koj11 Posted July 28, 2003 Share Posted July 28, 2003 I'm still in the planning stage of my aga 7 gallon minibow. here's what I was thinking. I'm gonna make a small overflow with a 1/2" drain to the sump, then I was thinking 2 1/4" return holes in the back of the tank. Not sure what pump I'm gonna use yet, but I was gonna aim for about 150 gph. Does this sound like it will be enough flow through the 2 holes in the back for a reef? I am also considering a sqwd to alternate the flow between return holes instead of a pump to flow through both at the same time. Any thoughts on that? Either way should 1/4" returns be ok or should I do 1/2" returns? I'm worried about overpowering the drain and I don't want to have a rushing river for a current in there. Link to comment
tinyreef Posted July 28, 2003 Share Posted July 28, 2003 probably want to go with 1/4" returns. that should give you better velocity and range to really act as current makers. calculate your head/back pressure for your intended gph goal. also it'll determine the swcd's period for alternation. have you thought about just dropping piping/tubing along the top of the tank instead of drilling the returns? just for flexibility's sake (and structural integrity), just a thought. Link to comment
koj11 Posted July 29, 2003 Author Share Posted July 29, 2003 I'm a newbie when it comes to plumbing and whatnot in a tank. This will be my first attempt. I'm not sure how to calculate the head/back pressure. Would you recommend using the sqwd or just splitting the sump pump's return off? I had considered just putting tubing over the back edge instead of drilling returns. Do you get better current with one or the other? The tank just came today! Happy days! Now to work up the nerve to drill this pricey little bugger... Link to comment
SLOreefer Posted July 29, 2003 Share Posted July 29, 2003 i would only drill the overflow and use 1/4 inch return lines. you canb use a sqwd and i would guess a mag 3 should do the job. they ar egreat little pumps. Link to comment
Deimos Posted July 30, 2003 Share Posted July 30, 2003 I'm a bigger fan of larger returns..so I'd be the oddball and say 1/2"...increasing the dimeter is going to decrease the "blast effect"..i.e. its going to give you the same flow without all that pin-point blasting you get. I dunno..could be just me.... LOL...later.. Link to comment
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