Filtration What to Use

[ladygwen]

Hi I am new to the forum and fairly new to salt tanks

I am getting ready to start up a new 75g tank. I do want to do deep sand bed and some live rock ( not sure how much). I am wondering in others opinion and from others experience what is the best way to go in the filtration dept.

I have read about all different types, but not sure which direction to head.

fluidized bed
canister
wet/dry
refugium etc.....

How do I know what is right????
Also I know it wouldn't be time for it yet, but what are the best choices for skimmers on the market?????

I would like to say Hello and thank you for any info that might help me out

Ladygwen

[reefrash]

A good protien skimmer is critical, I'd go Coralife CSS 125 most bang for the buck. As far as the other stuff goes, look up the Berlin method (DSB with skimming) you might find you don't need the other stuff. Of course that depends on your vision of the tank. Are you setting up a sump? If you do, it opens up a lot of avenues (refugium, media containers etc.). Otherwise get a good skimmer.

[Fishieness]

Hi I am new to the forum and fairly new to salt tanks

I am getting ready to start up a new 75g tank. I do want to do deep sand bed and some live rock ( not sure how much). I am wondering in others opinion and from others experience what is the best way to go in the filtration dept.

I have read about all different types, but not sure which direction to head.

fluidized bed
canister
wet/dry
refugium etc.....

How do I know what is right????
Also I know it wouldn't be time for it yet, but what are the best choices for skimmers on the market?????

I would like to say Hello and thank you for any info that might help me out

Ladygwen

i agree on a good skimmer. i ahve a CSS and i liek it a lot, but id say get an aqua c remora if you are going hang on back. before we can suggest your filtration, tell us what you plan on keeping. and example is you sohuld do a wet/dry if you are planning on keeping sensitive reef corals like sps but they would work great for a fish only like an agressive tank.

[ladygwen]

Well it's a 75g tank and was wanting to do a deep sand bed with some live rock, fish, inverts, and some soft corals. We're looking at Remora for a skimmer, and still trying to decide what to do for filtration.

Thanks :dive:

[reefrash]

We're looking at Remora for a skimmer, and still trying to decide what to do for filtration.

Skimming provides your filtration. You don't want mechanical or biological filtration in a reef tank. If I have to run machanical I use Aquaclear quick filters for a max. 48 hrs. That way I don't give it a chance to develop a large colony of nitrifying bacteria and still clean crud. Most importantly get a good skimmer and you really don't need very much more.

[Blinky]

Skimming provides your filtration. You don't want mechanical or biological filtration in a reef tank.
JMO, but I have to disagree here! Biological filtration in some capacity is essential in ANY tank. I think what you mean is to let the live rock and sand perform the majority of the bio filtration (between live sand and live rock you'll get nitrification and denitrification), rather than relying on a canister, wet/dry, etc. where mechanical media can trap waste and contribute to high NO3 levels (no opportunity for denitrification).

If the tank will be a reef, and you need to keep NO3 to a minimum, I would let LR and LS be your main filter, along with a really good skimmer. If the tank will have little rock, and you're keeping mostly fish with a few softies, you might want to operate closer to a fish-only or fish-only with live rock system and use an outside filter of some kind - keeping NO3 at or near 0 isn't as crucial in this type of system, and a filter can really help process fish waste quickly and efficiently.

There are fifty zillion ways to set your system up, all have benefits. Check out SW forums like www.reefcentral.com, there's LOADS of research material there :)

[reefrash]

[QUOTE=Blinky]JMO, but I have to disagree here! Biological filtration in some capacity is essential in ANY tank. I think what you mean is to let the live rock and sand perform the majority of the bio filtration

Yeah, sorry I should have said "in reef tanks(unless you are from the year 1988[w/d]), please, no man made biological filtration."

[Fishieness]

well you dont need a HOB filter, but you definatly need biological filtration, but this comes in the form of live rock and your sand bed.

[Blinky]

Reefrash - LOL I have a few books that I bought way back when I first started in 1990 that were written in the eighties. Thank goodness I went with FW back then or I might have had a lovely tank with an undergravel filter powered by airstones, 3" of crushed coral, dead coral skeletons for decoration and a single fluorescent strip light. One of the books I have even states that it's impossible to keep living corals alive in the aquarium! Boy the hobby's come a long way, I'm so glad I took this long to get into SW :D

[Fishieness]

Well it's a 75g tank and was wanting to do a deep sand bed with some live rock, fish, inverts, and some soft corals. We're looking at Remora for a skimmer, and still trying to decide what to do for filtration.

Thanks :dive:
since you are planning on doing corals, and trust me, no one ever stays with just softies (spoken from experience here). i started out saying i was jsut goign to do softies. i now have LPS, SPS, and a clam. but for the reason that you awnt to go with corals, i wouldnt recomend a wet/dry or a canister filter. id say go all natural. get your remora, then a large sump/refugium with a DSB (in your main tank too), macro algae, and live rock. and have the same thing in your main tank with powerheads. you can have a HOB filter too, but it wont do a WHOLE lot. id say just put some carbon in a filter back in your refugium.

[reefrash]

Reefrash - LOL I have a few books that I bought way back when I first started in 1990 that were written in the eighties. Thank goodness I went with FW back then or I might have had a lovely tank with an undergravel filter powered by airstones, 3" of crushed coral, dead coral skeletons for decoration and a single fluorescent strip light. One of the books I have even states that it's impossible to keep living corals alive in the aquarium! Boy the hobby's come a long way, I'm so glad I took this long to get into SW :D


Not to hijack here, but you are so right. I've been doing salt since the early eighties, and man I've seen/done some funny stuff.