The water level in my sump keeps going down...

[snow1]

Why does the water in my sump keep on going down every few days? There is no leak. I don't think it's from evaporation. Any advice?

[Zoaelite]

What make you think it isn't evaporation? It's either evaporation or the fish are drinking it :lol:.

***Either that or do you have an overflow that has a very large volume? Barometric pressure can increase or decrease these levels.

[xtreme]

Evaporation. I lose close to 10 gallons a week to evaporation. Best to top off with freshwater daily or better yet get some sort of ATO (Auto Top Off) system to keep your salinity stable.

[snow1]

I don't know, 3 inches in just 3 days? It's in an enclosed stand.

[viperfish]

What make you think it isn't evaporation? It's either evaporation or the fish are drinking it :lol:.

:crazy:

[snow1]

Okay thanks, someone gave me a good answer through pm just now. Thanks all for the help and I know what I have to do so it does not evaporate so much.

[banditpowdercoat]

Problem is, evaporation is helping tank stay cool. If you cover it with a glass top, you may run the risk of overheating. As well as you lessen the oxygen exchange when covering your tank.

[reefwars]

could be global warming:):):)

[scherzo]

+1 on helping cool the tank.

You can try covering the tanks with glass.... that usually slows it down.. but then also brings your tank temperature up. (Especially when the ambient temperature goes up)... reduce splashing.. etc..

Evaporation is part of the hobby. Do a quick search on ATO or Auto-Top-Off. You'll find a bunch of solutions that people do to keep their tanks at the same salinity.

[scherzo]

Oh.. I noticed that your other tanks are FW tanks.

So you won't notice evaporation on those tanks as much because you are looking at the level of water for the ENTIRE tank.. so it seems like it is going slower.

On a sump setup.. the ONLY area that you see where the evaporation takes place is IN THE SUMP which is a tiny cross section of the tank.. so 3 inches of evaporation in your sump.. every few days is probably equal to the amount of water you are losing in your fresh water tanks.. but you are looking at a larger surface area.. so your freshwater display tank will only lose 1 centimeter...

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

A reef tank also has higher power (ie. hotter) lights & more flow. These contribute to the evaporation. I have glass tops now on all my tanks except the main reef and that helps a lot for reducing evaporation. Some of my tanks though are fw or fowlr.

[snow1]

Well the main tank has glass tops on it. The sump does not. Not going to buy an ATO. I'll look around and find a DIY way to get the job done.

[BlueTang<3]

I would not cheap out when it comes to an auto top off. I did and had it running right off my ro unit i flooded my house and lost a lot of stuff in my tank as i pumped about 100 gallons of freshwater into the tank while i was at work. I would recommend a tunze and have a reservoir to prevent anything like this happening.

[paddyob]

I don't know, 3 inches in just 3 days? It's in an enclosed stand.


My 20 gallon loses 1.5" a day when its hot out. It is evaporating.

[JonT]

I would not cheap out when it comes to an auto top off. I did and had it running right off my ro unit i flooded my house and lost a lot of stuff in my tank as i pumped about 100 gallons of freshwater into the tank while i was at work. I would recommend a tunze and have a reservoir to prevent anything like this happening.


I have two systems.

My RO to the storage tank has a shut off of its own.

The storage tank to the tank has one too. My storage tank is 5 gallons. My corals and fish won't much like the drop in salinity that 5 gallons will cause, however, it won't kill everything.

I am looking to also get the RO shut off that BRS has on their site. If it sense's water (flooding) it will pinch the RO feed line shut. It also has an audible alarm.

[mike31154]

Link to a thread with some ATO solutions, mostly DIY.

http://www.canreef.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=60320

[PEA]

I find that my sump level decreases because of my overflow get clogged. So the water level in my overflow rises. Or my water level in my display rises as the "fingers" on my overflow get clogged and doesn't flow as well, so when I clean it, the water level in my sump rises by a few inches. So you might want to check your overflow as well.

[snow1]

thanks all for the tips.