Considering upgrade and going sumpless

[ponokareefer]

I am wondering if there are others out there who could give me some advise on going sumpless on a 240 gallon tank that I am considering. I have a Tunze skimmer that attaches to the side glass, so that issue is resolved. I know I'll have the heater(s) sitting in the tank, but that isn't that big of an issue to me as the huge overflow boxes are butt ugly in my eyes. Anything I should watch out for? I have read a few posts on people going sumpless and it seems pretty simple. I don't dose as I don't want to keep SPS/clams and have a Tunze ATO. I will add more flow, just like you get from a sump, and am going with more volume for more stability.

[canadianbudz604]

The sump will more or less just help u hide equipment, and gives you a chance to hide live rock, reactors, and other things u don't want hanging inside the tank. I have been sumpless/skimmer less for a couple years and don't really have any problems asides from running out of room to hang equipment.

[mike31154]

I've been running sumpless since I started in the hobby in '07. Future plan is to go with a larger tank & basement sump/fishroom, but that's been a plan for a long time now.... may or may not happen. Too many other things impacting the budget these days.

At any rate, nothing wrong with sumpless, one less power item to worry about, a return pump & associated plumbing. You'll definitely have more gear visible unless you find creative ways to hide it. Not just stuff in the tank, but also your skimmer, but you already know that. The other thing you'll need to have on hand is a top off container & method to manage the top off automatically, unless you plan on doing that manually... not recommended. I use a 7 gallon glass wine making carboy pressurized by an air pump on a timer for my ATO. There's a mechanical float valve in the display to ensure the ghetto ATO doesn't overfill the tank. Keeps the 77 gallon topped up for about 7 days, give or take, depending on season, room temp, etc.

I've rigged up a bracket affair with nylon screws threaded into it to hold chaeto for added nitrate control near the surface on the back of the tank. Not that obtrusive, but visible & probably not the most aesthetically pleasing thing to look at for reef purists, but functional. There's enough interesting stuff going on in the tank to draw the eye away from all the ugly gear to keep most folks entertained. My tank will never make TOTM photo by any means, but I keep it for my pleasure, no one else. So if you're ok with some of these issues, go for it.

[gregzz4]

If you'll get a reply or not I can't say as he's been shutting down his tank ( or has fully ), but Carrera75 ran a very successful smaller cube sumpless/skimmerless without issue, so you could send a PM to him asking about his feeding/maintenance regimen

[ponokareefer]

Originally Posted by mike31154

I've been running sumpless since I started in the hobby in '07. Future plan is to go with a larger tank & basement sump/fishroom, but that's been a plan for a long time now.... may or may not happen. Too many other things impacting the budget these days.

At any rate, nothing wrong with sumpless, one less power item to worry about, a return pump & associated plumbing. You'll definitely have more gear visible unless you find creative ways to hide it. Not just stuff in the tank, but also your skimmer, but you already know that. The other thing you'll need to have on hand is a top off container & method to manage the top off automatically, unless you plan on doing that manually... not recommended. I use a 7 gallon glass wine making carboy pressurized by an air pump on a timer for my ATO. There's a mechanical float valve in the display to ensure the ghetto ATO doesn't overfill the tank. Keeps the 77 gallon topped up for about 7 days, give or take, depending on season, room temp, etc.

I've rigged up a bracket affair with nylon screws threaded into it to hold chaeto for added nitrate control near the surface on the back of the tank. Not that obtrusive, but visible & probably not the most aesthetically pleasing thing to look at for reef purists, but functional. There's enough interesting stuff going on in the tank to draw the eye away from all the ugly gear to keep most folks entertained. My tank will never make TOTM photo by any means, but I keep it for my pleasure, no one else. So if you're ok with some of these issues, go for it.

How come you want a sump for your larger system?

[freddy]

Sumpless 75 gallon for 5 yrs,just keep your bioload low and you will be fine

[Aquattro]

Curious why you don't want a sump? For the cost of an old 75g or something, it hides all the stuff. You don't need large overflow boxes, you could have a single pipe.
A sump does give you more options for skimmers, heaters, reactors, etc.

All that being said, the sump really only hides gear. If you can arrange all your equipment off the back and sides, then there's no real difference.

[mike31154]

Originally Posted by ponokareefer

How come you want a sump for your larger system?

Hide stuff. More water volume overall, more stability? Run a reverse photo period on a 'fuge to keep pH stable.