3fx5s on a 300??

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
the tank originally came with three and i had another one on a friends tank that i finally got back so i just threw it on ther. if i had time to do a sump i would. alot easier to maintain. this tak is even pre drilled with boxes. 2 of the fx5s are plumbed in the overflow boxes. but the fx5s are quieter. i might go to a sump when i move again. but for right now these are what im sticking with.
what size sump would yall recomened? the tank has a foot print of 3ftx6ft so i could do a huge rubbermaid. or have a custom acrylic made by a friend.
hmmm now yall have me thinkin! lol
 
1st: Bio balls are all but useless in a canister. I would take them out and replace them with ceramic rings.

IMHO: the major advantage of a sump in a wet/dry configuration is that it adds a huge amount of oxygen to the water right at the point the beneficial bacteria consumes it. This is where bio balls really prove their worth. The bio balls provide a medium surrounded by oxygen with water trickling over them for the bacteria to grow. The bio balls also do a great job of breaking incoming streams of water down to drops of water. These drops of water have many times the surface area of streams of water allowing for a huge amount of oxygen exchange and off gassing of various compounds. There is simply nothing comparable to this with a canister as they are a sealed system.

As for making a sump: Pretty much any spare tank will do. The rubbermaid containers would be fine (I personally think they are too flexible but that is just my taste as many people use them). You could even put a pump and some air stones in the bottom of a 5 gallon bucket. Add 5 gallons of bioballs on top and craft a drip tray to go on top of the bio balls.

If I were going to have an acrylic sump built I would integrate a compartment for filter bags, have the bulk of the volume dedicated to bio balls in a wet/dry state and have a third compartment so you can easily access the return pump.
 
if i do a sump it will prob be 100 gallons and will be rigged to have 2 bio pellet chambers and a ton of scrubbies to drop through.
 
scalesandfins said:
if i do a sump it will prob be 100 gallons and will be rigged to have 2 bio pellet chambers and a ton of scrubbies to drop through.
Click to expand...

You really don't need a 100 gallon. A standard 75 will he more than enough. Cheap as well.
 
yea. these fx5s are a pain to maintain :/ they get so dirty so fast. im goin to look at selling them and doin this soon. i would really like an acrylic sump thats made for use as a wet dry. dont really want to convert a tank. but might. not sure yet. im posting the fxs on craigs today
 
put an add on cl trading my 2 fx5s for a sump
got 3 calls in an hour! found a guy who is goin to build me a 4ft sump with dual bio towers on each end and its goin to draw from the middle. also comes with a snapper pump :) good deal i think
 
i think i will too. alot less hassle to change components on it. like right now my fx5 on my 90 cube needs to be cleaned but im too lazy to take it out lol and dont want to get yelled at about the mess by the woman
 
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