Category Archives: Reef Aquaria

Preventing Your Reef Tank Sump from Overflowing

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 I recently received an email from a reef aquarist that was concerned about her reef tank and sump setup.  The person was looking for a way to prevent siphon into her sump and thereby preventing flooding of her sump and display tank.  I wrote her back saying that I would right an article about preventing overflowing her sump and I gave her some tips on how to do such.

So how do you prevent your main tank from overflowing your sump in case of a power outage or some other saltwater tank catastrophe?  The short answer is simple.  Make sure that you leave enough space for saltwater in your sump in case your main tank siphons the water down into it.  So then what if your sump can not handle all the saltwater from your main tank? Then you have to get clever and figure out ways to break a siphon or to prevent the overflow.

 Let’s take my 46 gallon bowfront for example.  The main tank is 16″wide by 36″ long and when in a power outage my tank will loose 1″ of water due to a siphon before the water line hits my siphon break.  If my tank does not siphon break at 1″ below surface it will then loose 3″ of water.  Using the volume calculatorover at reefcentral.com I can predict that my 46 gallon tank will siphon down 2.5gallons of water into my 10gallon sump.  If It does not break at the 1″inch siphon line then the tank will siphon down 7.5 Gallons of water. 

My sump is only a 10gallon sump packed with equipment and the dimensions are 10″ wide, 20″ long and I keep it 5″ empty (meaning almost 3/4 full of water).  This allows me to have 4.3-4.5 gallons of siphoned tank water (from my 46gallon) before my sump overflows.

So if my siphon breaks are not cleaned correctly or if there happens to be a snail on each one during a power outage then I will flood my sump and about 3 gallons of saltwater will pour onto my floor and my wife will make me buy her new carpeting.  As improbable as it seems that two snails will cover my siphon breaks at the same time, it does happen.  This is why I keep 5″ of empty space in my sump, after all 3 gallons of saltwater is much better then 7.5 gallons when it comes to overflowing your tanks.

10 Gallon Sump

Pictured above is my 10 gallon sump, as you can see there is 5″ in the sump to cover for siphoned water.  The “Fill to here” sticker is so that my tank sitter knows how much water to replenish when I am away.

 Siphon breaks are just as important to Sump reefers as lighting is.  It is a protective measure that everyone running a sump should look into and use.  I created my siphon breaks on my 46gallon reef tank by drilling holes into my return line U tube under the water line right before the water from my sump is discharged into the tank. When the water level in the main tank drops due to a power faluire the holes in these tubes will start sucking air and break the siphon. 

U tube for return line for saltwater sump

The above and below pictures are of the U tubes that I drilled to create siphon breaks. Notice on the bottom picture that the siphon break is about an 1″ under water when the tank is filled.

 Check Valve - Swing - Slip x Slip - 1 in.

Another method to preventing siphons are PVC check Valves.  These are great if your return lines are constructed of hard PVC pipes and if your handy enough for vinyl tubing as well.  They make these PVC check valves in many different sizes and threading. 

Mystic Aquarium’s Clam Tank Pictures

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Here are some pictures of Mystic Aquarium’s Clam Tank, The tank was not very big in fact I would say it probably did not go over 75 gallons but it hosted a whole bunch of tropical marine reef clams from maxima’s and croaceas to Squamosa clams. It also had a very nice gorgonian as well as a ton of mushroom corals.

Crocea reef tank

Mystic Clam Tank

Gaint Squamosa clam

Salt Water Tanks, Choosing the Right one.

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   24 Gallon Aquapod Saltwater Aquarium Kit - 2 x 32W Power Compact Lamps
  Before choosing a salt water tank or tanks there are many things to consider.  The variety of the building material, designs, sizes and price range are somewhat intimidating at first.  Most if not all reef aquarium owners would say to buy the biggest one you can afford and in some respect they are right.

  Owning a big salt water tank is a risky venture for the beginning reef aquarist.  The initial expense is huge and to maintain a large salt water tank takes patience and a well thought out plan.  Many beginning reefers should read and study the hobby before making such a purchase.  So then why do the more experienced reef keepers suggest that the beginners buy larger salt water tanks?  The answer is simple, because bad things will happen slower to a bigger reef tank thus allowing the reefkeeper to make proper adjustments before the tank crashes, such as water quality issues.

  One could go the smaller route and own a very nice nano-reef aquarium.  These smaller salt water tanks are extremely difficult to maintain. Water quality, temperature and nutrients could go out of hand very fast resulting in a tank crash and the loss of the aquarium.

  So know that you consider the size of your salt water tank, you need to take into consideration the material and design of the salt water tank.  As of right now you could go with a glass aquarium or an acrylic aquarium.  The decision is up to the reefkeeper, but lets take a look at some of the pros and cons of these two salt water tanks.

The Glass Aquarium:

1. Generally cheaper then the acrylic aquarium.

2. Glass Aquariums are more resistant to scratches then acrylic aquariums.

3. Glass is heavy, a pain to move if its really big and needs a well constructed stand to handle its weight.

The Acrylic Aquarium:

1.  Weighs less then glass, which then in turn helps with shipping if purchased online.

2.  Less resistant to breaks.

3.  Can be made into nearly any shape if you find the right aquarium maker.

  After you choose what material you want your salt water tank to be you need to figure out if you want to have a bowfront, a regular box or another shape you can think of.  Proper planning and research of your reef’s fish and corals will help you choose what size salt water tank and its design.

  If you are new to salt water tanks and reef aquariums then I suggest you read this article on How to Set up a Marine Reef Aquarium.