I wanted to make sure the drain pipe was supported in place. I glued two layers of acrylic together. The bottom layer offset to fit the aquarium rim trim. Hole drilled for the drain pipe bulkhead and siliconed in place.
This is the glass filter sock cover set in place. You can see the corner cut that fits around the drain pipe mount.
I saw this item online called a sock silencer. It is designed to spread the water before it falls, instead of all the water falling at the sock perimeter, which supposedly makes it quieter. There is a 1 inch overflow hole in the center that is designed to relieve the water, if the small drain holes plug.
I used the leftover round pieces from the sock hole cuts for this. First, counter sinked the holes, then drilled through the counter sinks.
Here are the finished sock silencers with a center overflow hole.
The center overflow pipe is made from air conditioner drain pipe. It's thin wall SDR 21 or something like that.
That sump looks great. You have some solid DIY skills. Just keep an eye out for detritus buildup in that small area before the filter socks.
Tom
Tom - I'll be watching for detritus in the drain chamber. From what I have read, the drain flow turbulence in the small chamber keeps the detritus from settling and moving on. I have no practical experience to know if the design or sock silencers will even work. I just mimicked commercial designs. This is on the job training for me :]
The skimmer cup and return pump come out easy, but not the skimmer without sliding the sump out a few inches.
A friend who owns a flooring company found this dense rubber tile in their warehouse. I lined the bottom of the cabinet this. I hope this dampens some of the vibration. I ended up with an extra sheet of this, if anyone would like to try it.