Sump, HOB Filter or Canister. What do you use? Tank info needed also

[pinoysport]

Im debating a few options for my tank in the house. the bigger ones i usually see are the ones that have the compartment in the bank for sump setups. <100 gall tanks.

question if you go with thanks that has the compartment for the sump what would you put in there if you didn’t use a sump? airstone? heater? intake for canister?

what do you use? a traditional tank with no compartment for a sump or the ones with the compartment for the sump?


what is better sump? hob filter? canister?


anyone? thanks.

[DerekFF]

Depends on if its set up with an overflow, otherwise you gotta get a little custom jobby and it gets expensive real fast. Im a fan of sumps, super easy to clean, change media, can hide the heaters in the sump if its big enough. Canisters are nice, pretty quiet, efficient in the sense that it creates a water flow and cleans at the same time. HOB are cheap/easy to use, but take up more space because of the hang-on part lol. In summary im a fan of sumps for anything, but thats me. Lots of bigger tanks use canisters w/sumps so i hear. Up to you, but my fav's are sumps. Made my own, works great and a 10g sump takes care of my 110 tall with 8 adults and some BNP's without breaking a sweat

[Jennie]

I run 2 AC 110's on my 125.. have had a canister filter, large and awkward to remove from cabinet to clean but super quiet.. also ran tank on 3 Hydro 5 sponge filters only...worked great but takes up space and not very appealing to the eye. now keep 2 HOB's on the tank, cannot see anything but intakes and super efficient and def has good output.

[DerekFF]

yeah HOB's are good, do a pretty dang good job w/2 (1 never really cuts it unless its SUPER SIZED for the tank, ive tried HOB on many tanks over the years because i was young, cheap and not very aquarium savy) things i dont like about HOB filters is that when the power goes out......they have a tendency to drain out and then when power comes back on, they cant start suction again and burn themselves out, and also they make me put the aquarium farther away from the wall, which on aquariums with hoods or that are inside....space matters.

[ericatdallas]

I have two Fluval 405s and they're a pain to clean. As someone else stated, depending on how you have it setup, you have to maneuver under under your cabinets to get at them.

After that, I'm not quite good at it, but disconnecting the hoses can spill a little water sometimes. Then I have to take it outside, because as of yet, I'm unable to remove the lid without some water splashing out. It's cold right now...

So I end up not cleaning my filters as often as I should. I don't know if this is a problem with just me, Fluvals, or just my units. Although I've read other people have similar problems.

I have a HOB, it makes a lot of noise if the water level gets too low. Drives my wife nuts but doesn't bother me. It's kind of higher maintenance but it's easy to get at.

As for Sump, I don't have any experience. I was actually researching them the last couple of days and the common advice is that they're superior for 100G tanks and above, makes it easy to dose tank with medication, WC are easier and less stressful for fish, BUT they make more noise, require a larger footprint, and are more expensive.

[jcardona1]

I'm a sump freak. They give you most most room for bio media, the best mechanical filtration (filter socks), hide all equipment, avoid having to top off the tank, and can be made to be quieter than any other filter (Herbie pipe, etc). I even have a sump on my little 57g tank! And a simple DIY sump will cost you far less than a canister filter.

For example:

My 10g sump on a 57g tank

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=512154&thumb=1&d=1279767546 (http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=512154&d=1279767546)

[pinoysport]

thanks for all the posts. im looking at two tanks... one has the overflow so it would be used with a sump and one does not.... not sure which way to go.... lol

[inmisawa]

When I set my tank up, I had to decide between the sump and a canister. I hate canisters. They're messy and they're a pain to deal with in general, although they are very quiet. I decided to try something else, and now that I know how to clean it properly, I'm glad I did it. My sump is a DIY, 40 gal aquarium, two 350gph pumps and the heater, all for under $200.

The only thing I have an issue with is the media. The guy that helped me with my sump didn't hook me up with any, and I don't know what the best method for adding it is. What kind of container are you guys using?

[Justice]

None of the above!

In the future i intend to replace all my canister filters and Hob filters as they wear out with HMF Filters and/or Hydro Sponges those along with frequent WC's seem to work better for me and i like the simplicity .

i will however keep a couple AC Filters running on my wifes Non BB tank as she does not like the look of BB tanks or sponge filters.

[Jhhnn]

I use a combination of sponge filters and either canisters or wet/dry sump w/ bioballs, prefilter sponge. I think that the wet/dry really is superior, but there is some running water noise. One of the advantages of canisters or sump filters is that pump discharge can be arranged in such a way as to herd detritus into smaller discreet areas for quick siphoning & cleaner bare bottoms.

I'd like to explore sumps using Kaldnes media, largely because they're supposedly self cleaning. Obviously, a robust airpump would be required.

[jcardona1]

but there is some running water noise.

By getting away from the convential wet/dry setup and going towards a sump with fully submerged media, you can make the setup totally silent with the use of a Herbie pipe or Beananimal setup...

[Jhhnn]

By getting away from the convential wet/dry setup and going towards a sump with fully submerged media, you can make the setup totally silent with the use of a Herbie pipe or Beananimal setup...

I hear you, but I think that the whole thin film of water running over biomedia trickle filter concept is really good. My one tank with the trickle filter processes ammonium much faster than the tanks with wet filters, indicating superior bacterial conversion. Denver water has chloramines, and I change a lot of it daily using prime. The wet filter tanks show some small amount of ammonium the next morning after a water change, but the trickle filter tank shows none, and it's actually the most heavily populated. That's using the Seachem ammonia/ammonium test kit.

I'm sure some consider me to be a water changing fanatic, but I've been able to feed large quantities of food to growing discus with impunity, growing them out quite well by anybody's standards. My discus are B-b-big, just the way they're supposed to be...

[Darrell Ward]

I hear you, but I think that the whole thin film of water running over biomedia trickle filter concept is really good. My one tank with the trickle filter processes ammonium much faster than the tanks with wet filters, indicating superior bacterial conversion. Denver water has chloramines, and I change a lot of it daily using prime. The wet filter tanks show some small amount of ammonium the next morning after a water change, but the trickle filter tank shows none, and it's actually the most heavily populated. That's using the Seachem ammonia/ammonium test kit.

I'm sure some consider me to be a water changing fanatic, but I've been able to feed large quantities of food to growing discus with impunity, growing them out quite well by anybody's standards. My discus are B-b-big, just the way they're supposed to be...

Having used submerged bio media in sumps for many years, I would say if you ever show any trace of ammonia, either the bio media is inefficient, or there is not enough bio material. I realize that everyone's setup is different, but honestly I have never had that problem. I've been using 8" thick Poret foam (2-4" pieces) as a pre filter, and it holds incredible amounts of bacteria on it's own, and about 5 gals. of SeaChem Pond Matrix in the bottom of the 55 gal. sump of my 240 gal. It will easily handle far more fish load than I'm willing to put in it.

[Jhhnn]

Thanks, Darrell. I can't make any comparisons to wet sumps, just between my one trickle filter sump and canisters. Those of us who have chloramine treated tap water will have some ammonium in the makeup water, even using prime or chloram-x. I noticed that the trickle filter seemed to process it faster than the canisters, figured it was due to superior oxygenation, but it's probably due to more complex factors, as you've pointed out.

[Darrell Ward]

Thanks, Darrell. I can't make any comparisons to wet sumps, just between my one trickle filter sump and canisters. Those of us who have chloramine treated tap water will have some ammonium in the makeup water, even using prime or chloram-x. I noticed that the trickle filter seemed to process it faster than the canisters, figured it was due to superior oxygenation, but it's probably due to more complex factors, as you've pointed out.

I guess I'm lucky not to have chloramine. I'm thinking the addition of airstones to the wet sump might be of some help to speed up the process. Just a thought.

[Frankr409]

When I set my tank up, I had to decide between the sump and a canister. I hate canisters. They're messy and they're a pain to deal with in general, although they are very quiet. I decided to try something else, and now that I know how to clean it properly, I'm glad I did it. My sump is a DIY, 40 gal aquarium, two 350gph pumps and the heater, all for under $200.

The only thing I have an issue with is the media. The guy that helped me with my sump didn't hook me up with any, and I don't know what the best method for adding it is. What kind of container are you guys using?

I felt that way about the Eheims I had been running as well, but love the Fluval G6 that I am running now.

[TURQ64]

I run several sumps, and some of the parts are quite 'Rube Goldberg' (DIY). One sump has a shallow (about 8") Rubbermaid tub above the sump containing 5 gallons of bio-balls. 3/8" hole are drilled in the lid. Where the end of the tank drains are, I place a sock over the end for pre-filtering..I change the sock every couple of days. I also have 'store bought' sumps, but this one out performs the others...

[angel eyes]

No room for a sump in my case, but I do run the Rena Filstar Xp4's and have to say maintenance is easy and lots of room for various types of media. Love the quick disconnect too and I don't have to break my back lifting it out of the stand!

[14cichlid]

55gallon tank

undergravel filter system (2 power heads)
2 whisper 60's (600 gph) :D

[Darrell Ward]

55gallon tank

undergravel filter system (2 power heads)
2 whisper 60's (600 gph) :D:

As "the old man" on the TV show "Pawn Stars" would say, "OH MY GOD"!

[RodneyL001]

I have several different types of filters on my tank, I have a Cascade canister filter, a Whisper HOB, a Hot Magnum, a UGF, and I recently purchased a denitrifying filter. Everything but a sump. I have bee doing this for years, and when I want to upgrade, I just keep what I have upgraded from.

[dbfzurowski]

I like the sump also, i hide everything in there