Sump design help...

[MikeP]

About to have a sump built for my 190g. It will be 60g (48Lx18Wx16H) but will run at 37g. I'm trying to figure out what size my refugium and return sections should be (the skimmer section is big enough for the skimmer and thats it). I have 31.5 inches left in length for the fuge and return. My first thought was the fuge would be 18.5in and the return would be 13in (baffles are 10in high by the way). I have read that the fuge should be as big as possible but I've also read that the return needs to be a decent size too. I have seen a few sumps though that have a rather small return section. I'm leaning towards making the fuge bigger. Are there drawbacks to having a smaller return section? I need this thing built right the first time so I want to be sure of the design. What do you guys have under your tanks?

Thanks for any advice

PS I plan to use an internal pump but the sump will be drilled so that I can use an external pump if I want in the future.

[TRIX]

If your return area is small you will have to top off the water more often so your pump doesn't run dry. I would almost divide the room left over in half.

[mark]

If your return area is small you will have to top off the water more often so your pump doesn't run dry. I would almost divide the room left over in half.

Agreed, just consider a autotop from the start to allow for a smaller oump section.

Lots of sump ideas here http://www.melevsreef.com/allmysumps.html

[MikeP]

Lots of sump ideas here http://www.melevsreef.com/allmysumps.html

Yeah that's where I based this design from, then I saw some sumps with the return section much smaller so I thought I would make the fuge bigger if I could. I was planning some kind of auto top off I just haven't figured out how yet. If I stick with my first design the fuge will be about 14 gallons, is that a good size for a 190g tank? If I change the design I could make it about 20 gallons. Would that be much better?

[dogboy]

IMO it all depends on what you are intending to do with your fuge. How much L.R. do you want to have in your main display verses how much to keep in your sump/fuge? How much cheato or what kind of critters you wanna keep in there as well (fish etc) questions of that nature can be a help in deciding whether to have a larger fuge or larger return section.

I hope i did not just answer your question with a question :razz: but just some points i considered when I designed my sump.

[MikeP]

I haven't really got far enough to figure out what to put into the fuge. All I know is that I should have one. I guess I need advice on what to keep in the fuge as well. My display tank will have all the LR I didn't plan on having any in the sump except maybe some small chunks. My fish load will be medium if that tells you anything. I would like to have lots of coral and a few nice/interesting fish. I did plan on being able to keep frags in the fuge though.

[Dale]

As noted it really depends on what you want to accomplish with the refugium.
If you want a place to breed cope/amphripods, place frags and some macro algae the design isn't that important (relatively speaking). Leaving room in the return section can help when it comes to servicing the pump or as a place for heaters etc.
If you want a fuge strictly for nutrient control then you should try to design a chamber that grows macro well.
I like a fuge that tumbles the macro. This exposes more of it to the light source and decreases dead water flow areas. I have found that a square chamber tumbles better than a rectangle so you might consider an 18" x 18" chamber. You can either use the flow from the baffles to create a weir effect to tumble the macro or install a small powerhead to assist. I've also found that an AC 70 creates a good weir effect if you can hang it on the side.
Just some thoughts.