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DIY sump baffle question


onefang

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So I am building a sump for a 17g tank that I am planning to setup, and I've got a quick question about the baffles on my bubble trap.

 

I've got the first two baffles for the bubble trap in:

DSC00556.JPG

 

What I am wondering is that most bubble trap designs use a third baffle in the bubble trap design, and I am not sure if it is really necessary or not. Does the last baffle make a big difference in bubble elimination? If I could leave it out, it would leave a little more room in my return for future pump upgrades, heaters, ATO, etc.

 

Thoughts?

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So I am building a sump for a 17g tank that I am planning to setup, and I've got a quick question about the baffles on my bubble trap.

 

I've got the first two baffles for the bubble trap in:

DSC00556.JPG

 

What I am wondering is that most bubble trap designs use a third baffle in the bubble trap design, and I am not sure if it is really necessary or not. Does the last baffle make a big difference in bubble elimination? If I could leave it out, it would leave a little more room in my return for future pump upgrades, heaters, ATO, etc.

 

Thoughts?

I have sumps with and without the 3rd baffle and theres no difference. I honestly dont think you need another baffle. If you have problems with microbubbles using your current design then probably you need to get rid or adjust your skimmer. Also having enough room for the equipment is a good idea because if you squeez to much the microbubbles wont have enough time to get to the surface and break.

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I have sumps with and without the 3rd baffle and theres no difference. I honestly dont think you need another baffle. If you have problems with microbubbles using your current design then probably you need to get rid or adjust your skimmer. Also having enough room for the equipment is a good idea because if you squeez to much the microbubbles wont have enough time to get to the surface and break.

 

That was sort of my train of thought. I am not even sure I am going to run a skimmer on this tank, but I thought, hey, might as well add a bubble trap in there just in case. If it will function just as well without the last baffle, I think I'll call it a day since they are already cured.

 

 

Nice job on the baffles, looks really clean.

 

Thanks! I have a lot of experience with the old caulking gun, due to being a interior house painter in a previous life :D

Also, razor blades are my friend.

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That looks really good!

 

Can I ask how much you paid for the baffles and where you got them? I'm wondering if I want to go with acrylic or glass and cost would probably help me make a decision.

 

Thanks!

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I got the glass from a local glass shop here in town. The glass ran me 18 bucks cut to size. I decided to go with glass instead of acrylic due to the bond between silicone and acrylic being less than permanent.

 

I paid 10 bucks for the tank (petco dollar per gallon sale), and 18 bucks for the glass. I already had a tube of silicone, so it came to 28 bucks for a sump :)

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  • 2 weeks later...

Im about to do the same thing with a 10 g. Just one question about the baffles. How did you get the baffle thats not touching the bottom of the aquarium to stay? Did you put something under it? Also what type of silicone did you use? I was thinking of using the regular old aquarium silicone I have lying around but will it be annoying to do without a caulk gun?

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just a thought if you want optimal flow through your refugium you could add another baffle to the side with one baffle. iv learned from experience that refugiums like the one you created tend to have lots of dead spots to build up nasty stuff and water seems to just flow right over the refugium not through it

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