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[Abysswater]

Abysswater do you think the mag 7 would be overkill thru the scwd on your 20H? I know your using the mag 5 right now. I'd like to know how many gph you think your losing with the scwd. Just your best guess is fine. And if you can tell how long it's taken to switch the water flow from one side to the other. Is it every 15 seconds 10 seconds 5 seconds? Thanx in advance

 

 

Well not really! With the mags you can choke the flow a bit maybe 10-15% with a valve etc. Here are the calcs for the SCWD. At (RC ReefCentral) they have a calc for flow with type of pump used. You input data of piping distance and pump GPH

It might be overkill of your overflow system can not flow for what is pumped controled at full power. My switching is every 9 seconds. Creates good flow and water current switching. and from my understanding with the SCWD is that the more pump psi the faster the switching. I'm also going to try an experiment with the return ends in the water. Well to create a stronger flow I'm going to put some caps on the ends, with special cuts a patterns to see if the static water pressure will create a stronger stream flow etc.

 

 

http://www.3iqventures.com/literature.html

 

 

http://www.reefcentral.com/calc/hlc2.php

[FloorLord]

I have a Mag 12, hooked up to my SCWD, on a 29, and I think it is barely enough flow.

D

[distantfire]

Thanx a lot for the link's Abysswater. The 3iqventures was very helpfull. I like all the calculator's on RC they are real time saver's. Right now I have the same tank's that your running. Except I have two 3/4" bulkhead's drilled with 3/4" locline. And a external overflow box that is 12" tall 9" long and 4" wide. I made it 9" long to hold 2 durso's in case one ever get's pluged up. I'm puting a 1/2" bulkhead on the 10 gal. with a ball valve to make water changes easier. Even though I still have to siphon, it should help a lot. And I won't be disturbing the display tank as much. The sloted end cap's you mention sound like fun. I bet the stream coming out of them would be intense. Keep us updated on the progress of that.

[Abysswater]

Thanx a lot for the link's Abysswater. The 3iqventures was very helpfull. I like all the calculator's on RC they are real time saver's. Right now I have the same tank's that your running. Except I have two 3/4" bulkhead's drilled with 3/4" locline. And a external overflow box that is 12" tall 9" long and 4" wide. I made it 9" long to hold 2 durso's in case one ever get's pluged up. I'm puting a 1/2" bulkhead on the 10 gal. with a ball valve to make water changes easier. Even though I still have to siphon, it should help a lot. And I won't be disturbing the display tank as much. The sloted end cap's you mention sound like fun. I bet the stream coming out of them would be intense. Keep us updated on the progress of that.

 

Sounds like you got a real good system going there! Yea I'm still testing stuff right now! I would like to get up and running, but waiting for christmas money. Lighting is next! This stuff is sooooooooooo expensive, lighting that is. I was talking to a friend of mine, and suggested to put a small gate valve on the u-tube and hook it up to a brake bleeder type siphon hand pump to prime the tube. Then just turn it off and the tube is prime without dipping it to prime or other methods of priming the u-tube. But the scary part is if the valve ever breaks or leaks I see a mess without having a shut off switch etc.

[distantfire]

Yea good lighting is expensive that's for sure. For 10 bucks you can buy the aqua lifter pump from Drs foster and smith to reprime your U-tube. Also the air line on a power head can be used to reprime your U-tube. I like having the external overflow box. No U-tube, no siphon break, no mess, no problem.

[scarf_ace1981]

abyss you said your design is overflow proof. can you explain this to me? this would be my main concern. sorry for all the dumb questions.

 

one other thing not all these pics appear on you gallery. too bad. it's the only way i can see them. for some reason i can't view the thumbnails.

please put the pics in the gallery.

[Abysswater]

abyss you said your design is overflow proof. can you explain this to me? this would be my main concern. sorry for all the dumb questions.

 

one other thing not all these pics appear on you gallery. too bad. it's the only way i can see them. for some reason i can't view the thumbnails.

please put the pics in the gallery.

 

 

Well the two boxes, if they hold water on both sides and is contained and controlled

the siphon will not break. If I shut off the return pump the surface water in the display tank starts a natrual siphon back down the return line and into the sump tank. So I drilled small holes about 1/4 toa 1/2" below the water line. Once the water line drops and gets to the small holes the siphon breaks and no more water flows backwards out of display tank. Plus the overflow holds the water in both sides of the boxes. The outer box has a baffle type divider to hold that siphon level and the bouancy of the water too. So when the pump turns back on the siphon starts to flow agian. If any air gets into the u-tube and brecks the siphon then the control amount of water in sump will fill it up to the top and may just overflow a little bit of water out of display. It's not much just about 1/2 gal or so. I'l add more pics to my gallery.

[scarf_ace1981]

i see what you mean. but if the drain was to clog your display can overflow right?

 

thanks for loading the pics now i can see the details of the outside overflow box. i know pretty much how to build the standpipe but what is that blue lever at the top?

[Abysswater]

i see what you mean. but if the drain was to clog your display can overflow right?

 

thanks for loading the pics now i can see the details of the outside overflow box. i know pretty much how to build the standpipe but what is that blue lever at the top?

 

Well yes. That is if the small grill inlets get totally clogged. Becuase I do not have a float switch to shut off the return pump if the water level gets too high in display tank.

 

Well with siphon everyone gets the gulp or gurgle sounds. That is a small 1/4 valve to control the air abd gulp sounds. Well it was just too hard to get the right amount of air, so I ended up put a small piece of 1/4 tubing at the top of the valve with a small hole drilled at the tipof tube. Now it is gulp free and Quiet!

 

Or you can use sponge with a long piece of 1/4" tubing to run down the pipe a bit to control the sound too.

[scarf_ace1981]

as always, thank you for your time and knowledge.

 

last night i was messing around with one of those little acrylic breeder boxes for my inside overflow box and i was almost done with the mod when i messed it all up. i don't have a dremel (only a jigsaw and a drill). it would have looked great. the breeder box has little slits on the bottom. it wouldn't be a problem if the inside box took water in from the bottom and the top right?

[Abysswater]

as always, thank you for your time and knowledge.

 

last night i was messing around with one of those little acrylic breeder boxes for my inside overflow box and i was almost done with the mod when i messed it all up. i don't have a dremel (only a jigsaw and a drill). it would have looked great. the breeder box has little slits on the bottom. it wouldn't be a problem if the inside box took water in from the bottom and the top right?

 

 

Well if your return pump ever turn off. And the water line drops below the skim box that you are trying to make. If there is a hole or cut below the siphon or too close to the siphon tube inlet the siphon will break and your system when it kicks back on, will pump all the water back into your display, and it will overflow. The thing is you have to create a good foundation for the overflow system to be some what flawless and to hold that water flow siphon and buoyancy. I always thought that word was spelt strange. I hope I'm making sense. See pic!

[MadTownMax]

I've got one small thing you might want to do - add an overflow box for your skimmer pump - you can dramatically (I mean like 10X ) improve the effectiveness of your skimmer by feeding it the top-most layer of water - no need for "teeth" just a box w/ a flat upper surface - if you could use an additional piece on the top to make it adjustable (for whatever water level you find you are running) it would really help your tank stay healthy in the long run...

 

keep an eye on the external overflow box though - acrylic/glass bonds won't hold-up in the long term, if you have a local hardware shop, those pieces of acrylic wouldn't be to expensive to replace with glass - I know for me it would be under $10 for double-layer security glass (perfect for the job)

 

Running a non-pressure rated pump (danner mag-drive) through a scwd can cut down on the flow by 40%, and add extra heat to the system from over-working the pump - do try measuring (from your overflow outlet) how much flow you're loosing with and without the SCWD - I and many others found it to be a dramatic difference - and got much, much better random flow in the tank by removing the SCWD - Saltwater corals will benefit greatly from this, it's a whole different world than the amount of flow in a freshwater tank.....

 

An even more dramatic approach would be to replace the external overflow box w/ a full-height box - drill teeth into the side of the tank for an overflow, and simply place your mag 5 in the bottom of this box - and return the water to the same outlets you had planned - use the external box for heaters and chemical media (add a small shelf for some egg-crate media) and you wouldn't have the extra sump to worry about - or the overflow tube.

 

sorry for the novel - there are just a few things that I've learned after being in the hobby for a while that make things simpler - and when they're simple, there is less to go wrong

 

Great skills and set-up though, very well thought-through!

[Abysswater]

I've got one small thing you might want to do - add an overflow box for your skimmer pump - you can dramatically (I mean like 10X ) improve the effectiveness of your skimmer by feeding it the top-most layer of water - no need for "teeth" just a box w/ a flat upper surface - if you could use an additional piece on the top to make it adjustable (for whatever water level you find you are running) it would really help your tank stay healthy in the long run...

 

keep an eye on the external overflow box though - acrylic/glass bonds won't hold-up in the long term, if you have a local hardware shop, those pieces of acrylic wouldn't be to expensive to replace with glass - I know for me it would be under $10 for double-layer security glass (perfect for the job)

 

Running a non-pressure rated pump (danner mag-drive) through a scwd can cut down on the flow by 40%, and add extra heat to the system from over-working the pump - do try measuring (from your overflow outlet) how much flow you're loosing with and without the SCWD - I and many others found it to be a dramatic difference - and got much, much better random flow in the tank by removing the SCWD - Saltwater corals will benefit greatly from this, it's a whole different world than the amount of flow in a freshwater tank.....

 

An even more dramatic approach would be to replace the external overflow box w/ a full-height box - drill teeth into the side of the tank for an overflow, and simply place your mag 5 in the bottom of this box - and return the water to the same outlets you had planned - use the external box for heaters and chemical media (add a small shelf for some egg-crate media) and you wouldn't have the extra sump to worry about - or the overflow tube.

 

sorry for the novel - there are just a few things that I've learned after being in the hobby for a while that make things simpler - and when they're simple, there is less to go wrong

 

Great skills and set-up though, very well thought-through

 

Thanks! Good point! I was thinking about making a skimmer box. Plus I was looking at the skimmer and how the clean water dumps right next to the pump. I see what your saying. And need to get the stuff off the top of water vs. submerged.

[distantfire]

MadTownMax how are you geting a much, much better random flow in the tank by removing the SCWD? Are you using a differnt type of wave maker? Or are you using spray bars on the top of your tank's? Thanx in advance

[scarf_ace1981]

hi abyss it's meee. i noticed your your siphon sits high on the overflow box. if you cut it shorter the water would have less distance to travel and the bend on the siphon would help support it on the rim of the overflow. no?

[Abysswater]

hi abyss it's meee. i noticed your your siphon sits high on the overflow box. if you cut it shorter the water would have less distance to travel and the bend on the siphon would help support it on the rim of the overflow. no?

 

 

True to the distance. But having more vertical drop equal boths side creates a good solid flow. gravity! it postioned in there to where it's level and equal. Plus I kept it long so i can adjust the skim box up or down. gave myself some vesatility.

Good point though!

[scarf_ace1981]

well friday i gave in and bought an overflow box. i just don't have the time and tools to make one. it only cost me $47 shipped. i hope it works. i've spent at least $450 this weekend and i still have another $400 order from marine depot and i'll have everything i need to get started.

[MadTownMax]

MadTownMax how are you geting a much, much better random flow in the tank by removing the SCWD? Are you using a differnt type of wave maker? Or are you using spray bars on the top of your tank's? Thanx in advance

 

 

It's a numbers game - If you loose 40% of your flow using the SCWD - you're left with 60% coming out. Would you rather have 60% of your flow 1/2 the time, or 2X 50% of the flow all the time (you see, one adds up to 100% and the other adds up to 30%) I used these numbers as it's hard to explain what it feels like w/ your hand in the tank - although I'd say the comparison (30% vs 100%) is a pretty good depiction.

 

(the more flow, the more you loose - running on a mag 9.5 I measured a 40% loss, and a mag 3.5 it's probably only like a 10-25% loss)

 

FWIW

[Abysswater]

well friday i gave in and bought an overflow box. i just don't have the time and tools to make one. it only cost me $47 shipped. i hope it works. i've spent at least $450 this weekend and i still have another $400 order from marine depot and i'll have everything i need to get started.

 

 

 

I'm right behind you! lol! All I need now is test kit, Water, and LR! Lighting is down the road after cycle. I want to make my canopy with lighting and LED moon lighting, and retrofit it all together.

[distantfire]

Thanx MadTownMax your right about it being a number's game. Maybe some day something like the SCWD will get built. And it will be able to use 100 percent of the pump's water flow. Just minus the head loss of course. Your tank's coming along great Abysswater keep up the good work.

[Abysswater]

Thanx MadTownMax your right about it being a number's game. Maybe some day something like the SCWD will get built. And it will be able to use 100 percent of the pump's water flow. Just minus the head loss of course. Your tank's coming along great Abysswater keep up the good work.

 

 

Thanks! Well here are my LED'S Just need to come up with a layout for canopy and other lighting etc. Enjoy!

 

They are Philips LED christmas lights. 11 bucks at Target.

[MadTownMax]

Maybe some day something like the SCWD will get built. And it will be able to use 100 percent of the pump's water flow. Just minus the head loss of course.

 

 

yes - the Oceans Motions Squirt - suggested above - www.oceansmotions.com

 

Thread hijack over - sorry abyss

[distantfire]

LOL yeah the squirts are nice Calvin has one on his 40 cube. But lately if been trying to keep hardware and power head's out of my tank's. The tank's are easier to keep clean, and I think over all the display look's nicer. And I am saving a little on my electric bill, not much but a little. I like your christmas tree light's there Abysswater they look like star's. And they seem to have a real nice moon glow inside the tank to. I think it would be a lot of fun building a hood to hold them all.

[Abysswater]

LOL yeah the squirts are nice Calvin has one on his 40 cube. But lately if been trying to keep hardware and power head's out of my tank's. The tank's are easier to keep clean, and I think over all the display look's nicer. And I am saving a little on my electric bill, not much but a little. I like your christmas tree light's there Abysswater they look like star's. And they seem to have a real nice moon glow inside the tank to. I think it would be a lot of fun building a hood to hold them all.

 

Thanks! Yea, just need to work around a retrofit lighting kit with the LED's.

[distantfire]

Yea look's like you got about 30 light's there for sure. Puting them all into a hood around your retrofit light's. I don't know if you can make them all fit. But you got a big job a head of you, even if they don't.