HELP :(

[tonton]

Hi, fairly new to saltwater side of the hobby. I acquired a 5' 125gallon with HOB overflow ( Rated for 1100 gph), 35 gal sump (3 chamber). Drilling the tank was out of the question being as it was set up when i bought the house. The fellow decided he wanted the return and all the plumbing. Now, I've never used a sump, so this is a new venture for me.

It's currently running, and the return pump i'm using is Fluvial SP4. My problem is the water level in the return chamber is going well under the intake of the SP4. How would I go about having that water level stay constant? Note, I'm using all 1" PVC, union ball valve, check valve, and 90" elbows.

Thanks in advance.

[Craigdillman]

The return chamber of your sump should always be consistent level and if its going lower then I'm guessing you need to add water,either you dont have enough to start or not tropping up what do you have for a ATO on the setup.

Pictures of your sump would help

Im guessing it isn't a plumbing issue if all he did was take the return pump

Also if the return pump is too powerful it may be over pumping the return but I'm still thinking its a water issue

[tonton]

Craig - No ATO, just set it up two days ago. Ill try and get a picture of it.

[tonton]

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/09/b35b8e4036f7bea24d655623a314264d.jpg
this is the first 2 chambers of the tank

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/05/09/000601b156f624b83b1d1310f4ef483a.jpg
the return chamber ** note the water level in the chamber is well below the minimum level

[Craigdillman]

Try adding more water to the system see if that helps

[Scythanith]

Evaporation is likely. The first place you will see your water evaporating from your tank is the return pump chamber.

If it was pumping out of the chamber faster than it could return then you'd have water overflowing somewhere else.

[GoFish]

First I'd check to see what your salinity is... If it's a bit high at say 1.027 or 1.028 then I would just add enough fresh water, maybe a couple gallons or whatever until the water level in you return section is maybe an inch or 2 below the minimum line in the return pump section (but keep in mind if it takes more it will have a greater impact on your salinity). If your salinity is 1.025 or 1.026 which is ideal them just mix up some new salt water and add enough to to fill the return section to and inch or 2 below the min. line

As mentioned above, you need more water for sure.

It looks like the previous owner may have built the sump a bit funky (maybe wrong). Does the pane of glass that has Max written beside it go all the way to the bottom pane of glass? Did he leave a gap, or is the seam leaking? I think it would be best to have the water cascade over that first pane between the skimmer and return pump. A bit late to change that, you might just have to work with it.

[tonton]

i tried adding water to it, and it raised the level of my DT. almost overflowing it..

salinity is at 1.026.. the pane of glass youre talking about has a gap between the bottom.

[Craigdillman]

Hrm this is weird maybe the pump is over pumping the return then, what do you have for a return again

[GoFish]

Hrm this is weird maybe the pump is over pumping the return then, what do you have for a return again
Fluval SP4

Do you have a ball valve on the return line? Your return pump is rated for 1822 ghp but you overflow box is rated for 1100 gph, so sounds like you neeed to turn down the flow to your return more if it isn't already.

the pane of glass youre talking about has a gap between the bottom.
I dont think it should be like this, maybe someone else has an opinion on if its OK, OR drain and seal that bottom gap with a another panel and silicone

And then to answer an original question, you'll probably want to get an ATO to maintain that level once you figure out the flow, or you'll be adding fresh water with a jug every day or 2

[Craigdillman]

Yea I would dial back the return pump,

But yea the water should be over flowing over that last panel so it keeps that level am I looking at it right?

Also maybe Ask the previous owner what he did different than your doing

[Myka]

Dialling back a return pump by 50% is not a good idea. You need a smaller pump or a bigger overflow box.

Ideal flow through the sump for that size tank and sump is about 800-900 gph so you should find a pump close to that range.

[Wheelman76]

It wouldn't need to be dialed back anywhere near 50% though. I use the Fluval SP4 on my 93 gallon. After head height loss and loss due to plumbing , 90 degree elbows etc , he is nowhere near 1800gph anymore. If the overflow can handle 1100gph then he's probably pretty close and just needs to dial the pump back a little bit with a ball valve.