Hello,
I have a 78 gallon planted tank with happy friendly community fish. The tank has the overflow for a sump. I originally tried it out but I didn't like the filtration. I was just using some plastic containers with filter floss in the 10 gallon sump. No baffles or anything like that. Instead I ran canister filters for years and the tank looked great. Now both filters have leaked, causing damage to the floors, and I don't really want to try them again. I also like that the sump keeps the water level filled in the main tank.
So my question is this:
What is a good sump layout for freshwater? Do you know of who builds any? All the designs I saw were for a protein skimmer for the filtration, which of course doesn't work in freshwater.
My thoughts / concerns:
I understand that filter socks can be a pain in the buns. I would want to maintain the media about every two weeks. The canisters could go a month.
I wouldn't mind a "refugium" area for breeding worms and other yummies for the fish
It would need to probably be about the size of a 20 high, a 20 long can't fit in the cabinet without moving the tank, and I'm not about to do that.
My tank is heavily planted, I do not run CO2, and everything has been stable for quite some time. I want to get the poop out of the water. I liked the polishing pads on the canisters and how sparkling clean the water was with them.
Does anyone have a good design for this type of setup? I'm sure I can craft one, but I don't see a good solution for good mechanical filtration at this point.
Thanks!
I have a 78 gallon planted tank with happy friendly community fish. The tank has the overflow for a sump. I originally tried it out but I didn't like the filtration. I was just using some plastic containers with filter floss in the 10 gallon sump. No baffles or anything like that. Instead I ran canister filters for years and the tank looked great. Now both filters have leaked, causing damage to the floors, and I don't really want to try them again. I also like that the sump keeps the water level filled in the main tank.
So my question is this:
What is a good sump layout for freshwater? Do you know of who builds any? All the designs I saw were for a protein skimmer for the filtration, which of course doesn't work in freshwater.
My thoughts / concerns:
I understand that filter socks can be a pain in the buns. I would want to maintain the media about every two weeks. The canisters could go a month.
I wouldn't mind a "refugium" area for breeding worms and other yummies for the fish
It would need to probably be about the size of a 20 high, a 20 long can't fit in the cabinet without moving the tank, and I'm not about to do that.
My tank is heavily planted, I do not run CO2, and everything has been stable for quite some time. I want to get the poop out of the water. I liked the polishing pads on the canisters and how sparkling clean the water was with them.
Does anyone have a good design for this type of setup? I'm sure I can craft one, but I don't see a good solution for good mechanical filtration at this point.
Thanks!
