


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## MR.FREEZ (Jan 26, 2004)

yall just gave me a bunch of ideals im gonna draw em up and when i get a digy cam ill post the pics


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

Setup is running but i had a prob with a leak. It has been taken care of and the sump is working nice!









thanks for all of your help and of course, Piranhadaddy


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## sweet lu (Oct 3, 2003)

i am thinking of making one for a 180g but with a differnt design maybe

have the little unit to hold the stuff and also in the sump area have a couple of those sponge filters for extra bacteria


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

that sounds like a good idea so far... what are you going to use for bioballs? what is the flow rate of your head?


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## sweet lu (Oct 3, 2003)

i hanvt got that far into it but the sponge filter thing is what would take the place of the bio balls

the first level will be lava rock, second will be peat, theird will be filter floss, then in the sump i will see how many sponge filters i can stick in there


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

i put carbon and ammonia chips in one of the levels... it works good









what is the power of the pump you got?


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

I made one of these filters this weekend. I used a 3 drawer unit w/ sponges on the top, bio media in the middle, the bottom is used for the return pump, heater and peat bag. I used a 260 gph pump instead of an overflow and siphon tube. The return pump is the same size. I regulated the flow w/ a ball valve on top.

here's a couple of pics:


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

the valve:


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

in this pic you can see the return line (in white), the clear line goes from the pump to the ball valve on top. you can see the electrical cords coming from the bottom drawer to the outlet (yellow, above the filter). Note the water level on the bottom. 
This is my first try, so the next one should go much smoother.

I appreciate any comments/criticisms


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

here is an update:

I have been working on this for a while now. It seems to clean the water pretty well. But then I looked at my 55gal which has a canister filter. It is much cleaner, which can be because its smaller than a 125gal. Then i started looking at all of the hassle with making one...(probably cause i did something wrong). So i went online to bigals like some others have said and found a Filstar XP3 for $89.99 + $10.00 shipping. It seems that the water is clearer than the sump. that canister is made for up to 175 gal tanks. Its cheaper and does not require maintenance. So...

I returned all of the stuff to walmart (even with holes drilled!) and the pump to a local PS. So in my case i decided to go with a canister because im not home enough to watch the sump. It is working great for now... we'll see if there are any probs later because of me going to a canister.

good luck everyone with the sumps... i hope i dont regret my decision


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## tecknik (Jul 18, 2003)

Traumatic, you're wet/dry is looking good!


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

Thanks, 
I noticed that others had put thiers in a large tub. Figured that was not needed. I also did not use an overflow box (I dont' have one) I used two identical pumps. This filter is only 260gph but can be easily altered/moved and used standalone. I hope this innovation helps someone. As w/ any wetdry you have to regulate flow in order to keep it from drying up or overflowing. My heater broke in the bottom because the water got too low. When I adjusted the flow, CRACK! A new heater is in the tank now.


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## sweet lu (Oct 3, 2003)

i am now in between things for my 180g

to buy 2 rena's and run my fluval 404 on my 180g or just run my 404 and run
a wet/dry

what i do like about a wet/dry is if you make it higher than the tank then you 
can just have one pump to suck water into the wet/dry but then just let the 
water fall back into the tank


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## sweet lu (Oct 3, 2003)

oh lookin good man


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

I got a filstar... its perfect! does a great job... i dont know if its better than a sump tho...


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## Guest (Feb 11, 2004)

i dont know much about the caniter filters, just what people have told me. ive heard that they are good in manyways. the only downfall is that when you do have to clean them they are a bitch, and really messy. i dont know though....keep me posted.

as fas as my sump, i just add water ever 5 days or so to comp. for the evaporation. and the maintenance only takes like 2 min.

oh, and to TRAMATIC....i really like what youve done...i knew this would make some guys come up with some bitchen ideas!


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## Tchr7 (Jun 6, 2003)

so it can be made without and overflow box? Big savings!


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## Guest (Feb 12, 2004)

Tchr7 said:


> so it can be made without and overflow box? Big savings!


 you better have your filter system above the tank. if you dont, your gonna syphon all your water out through the out-going pump if you loos power. if its above you will just syphon the water out of the filter


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

very good point...


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

traumatic, what size tank is that sump for??

it looks good


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## MR.FREEZ (Jan 26, 2004)

i feeel real stupid right now im havein a hard time grasping the operation of the over flow box and how the water gets from the tank to the filter
i figure the pump has to be sized for the tank or you can control the flow with a valve
what happens when the pump stops working 
does the water keep comedown to the filter and fill it up and make a mess everwere
does any one have a basic diagram 
easier to understand pictures


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## Novato (Jan 25, 2004)

Cool!









Mcgyver !


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## goldfishkiller (Mar 26, 2003)

Just completed my wet\dry filter...total cost $85.00, would of been $65 but you know, the bigger the pump the better. I basically copied the way ya'll where doing it, but add this little part to it. I took my old penguin 330, drilled a 15/16th hole through the bottom, then took a 3/4" balk head and installed in into the bottom of the filter with silicone around the balk head. I then ran a hose from the old filter to the inlet on the sump. So now when the power goes off, I won't have a sump full of water and an empty fish tank. One other thing for all those who are building wet\dry's. I used lava rock, one word of advice, wash out the lava rocks really well.


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom said:


> traumatic, what size tank is that sump for??
> 
> it looks good


 thanks,

I'm running it on a 75 gal.

Having the top of the filter above the water line of the tank keeps the water from siphoning back into the filter. So far the only problem I've had is keeping the water level in the bottom drawer to stay on or around the line I drew.


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## badforthesport (Jan 8, 2004)

what would i need and what would it cost to run one for a 100 gallon and could i hook that up to my 60 gallon too. if so what would i need for both?


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

CHECK IT:


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

lemme know if I missed anything, and I'll fix the pic. Members can print these if they want.


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

is that on ACAD?? it looks good

Those are some good blueprints...


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## traumatic (Jan 29, 2003)

yeah, autocad. took me like 10 minutes.


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## Tchr7 (Jun 6, 2003)

This is the best thread EVA!!!!!!!


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## Hypergenix (Dec 17, 2003)

nice setup want to want too.. how much did it cost total for one of the wet/dry filter?


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## IDONTKARE47 (Jan 5, 2004)

cool 
i was doing that earlier but wassn't successful


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

It should not cost more than $120. This depends on what powerhead you get...

the rest of the stuff can be bought at walmart...























This is the best thread ever!!! thanks to piranhadaddy!


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## Rigor_mortiZ_Rhom (Dec 21, 2003)

> cool
> i was doing that earlier but wassn't successful


what was the problem???


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