Is this a god wet/dry filter?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Nepherael said:
I'm doing some research into these types of filters as a 'before the fact' kind of thing. As I was looking I saw this and it seemed to be on the lower end of the proce range. I figured I would post it and get some experienced opinions on it what is good or bad about it so I would know in the future what to look for. Know what I mean?


http://www.thatpetplace.com/eshopps-wd-100cs-wet-dry-filter
Click to expand...


Better price:
http://www.petsolutions.com/C/Wet-Dry-Aquarium-Filters/I/Eshopps-Wet-Dry-Sump-Filters.aspx


About 6 1/2 years ago I bought a ProClear Aquatics 400. We were newbies and had to set up our tank in a hurry. For the money I paid, I was really disappointed in how simple the thing was. I will never buy another one. Go to an LFS or some place where you can see how simple they are. (I didn't have that luxury). I highly recommend that you check out the DIY on this forum. Check out all the wonderful sumps that members have made for their systems. The other thing about just buying a wet/dry trickle filter off the shelf is that while they are fantastic for biological filtration, as is, they are not great for mechanical filtration. We have an entirely separate mechanical filtration system.

The beauty of a DIY system, is that you can incorporate filter socks and have a filter with good biological and mechanical filtration. The other thing about wet/dry trickle filters is that the bioballs are NOT submerged. I found that to be very problematic because we have frequent power outages in our area. If the biomedia dries out, you will lose beneficial bacteria. During a power outage, I have to add extra water to my tank so that the water level rises in my wet/dry filter and submerges the bioballs temporarily. Some of the DIYers exclusively use ceramic type media which is submerged, or a combination of trickle media and submersible media.

So check out the DIY sumps. If you see something that interests you or you have questions about, PM the member. All members are very helpful.
 
I was kinda thinking the same thing and was looking into building something myself or having someone do it. For the process i see where you're coming from. I'll definitely look into it and if there any DIY'ers out there with some know how or some good resources feel free to pm me or post here.
 
Thank you for the suggestion pacu. I currently have a thread up and waiting for a reply after someone asked my budget. Maybe I'll get lucky and find someone to either walk me through it or OS willing to build it for me (because they would be more knowledgable)
 
I think that particular sump is better suited for a saltwater setup. You will notice that the empty pump compartment is as big if not bigger than the bio ball compartment. I believe this is so the Salties will have room for a protein skimmer. For fresh water people this is just wasted space.

... and seemingly overpriced for what you get.

I have a manufactured sump and love it... but I bought it off of craigs list for $40. I would be really mad if I had paid retail for it.
 
go to liveaquaria.com they have a even bigger model for cheaper

thats where i got mine
 
Definitely do some reading in the DIY forum because for that price you can have a really, really, nice sump. Not including the price of the pump, because that one doesn't come with one either, you can definitely make a sump 2 or 4 times as large for that price, and still have PLENTY of money for media, plumbing, etc.
 
DIY or search on mfk marketplace or craigslist for a used wet/dry filter. You can do much better for much less $
 
knobhill said:
DIY or search on mfk marketplace or craigslist for a used wet/dry filter. You can do much better for much less $
Click to expand...

Absolutely agree. Someone on aquaria central gave me some help today on specs for pipe size and how to build it. Add that to my own research and I'm ready to start slowly accumulating parts as I can afford it to get one built.

I was REALLY hoping to find someone on MFK that upgraded to a larger tank and had an old manufactured or DIY wet/dry they wanted to sell. Would have made my day and I'm going to keep searching
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
MonsterFishKeepers.com
Top Bottom