Skimmer question

[Matt]

OK, so I finally broke down and bought a quality skimmer, that's sized for my tank, a EuroReef RS-80. All you kids out there: listen to the experts; buy better gear the first time! Skimmer one, a PM bullet, was a fine skimmer, just too tall for my sump, and difficult to adjust in the cramped quarters. So, it was sold. I replaced it with a skimmer from Aquagiant, and honestly, it was a good little skimmer, but undersized, and not right for this job. It is for sale, if anyone needs a small skimmer w. pump for $50. (separate thread).

Finally, the question: I have a three-chamber sump, as below. The return has been in the right chamber, the feed from the overflow in the left. However, there is not enough room in the middle chamber for the RS80. So, I reconfigured the return to draw from the middle chamber, and put the RS80 in the right. Great, except... no water flow. So, I put a powerhead to push water into the skimmer chamber. How much turnover should I plan for this? I'm worried that the skimmer will just recycle the same water too much... I know I should re-plumb the sump, and I will - someday. Until then?


http://www.canreef.com/photopost/uploads/1252/sump.bmp

[untamed]

Can you drill a hole in the baffle that is between the RS-80 and the return chamber? Place the RS-80 pump intake as close as you can to that hole. That way it will draw water mostly from the other chamber.

[Matt]

A hole in that baffle will create a single water pool in the sump, and the skimmer won't have a stable water level any more.

[Tom R]

I think I would quickly plumb the overflow to the far right chamber with the RS-80. This will put your dirtiest water right in the skimmer chamber. I would then put the return in the far left chamber ensuring that the return is as far away from the sources of microbubbles as possible.

Tom R

[untamed]

A hole in that baffle will create a single water pool in the sump, and the skimmer won't have a stable water level any more.

Your sump would have a stable water level regardless if it has baffles or not.

[digital-audiophile]

Your sump would have a stable water level regardless if it has baffles or not.

What about evaporation?

[StirCrazy]

What about evaporation?

a float valve will take care of that.

Steve

[digital-audiophile]

But other than a float valve with an auto top off the sump will evaporate. That's the problem I am having right now, my sump cracked and I have it currently replaced with just a tank. I ether need to do just that and ad an auto top off, add baffles to keep the skimmer area at a constant level.. or top off manually twice a day (pain in te *** and I really don't want to keep doing that)

anyhow.. not to Hijack the thread. :)

[Matt]

I decided to move the skimmer pump into chamber 2 for now. It (just) fits. For a cheap-and-easy solution until I have time to replumb/replace my sump. I just need some 3/4" ID tubing and I'm set. I'd replumb right now, but it is a Chinese-made tank, and all the plumbing is weird metric sizes, which I can't find anywhere -- I'm not ready for a project of that scope today.

[Matt]

So, that seems to have worked. I have a nice arc of foam going from 2->3 now, and it seems fine.

Thanks for all the comments. I don't seem to have a micro-bubble problem, either, so I might leave it as-is for a while.

I think I'll take a photo and ask for further critique.

[Matt]

So, here is the sump as it is configured now. You can't see the partition behind the wooden support, but it is there.

The skimmer pump is visible in the foreground, in the middle chamber, and the return pump is behind it. The grey plumbing is the metric mystery PVC, and the light is a 27W PC.

Anyone wanting to advise is welcome!

http://www.canreef.com/photopost/data/500/medium/sump21.jpg