# 210 gallon setup



## Mitch101 (Sep 15, 2007)

Hi all,
I might buy a 210 with 2 overflows (two holes each). Can a 55 gallon tank be used/modified for a sump? What size would be the best. Or would I be better off buying a premaid one?
Thanks for any replies...


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## cichlids _killer (Apr 13, 2008)

nad man just use that 55 gallon for the pump...i think 55 is way enough ...i got a same tank but i got 40gallon as a sump.


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## iceblue (Apr 27, 2004)

When it comes to sumps, the bigger the better imo. The more water you can get circulating in your system the better for your fish. The 55g is fine. :thumb:


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## Mitch101 (Sep 15, 2007)

Thanks,
Looks like I'm getting a plan together. Now I just got to figure out how to drill tempered glass.
:drooling:


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## iceblue (Apr 27, 2004)

Mitch101 said:


> Thanks,
> Looks like I'm getting a plan together. Now I just got to figure out how to drill tempered glass.
> :drooling:


Fugetaboutit. Tempered glass that have holes in them were drilled before they went through the tempering process. Most likely you'll end up with a shattered mess on your floor. If you need the hole for a pump on the sump you'ld be better off with a submersable inside of it. If you need the hole in your tank for getting water out your better off useing an overflow box.


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## znk (Apr 7, 2007)

Mitch101 said:


> Thanks,
> Looks like I'm getting a plan together. Now I just got to figure out how to drill tempered glass.
> :drooling:


You cant do that. Unless you want this to happen...


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## Mitch101 (Sep 15, 2007)

Well alrighty then, guess I am getting a submersible pump :lol: 
This will be my first tank with a sump and am still learning.
Thanks for the help. :thumb:


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## Laurel (Jun 17, 2007)

The vast majority of smaller tanks only have tempered bottom panels. I know that my 75 gallon tank only has a tempered bottom for increased strength.


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## Mitch101 (Sep 15, 2007)

Ahhh....good point :idea:


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## AU Chief (Jun 20, 2007)

could you potentially drill side of tanks that aren't pre-drilled on the bottome instead of using an overflow box? This would elimante the need of a siphon. I'm just throwing something out here I could be way wrong, but this would seem like it would work. Drill a few holes at different points where you want you're water line to be and then have that water flow to your sump?


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## IrkedCitizen (Apr 26, 2007)

Mitch101 said:


> Hi all,
> I might buy a 210 with 2 overflows (two holes each). Can a 55 gallon tank be used/modified for a sump? What size would be the best. Or would I be better off buying a premaid one?
> Thanks for any replies...


You could use a 55g like everyone else said but a 55g tank is 20-21" tall. If your stand is shorter than 30" it could be a PITA to perform maintenance on the sump. When maintenance is a PITA you will tend not to do it very often which is a bad thing. Also with it being so tall your media tower might not be able to be removed once it is installed. You are going to need a tall stand or to put the sump in an adjacent room or in the basement.

Ideally you want a wet/dry sump to hold 15-20% of the display tank volume while running. So with a 210 gallon tank you would want to have 31.5-42g inside the sump while operating. But this isn't really necessary. It all comes down to how much media you have in the tower but the more water the better. And you don't want it full all the way in case of failure which shouldn't be an issue if you take the necessary precautions.

Hope that helps. :thumb:



AU Convicts said:


> could you potentially drill side of tanks that aren't pre-drilled on the bottome instead of using an overflow box? This would elimante the need of a siphon. I'm just throwing something out here I could be way wrong, but this would seem like it would work. Drill a few holes at different points where you want you're water line to be and then have that water flow to your sump?


Yes you can drill tanks on the side panes. That is, of course, if the sides aren't tempered glass.

It is better to drill the hole lower than where you want the waterline to be. You then add a PVC 90 to the bulkhead facing upward, If needed add a length of PVC pipe into the top of the 90 until you achieve the desired waterline. You wouldn't have to glue this PVC as the pressure from pushing the PVC together is sufficient to keep it from leaking because it isn't under pressure. The bulkhead gasket will keep the tank from leaking. On the outside of the tank I would then attach a PVC "T" fitting to the bulkhead which you would attach lengths of PVC pipe to go to the sump.

I would angle/tilt the T fitting so that it is not 90 degrees vertical as this will cut down on the gurgle/flushing noise. This is basically a modified Durso standpipe.

A picture says a thousand words so I drew up a little sketch. Without further ado...










Of course there are other ways to set it up but I think this is the easiest way. You could build an over box to go around this which would pretty much be a "built-in" overflow but with it draining out the back instead of the bottom. If you built the overflow box you of course would just flip the 90 fitting downward and have a regular Durso Standpipe.

Also you can use any size PVC and fittings that you wanted.


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## Mitch101 (Sep 15, 2007)

Last night I was looking at how to build a tower and I thought, wonder if the tank is too tall or stand is short. I will check, or maybe get a taller stand....Thanks for the info


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