Hello from Southern California

[badflash]

Check:
Home Brew Filters
and
My 700 gallon basement system

[Riverside]

Wow you've got some monster tilapia in there <g>. I'll have to study your setup more in detail, looks like a lot of really neat ideas. I really like your cheapo bead filter, have to try that...

Mostly, I was looking for ways to get the poop out of the main 90 gallon aquarium w/out setting up a siphon disaster waiting to happen. I've made a custom overflow box and have the return water flow flowing towards it with a large airstone right below it, which kinda works in getting the poop out of the main tank. Definitely looking for better ideas to accomplish this,

[badflash]

I'll shoot you a video of a 90 gallon glass tank I have about 25 Rocky Mountain Whites in. I have an overflow system that takes suction from the bottom. Water goes in at the other end. Active fish makes sure the stuff gets moved towards the overflow & out. Very little solids stay in the tank.

[badflash]

OK, check
My 700 gallon basement system

[Riverside]

Saw your Rocky Mountain Whites, beautiful! I've heard of them but have never seen them yet; are they particularly aggressive? Hard to keep?

Yes, saw the intake at the bottom, but what happens during a power failure? Does it siphon the water out? Or, if not, how did you arrange it to break suction after a power failure? That's the part I can't wrap my head around;

[badflash]

The overflow is at the top. The top is open at that T used in case anything clogs up. If there is a power failure it simply drains to the level where the pipe comes through the glass.

[Riverside]

Ah, "through the glass", so it's a drain not a siphon; well, I'm not quite ready to start drilling holes in my tank, so I suppose I'm still looking for a design that has a siphon tube starting at the bottom of the tank, comes over the top and goes to a sump below that will break suction if power fails, I've thought about using a 12 volt valve that will open up during a failure; thanks anyway

[badflash]

Look closely at the center of the tank. You will see a strainer at the bottom and the loop seal towards the top.


Water is comming in from the hose at the top. It drains to the tank below that ends up going to the sump.

[Riverside]

Loop seal? new term for me, kinda like a sink's p-trap?

In the (admittedly) rough sketch below, using such a loop cause the water to siphon out when at level "A" but stop when at level "B"? If so you've taught me a new trick!

[badflash]

Close, no cigar.
The 1st loop goes over the side of the tank.
The top of the 2nd loop has a T and vent. It must be lower than the side of the tank and the level of this T sets the water level.