Matten filter-esque sump setup!

[SwampFins]

So after so much tinkering and overthinking my sump setup, I think I finally found what works best for me.

I ended up removing my baffles and instead I got 2 huge pieces of foam that fit snug in one end. Forming a chamber for the water coming in, and forcing the water through 4 inches of foam (40ppi). From there, it hits the bio media and back to the sump.

So far I dont even see the need for polyfilter to polish the water with the current mechanical stage as the water is crystal clear.

Anyone else running something similar? What has been your experience long term?

 

[Nilsafeller]

That's the type of setup I would do... I think filter socks are the way to go tho

 

[Backfromthedead]

I like the idea but also agree filter socks cant be beat for mechanical. I guess you really only need the sponge up to the water level too.

 

[SwampFins]

That's the type of setup I would do... I think filter socks are the way to go tho

I tried to go the sock route and while they worked great, the washing part was taking me quite a bit of time and more work than I wanted to put in.

But I may have had to fine of a sock

 

[Nilsafeller]

I tried to go the sock route and while they worked great, the washing part was taking me quite a bit of time and more work than I wanted to put in.

But I may have had to fine of a sock

I think cleaning a sock is alot easier then taking apart big soaked up sponges dripping all over the place ... but that's my OCD... I hate taking apart something I have built exactly how I want it and making a big mess lol

 

[Backfromthedead]

One thing about the full height sponges is that if they eventually get clogged up the water level in your drain section should climb just a little bit to flow through clean sponge...probably wont have to clean it for a year.

 

[esoxlucius]

I had a set up which was very similar but changed it after a few months, it just wasn't working for me. Here's why.

Usually mechanical filtration gets rinsed out regularly, I do mine weekly. I found taking out the large sponges very messy with water dripping all over. So, because they were large sponges I thought leave them longer, don't clean them as much and let the gunk build up, maybe clean them once a month.

But this made it worse when I did eventually get round to rinsing them out. Simply because when I disturbed the sponges, after a few weeks of collecting crud, and a lot of it too, a lot of the crud would drip off the sponges and settle on the bottom of the sump. So I had to vac the bottom of the sump then to prevent the crud getting sucked into my bio chamber and, over time, clogging that up.

And, also, as already mentioned, your water level will rise as they become clogged. This didn't sit well with me. I didn't like the idea of the water level rising and then unfiltered water flowing over the top of the sponges and directly into my bio chamber.

And, lastly, and more important in my opinion, is that those large sponges full of gunk, if not rinsed out regularly can become areas of increased nitrate build up.

On a positive note though, that lay out would probably work great on a lightly stocked tank of none messy fish. There'd be little waste and the sponges wouldn't get clogged so fast. But if you are heavily stocked with larger fish then you may have issues, as I did, further down the line.

 

[Tobiassorensen]

I run the same setup and im really happy with it.

 

[SwampFins]

I had a set up which was very similar but changed it after a few months, it just wasn't working for me. Here's why.

Usually mechanical filtration gets rinsed out regularly, I do mine weekly. I found taking out the large sponges very messy with water dripping all over. So, because they were large sponges I thought leave them longer, don't clean them as much and let the gunk build up, maybe clean them once a month.

But this made it worse when I did eventually get round to rinsing them out. Simply because when I disturbed the sponges, after a few weeks of collecting crud, and a lot of it too, a lot of the crud would drip off the sponges and settle on the bottom of the sump. So I had to vac the bottom of the sump then to prevent the crud getting sucked into my bio chamber and, over time, clogging that up.

And, also, as already mentioned, your water level will rise as they become clogged. This didn't sit well with me. I didn't like the idea of the water level rising and then unfiltered water flowing over the top of the sponges and directly into my bio chamber.

And, lastly, and more important in my opinion, is that those large sponges full of gunk, if not rinsed out regularly can become areas of increased nitrate build up.

On a positive note though, that lay out would probably work great on a lightly stocked tank of none messy fish. There'd be little waste and the sponges wouldn't get clogged so fast. But if you are heavily stocked with larger fish then you may have issues, as I did, further down the line.

Good to know. This is something I considered as I am heavily stocked, so well see how that goes lol. That said I do plan on cleaning it weekly as I usually do with my normal sponge filters, so hopefully it shouldn't get too bad.

Its probably too early to say how it will work for me as I've only been running it for 3 weeks but so far it's been great.

 

[Fish Tank Travis]

I actually just converted from a sponge and floss setup to a sock setup. I absolutely love my new sock setup. Maintenance is a breeze and I simply wash the socks in the washer with a little bit of bleach. They come out like new.

Here are some pictures of my old setup:

It wasn’t that great and cleaning it was a pain, so it regularly went a month or two without cleaning.

Here is my new setup:

The sock holders are $10 each from Amazon. The socks are 4”x14”, 200 micron filter socks. I would have liked to go with 7” socks, but I didn’t have the space.

You could easily go with a 7” sock with your setup and since you already have flexible tubing, swapping them would be super easy. Just get a bucket in the garage where you can let the dirty ones collect and then wash them once every few weeks or so.

Although your sponge setup is very good, I think you will find maintenance to be a pain with it, as others have mentioned. Having had both, I strongly recommend socks over sponges/floss.