Ever wondered why none of the roller mat companies built of the previous build your own sump methodology?
Well I did. I used to build sumps from 20-125g tanks and add baffles etc to make them cheaper and easier for each setup I had and I was frustrated that no better option existed to integrate a roller mat aside from drop in sock replacements and the stand alone like the one Red Sea made.
I had a platinum trigger sump that used a roller mat and I couldn’t use that on my 600g system. So I used a Red Sea 1200. Which was too small and took up a lot of space. Not to mention going through 6ft a day.
I decided I would try and build one since trigger made a roller mat upgrade kit for their sump. But I would build a custom baffle that would utilize it. The new one has connections so you can monitor the roller from an apex.
The project began. And I used PVC to build the custom box to add to a PVC baffle I had in my 125g sump. But the design can be customized to any sump design easily.
I will upgrade the top piece in the future for a guide on the dirty roller side to keep it closer to the mesh. The mesh was purchased from Amazon for car grills. Since it is a intercell pattern each part of the roller gets used. I used PVC house trim to add support to the seams. 1/4” drill bits for holes to use the screws to secure trigger pieces to the pvc. I used a previous frag rack since I had that laying around, hence all the holes in the grid support pieces.
Given the trigger roller mat is 50% more than the Red Sea mat and costs the same. I’ll be saving there. And the roller kit is $380. The other items are under $50. So total setup is cheaper than most for a 10” roller.
Well I did. I used to build sumps from 20-125g tanks and add baffles etc to make them cheaper and easier for each setup I had and I was frustrated that no better option existed to integrate a roller mat aside from drop in sock replacements and the stand alone like the one Red Sea made.
I had a platinum trigger sump that used a roller mat and I couldn’t use that on my 600g system. So I used a Red Sea 1200. Which was too small and took up a lot of space. Not to mention going through 6ft a day.
I decided I would try and build one since trigger made a roller mat upgrade kit for their sump. But I would build a custom baffle that would utilize it. The new one has connections so you can monitor the roller from an apex.
The project began. And I used PVC to build the custom box to add to a PVC baffle I had in my 125g sump. But the design can be customized to any sump design easily.
I will upgrade the top piece in the future for a guide on the dirty roller side to keep it closer to the mesh. The mesh was purchased from Amazon for car grills. Since it is a intercell pattern each part of the roller gets used. I used PVC house trim to add support to the seams. 1/4” drill bits for holes to use the screws to secure trigger pieces to the pvc. I used a previous frag rack since I had that laying around, hence all the holes in the grid support pieces.
Given the trigger roller mat is 50% more than the Red Sea mat and costs the same. I’ll be saving there. And the roller kit is $380. The other items are under $50. So total setup is cheaper than most for a 10” roller.
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