Plumbing Tank

[longhorn_20m]

I'm in the planning stages of adding a refugium to my running tank and wanted to get advices on plumbing it. Here are the options I've been tossing around:

1) T off of the return pump from the sump to drive water into the refugium and then allow gravity feed into the return section of the sump

2) Since my tank has two drains, instead of having both plumbed to the Sump, plumb one of the drains into the refugium and allow to gravity feed into the return section of the sump.

The tank is a 180 gallon Oceanic with two overflows, so two drains currently plumbed into the sump, houses a skimmer, then flows into return section that houses a Mag 9.5 that is then plumbed to a single return in each overflow.

What do you think?

I'm looking for opinions / options.

-Justin

[brewercm]

I like option 2. But that is just the way I had my last setup running so I'm biased.

[lhoy]

Personally I would "T" off one of the drains keeping them both going to sump and put a valve on the T so you can keep flow to the refugium a minimum. Definitely not a good idea to feed refugium from return pump.

If it is a true refugium you want the nutrient rich water from the tank going there as opposed to water that has been through the skimmer, etc.

Lee

[MissT]

^^ 100% agree with Lee- If you tap off one of the drains you can control the rate of flow through the fuge, and also have to option to lock it down if anything ever goes wrong in there..
Bear in mind the flow rate of your return pump, and how much you need/want running through the sump-fuge. There's a great advantage in this hobby to be able to dial things in to match what the tank is needing and consuming.
hth

[princer7]

Personally I would "T" off one of the drains keeping them both going to sump and put a valve on the T so you can keep flow to the refugium a minimum. Definitely not a good idea to feed refugium from return pump.

If it is a true refugium you want the nutrient rich water from the tank going there as opposed to water that has been through the skimmer, etc.

Lee

Works this way on my current tank..... which was Lee's old tank. Here are some pictures of when it was first set up. There are two gravity fed drains (PVC elbows & Lock Line) that flow from the refugium into the main sump. The water coming from the tank has ball valves and quick connects for easy adjusting and maintenance.

[longhorn_20m]

Thanks everyone, and it makes sense now. Since I have a straight pipe over very similar to princer7, I will just cut the pipe and add a T to run a line into the refugium. Somewhere within that new line I will add a ball valve in order to control the flow into the refugium.

Awesome, got a plan, now need to build the refugium.

[lhoy]

Dang Jennifer, I sure miss that tank!!! I worked my butt off on that stand!!! Someday when the kids are grown and move out my son's room will become the tank room for a LARGE tank again!!

[hobogato]

man, these people around here are smart!

[longhorn_20m]

Thanks everyone, so I have started work and will be building the refugium in the next week. I'm figuring out the layout of plumbing and has one additional question. I plan to have the refugium empty by gravity into the return section. The sump I'm using already has a hole drilled in it that I plugged since I'm using a submersible pump. Do you see any problems with having the refugium overflow into the return center through the bulkhead. It is under water within the return section. I would plumb the refugium into it and remove the cap.