Okay, some friends of mine were looking to upgrade their 55g and I saw a good price on a 125 and pointed them in that direction. They keep tropicals and the plan was to go with a FX5 filter. The LFS talked them into a 125 with corner overflows. Don't really want to go the wet/dry route on a freshwater tank! Any ideas?
Filter recommendations
- Thread starter BadOleRoss
- Start date
Take it back and get what you want. Personally, I would have gone overflows and made a sump. Much better filter and very versatile.
OK, let me look at sumps. This is a local business and one of the things they liked about the overflows was the "built in" aspect of the filter system. I will now go in search of a reasonably priced sump set up. Maybe go DIY if I cant find something I like. Thanks for the input!
+10...I kno canister filters r the big 'hype' rite now, but I been running overflow sump systems (wet/dry) on most of my tanks for 15+yrs, n hav had much better success than with canister filters. U hav alot more versatility with a sump (pump gph rate/size, amount of bio-media, etc). Not to mention can run additional filtration from sump and hide glass heaters in sump.
Most of my setups r sumps, but also run a canister along side them. My SW setups usually stay straight sump, sum with added powerhead. Not to brag, but to certify sumps as excellent filtration, I kept a wild caught sea horse alive in captivity for nearly 4yrs. Two others (from Hawaii tank raised for 3yrs. No canister ever used on those tanks. My latest attempt on sea horse, 5gal canister. 2 seahorse lasted only 8months
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I think having the overflows is still nice option even though you dont want to run a sump... they are a better option IMO and I really dont understand why some people over think the complexity of them, They are easier to maintain then a canister.
Anyways, you could always plumb your overflow to connect with your fx5, put your heater in the overflow box to give your tank a clean look. I did this about ten years ago with a 135gal and 2 xp3's. I run a sump setup now and couldn't imagine running a canister again... hated opening it up to clean.
Either way I am sure the fx5 is a great filter but If it were me I could run a sump on that tank since it already has an overflow.
good luck and keep us updated on the tank build
Anyways, you could always plumb your overflow to connect with your fx5, put your heater in the overflow box to give your tank a clean look. I did this about ten years ago with a 135gal and 2 xp3's. I run a sump setup now and couldn't imagine running a canister again... hated opening it up to clean.
Either way I am sure the fx5 is a great filter but If it were me I could run a sump on that tank since it already has an overflow.
good luck and keep us updated on the tank build
You could always hard plumb the filters into the setup. Just spend a few bucks on new hose and bulkheads for the FX5 and you should be off and running.
Or, just buy a used tank, pump, ceramic mediam filter floss and some PVC and get to work. Either way will work just fine.