Planter Sump with Pothos plants

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Austin Finley

Austin Finley

Black Skirt Tetra
MFK Member
Nov 28, 2018
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Hi so recently been adding a lot of pothos plants to my aquariums, in all my small tanks they simply sit in the filter or the roots hang in the tank. However for My 180 I wanted to do something nicer since the entire build has been pretty DIY/Cheap. So my idea is a Planter full of lava rock and have pothos plants growing inside, id have a small pump going from my sump into the planter and a return from the planter back into the tank. My Main Question is will this do a better/equal job of handling nitrates? I can obviously leave the plants in the sump and get the same effects but I have all the materials and want another project that isn't another tank :) any recommendations are appreciated.
 
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Austin Finley said:
Hi so recently been adding a lot of pothos plants to my aquariums, in all my small tanks they simply sit in the filter or the roots hang in the tank. However for My 180 I wanted to do something nicer since the entire build has been pretty DIY/Cheap. So my idea is a Planter full of lava rock and have pothos plants growing inside, id have a small pump going from my sump into the planter and a return from the planter back into the tank. My Main Question is will this do a better/equal job of handling nitrates? I can obviously leave the plants in the sump and get the same effects but I have all the materials and want another project that isn't another tank :) any recommendations are appreciated.
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If you get more plant growth then yes more nitrate will be taken in.
 
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Austin Finley said:
Hi so recently been adding a lot of pothos plants to my aquariums, in all my small tanks they simply sit in the filter or the roots hang in the tank. However for My 180 I wanted to do something nicer since the entire build has been pretty DIY/Cheap. So my idea is a Planter full of lava rock and have pothos plants growing inside, id have a small pump going from my sump into the planter and a return from the planter back into the tank. My Main Question is will this do a better/equal job of handling nitrates? I can obviously leave the plants in the sump and get the same effects but I have all the materials and want another project that isn't another tank :) any recommendations are appreciated.
Click to expand...

I have built a few of these but have yet to perfect the idea. I couldn't get the overflow design to work perfectly on my last prototype, detailed here:

Plywood overhead sump/canopy

Thought I'd share the latest development of mine, a proprietary filter for my 135. Ive had this idea bouncing around in my head for some time now. Water will be pumped up from the tank into the rear channel which will house a heater and prefilter, make its way down the two side channels...
www.monsterfishkeepers.com www.monsterfishkeepers.com

An earlier design I built did a fantastic job handling nitrates. Noticeable difference while it was running. Ultimately it was too loud for my liking, and kind of ugly. Detailed here:

overhead planter sump output?

hey folks, been working on a 3' overhead planter sump for my 75 gallon tank. plan to use it on a 95 or 110 gallon tank eventually but trying to get it running well first. gonna pack it with a foam prefilter, about 5 lbs. of bio media and some ferns and grasses. the biggest problem im having...
www.monsterfishkeepers.com www.monsterfishkeepers.com

It's on back burner right now but I do intend to apply what I've learned to a new design for my 135 that will hopefully work flawlessly and quietly.

Good luck with your project!
 
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Ill post some pics tomorrow when i finish work. Ive got a planter filled with clay pebbles and plants. Its has an sunsun 304b as prefilter and it eats nitrate like a beast. The plants are peacelilly, pothos and monstera and they grow like weed.
 
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I used hydroponic baskets submerged all the way across the back and then halfway to the front. What I didn't like was the lighting I had over them it looked ghetto and hid them with a canopy.

If you give them extra light they'll chew up nitrates. You could hide them in the sump with a grow light.

If you're strictly after nitrates then an algae scrubber will blow the pothos away.
 
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As of Now I'm thinking of where I want the Planter, The tank is in the garage for the summer and is relatively close to a window that gets some decent light but sadly I'm in no mood to run some pipe/tube through the wall. I'm also a renter so my landlord most likely wouldn't appreciate that, so plan B is incorporate it into the stand just to the left of the tank and just have a return back into the sump instead of having it above the tank. I think it'll look cleaner and eventually I'll want the pothos hanging down covering some of my overflow lines. I'll Tank some photos of what I'm talking about when i get home.

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All the surfboards and stuff will be moving and I'd most likely extend the stand alittle for the planter and maybe feed all my lines behind it
 
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I keep my planter on top of one tank. I pumpfeed it via a cannister and returns water via gravity through two bulkheads in the bottom of the planter. Im done at work in a couple hours then home and catch some sleep then ill post some pics of two planters. One that is running now and one i took down for the one newer.
 
Tobiassorensen said:
I keep my planter on top of one tank. I pumpfeed it via a cannister and returns water via gravity through two bulkheads in the bottom of the planter. Im done at work in a couple hours then home and catch some sleep then ill post some pics of two planters. One that is running now and one i took down for the one newer.
Click to expand...
using a canister is a great idea instead of just a pump id get even more filtration
 
Tobiassorensen said:
Yeah and if you use only a pump then you will fill the planter with debris and gunk.
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the pump would most likely be at the end of my sump so it be free of gunk hopefully lol, I have alot of Mechanical filtration on the tank but a canister for more bio is always good
 
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