Upstairs or downstairs? Reef/sump set-up, maint.  – 06/28/07
Good afternoon all!
I am in the midst of oodles of research regarding adding a sump with refugium to my setup. I have a 55 gallon FOWLR at the moment, and would like to move up to a reef. The tank is about a year old now.
I've been researching the proper plumbing, and am toying with the idea of putting the sump/refugium in my basement directly below the display tank. I have much research to do, and I'm sure I'll have questions coming regarding the specifics once I get to that point. My question at the moment relates to maintenance and water changes. It seems to me that
many people with sumps perform their water changes directly from their sump. Is that correct?
<It depends on the person and their set up. But I can try to explain to you the logic of doing a water change from a sump/refugium rather than the display. Many systems are set up such that water pumps from the sump/refugium to the display while water flows via gravity back to the sump (through a “drain(s),” a hole(s) drilled in the display tank). If you do a water change from the display, you’d likely be bringing the water level down below the drain(s). But the water in the sump would keep pumping water back up. Since most sumps/refugiums are only a fraction of the volume of the display, your sump could pump itself dry during the water change. This is bad for the sump and for the pump in the sump. You could turn off the pump in the sump, but you’d have to do this after you lowered the water level in the display (or else the sump will overflow). Having a sump in the basement could make this tricky. You might find yourself running up and down the stairs, racing against the pump or gravity or both. If you do the water change from the sump/refugium, assuming the water volume of your display is much larger, the vertical water level in the display tank should not drop nearly as far as it would in the sump. Also, doing the water change from the sump could allow you to more easily pace your water change.
Of course, the situation changes if you don’t use a gravity-pulled output to the sump. Some aquarists use two pumps instead of a pump and a drain. And some use a combination of pumps and drains that can get quite complicated. But in your case, and for most beginners, I strongly suggest the use of a gravity pulled drain from the display to the sump, with a pump from the sump to the display. You can have more than one drain though. That just depends on how much flow you want from the two tanks and how many holes you’re willing to drill in your tank.>
In my current tank, when I perform water changes, I take that opportunity to siphon off the liverock, clean the sand, etc. I'm wondering when the "sump people" do that?
<They likely do it as they feel they need to. To prevent either one tank from going dry or another overflowing, you will need to take out just enough water so that the water level is below the drain(s). Then, before the pump in the sump/refugium brings the water level back up, you’ll have to turn off that pump. Again, this is where having the sump in the basement is a bit of a disadvantage. Some aquarists use float valves which automatically turn pumps off if water gets to a certain level.>
Do water changes turn into a two step process......one being cleaning the display, and one being water exchange? Could you shed some light here?
<It doesn’t have to be a two part process. I have a 65g display with a 29g refugium and I do all my water changes from the display. Even if you get confused in trying to figure out when to turn off the pump or where to lower a water level to, usually you learn after your first overflow or dry out. Something about seeing it happen often helps people better understand what’s going on.>
I'm ultimately trying to find out where will be the best place to make all my water... ...upstairs with the display, or downstairs with the sump? Will I be doing equal amounts of work upstairs as well as downstairs? Am I better off to just put a sump underneath the tank in the stand? (I do love the idea of having ample room in the basement though).
<I can understand why having the sump in the basement is tempting. Many aquarists do this and wouldn’t have it any other way. However, if you plan on having a reef tank, there’s another thing you will have to consider; build up in the pipes. The longer your pipes are, the harder they’re going to be to clean and/or replace.>
I should have prefaced this by letting you know that I am currently battling hair algae. In response, I have upped my water changes to weekly (from every other week), and considering twice weekly.
<Have you tried getting more herbivores?>
Every water change is a major ordeal, as I am removing and cleaning all the powerheads, heaters and canister filter intakes/returns during each water change. Believe me, I'm up to my eyeballs in frustration! I have finally figured out that there is phosphate in my tap water,
<Ah, there’s your problem! You should invest in a RO/DI water filtering unit. You will especially need this if you plan to keep reef invertebrates.>
and thus have ordered and received a Kold-Steril unit along with their alumina media. (I just cannot stomach the thought of the wasted water of RO units).
<Hmm… it might be difficult for you to keep a reef tank without RO/DI filtered (or distilled) water.>
I have added Chemi-pure as well. And until I get the Kold-Steril running, I am purchasing RO water for all change and top off. I hope that my battle plan pays off, as the tank is nowhere near a max bioload,
<What are you considering the “max bioload?” I ask because people usually overestimate their “max bioload.” You can’t go by the inches of fish per gallon rules, especially not for reef tanks.>
I feed sparingly, and have four powerheads along with an Eheim
2026 filter that is cleaned out weekly. I guess I'm wondering if when a reef tank is running "optimally", whether the hobbyist is spending very little time invading the display to keep it clean? (making the downstairs setup more desirable). I should note that I believe I am very understocked as far as clean up crew. I have 3 crabs (which I could certainly do without......I'm not thrilled with having them at all) and 3 snails. I believe I need to add a significant amount more snails.
<3 snails is probably not enough. While there’s no certain rule for how many snails you can or should have, you definitely want more than one kind of snail. Different snails eat different kinds of algae.>
I've been researching, and as always, everyone has a different opinion. Would 20 snails in a 55 gallon be a safe middle ground?
<It would be two many if they were all of the same type. It’s best to get 3 to 5 snails each of 5 different types. Also makes sure that whatever type you get, they are species that live at reef temperatures. Unfortunately, some of the snails sold for reef aquariums are species from much colder waters and so are not suitable for tanks at reef temperatures>
Lastly, my plan for all this is to purchase a 75 or 90 gallon for the display, and use the current 55 for the sump. Is the 55 gallon too big?
<Absolutely not, big sumps/refugiums are good things.>
And my apologies for one more question.........when you add a sump, do you calculate the amount of water to change based on the total new volume? Say you've got a 90 gallon display, and 30 gallons in the sump, would the 10% for the water change be of the 90 gallons, or the combined 120 gallons?
<This is something of a trick question. Theoretically, yes, you’d consider the total new volume of water when calculating for a water change. However, the more water your system has, the lower your effective “bioload” (assuming you don’t start putting animals in your sump) and so it’s likely that, with the increased water volume, you can do fewer or smaller water changes.>
As always, thank you for your time and willingness to share your knowledge. All the newbies are eternally grateful!
<Happy to help :-)
Sara M>
Best regards,
Kim