NEW w/ POLL canister vs. wet/dry

[plecostic]

I"m thinking of using my canister for bio filtration only and then two AC 110 HOB for mechanical.

I keep hearing sump users boast about how much bio media capacity they have, this seems to be their biggest selling point. I'll put my small bag of ceramic rings on my HOB against your massive bio-sump any day. Once you have 0 ammonia/nitrites, how much bio media you have is irrelevant and a mood point. You can have a football field of bio-media and it still wouldn't matter. My HOB will do the same as your tons of bio media at less the cost and maintenance. The goal is 0 ammonia/nitrites, once you have that game over, so simple filter setup is always better in the long run.

 

[trizzot]

Wet dry leads to more lost sleep. I run both, My 150 reef has a wet dry, my 300 fresh has FX5's. Canister is simple. fill the trays, plug it in, leave it for a month or so. The wet dry has lot of hazards. I think it does offer a little better filteration, but its alot more work. Without stepping on any toes, I have lots of experience on Wet Drys. First you have to plumb them. Bulkheads= drilling= cracks/drips/leaks sometimes. Overflow boxes, durso standpipes can clog, make gurgle sounds. Power outtages leave you to wonder if your aquarium is balanced, are you gonna overflow water, can your sump handle whats coming and not being returned before you reach the overflow minimum? Is your overflow gonna catch a bubble? then your return pump keeps pumping. Is your return pump internal or external? does it vibrate,is it loud? does it heat your water? The wet dry can be alot more work. I do use both, but prefer the canister.

 

[lp85253]

heres avote for SPONGE FILTERS and HOBS or SPONGE FILTERS and CANS

 

[aaronb]

I"m thinking of using my canister for bio filtration only and then two AC 110 HOB for mechanical.

I keep hearing sump users boast about how much bio media capacity they have, this seems to be their biggest selling point. I'll put my small bag of ceramic rings on my HOB against your massive bio-sump any day. Once you have 0 ammonia/nitrites, how much bio media you have is irrelevant and a mood point. You can have a football field of bio-media and it still wouldn't matter. My HOB will do the same as your tons of bio media at less the cost and maintenance. The goal is 0 ammonia/nitrites, once you have that game over, so simple filter setup is always better in the long run.

Oh I see you're just looking for old threads again. You're calling out sumps now. I guess you got bored with suggesting prime isn't good and seachem is dishonest about prime. If you're really interested in these topics you have a weird way of going about it. It seems you look for something just to get people worked up.

 

[Jc1119]

I"m thinking of using my canister for bio filtration only and then two AC 110 HOB for mechanical.

I keep hearing sump users boast about how much bio media capacity they have, this seems to be their biggest selling point. I'll put my small bag of ceramic rings on my HOB against your massive bio-sump any day. Once you have 0 ammonia/nitrites, how much bio media you have is irrelevant and a mood point. You can have a football field of bio-media and it still wouldn't matter. My HOB will do the same as your tons of bio media at less the cost and maintenance. The goal is 0 ammonia/nitrites, once you have that game over, so simple filter setup is always better in the long run.

Welcome to 2007! Bio isn't the selling point. Ease of use and aesthetics is.

If you don't mind your tank looking like a lab experiment, your planned setup will work just fine. But I promise, my sump will have more volume (for water not bio), move more water, is easier to maintain and is a lot quieter. Aside from the fact that I don't have to look at 4 tubes and or heaters in my display. Oh, yeah......how many fish can you qt in your ac110? I've had several 6-8" cichlids in my sump at one point or another when I needed the space.

And the argument about cost doesn't hold up. Im moving around 2400gph through my sump at just about 200-220 watts. Cost about 400 bucks to build. To move the same volume of water with fx5's, at 600gph I'd need 4. At 51watts each the power consumption is the same and would cost a little over 800bucks without media. Plus, I'll challenge anyone on these forums to do maintenance on 4 fx5's in 2 minutes like i do on my sump.

Sorry, sump(not wet-dry) wins every time in every category.

 

[care4cichlids]

I like them both. Both have some pros and cons. Really what it most comes down to is....."How often do you maintain your tank(s)" this is like asking carbon or not to use carbon? once again pros and cons.
one person may say Wet/Dry another may say Canister...

A nice size sump can move an outstanding amount of water, it also adds more overall volume to the tank size. While a good CAN may have some ease to it as far as how easy it is to set up and how quite it may be.

Really no right or wrong answer here....

 

[jft]

you know what had them all I will take 2217 eheims any day never worry bout overflow, super reliable, QUIET, and any media you can use, sumps in my opinion great for somethings but canisters are for most the better option, twenty five yrs experience for me EHEIM never let me down.