Hey Greg

[Bullfrog]

I just scored. A carwash had some plasic 55 gallon drums and some 30's. I pulled in and asked and he said that he was supposed to haul them back but he gave me 1 55 gallon and two 30 gallons. They had soap in them so they will really have to rinsed extra well but they were free!! Is a 30 gallon big enough for a settlement chamber?

[frloplady]

30 gallon would make a nice size for a little upflow filter with saaayyy spring flo or strappping or shower scrubbies..but unless it's for a very small pond with a small pump it's not big enough.   You want the water to be in the tank (in theory) for a couple of minutes before being pumped out.  That gives time for the crud to settle out of the water.  In many cases even a 55 gallon is not big enough for settlement (my pond being one).  Figure a 1000 gph pump will pull out 16 gallons/minute..and you want 3-5 minutes?    Many will improvise and use prefilters of some kind before the pump out of settlement which can help

[-Greg-]

 x2 what Mary said, I believe the rule of thumb is that a 55 gal is the minimum size recommended so that you can achieve a decent amount of dwell time. Now a 30 on your up-flow sand and gravel filter or springflow filter as Mary stated would be just fine. When it comes time for the upflow media, check out crushed oyster shells instead of the sand or springflow layer, I am very pleased with the results. And what a find!! You can never go wrong with free!!!

[Bullfrog]

Yes, we have to have residency time in our steam condensate drums at work also so it does reason that 30 gallons isn't big enough. I'm looking at the top today, it does have the bung holes but maybe the entire top comes off as well, I seriously doubt it.

[-Greg-]

If the lid is not removable, you could always sawsall the top off (I am sure you already new that and I am stating the obvious). I made a faux rock cover out of some cardboard and fiberglass/resin to cover mine once the build was complete so I did not even use the lid. Again, what a find, if I remember correctly I think I paid $50 each for both of mine!

[Bullfrog]

A man has a winery near here and he sells them for $35.00 each. I plan on cutting the lid off and gluing some dogs inside of it made out of the 30 gallon one so I can replace the lid. I'll leave a lip.