Sump or Canister for my 125g?
- Thread starter rhite
- Start date
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7x16 sock that filters the water as it enters the sump. I use 200micron for when I travel because they can go for 10-14 days without needing changing. When im home I use 100 and 50 for really clear water. Some guys around here go as far as 25 micron for ridiculously clear water but they usually need changing every day or so. I'm too lazy to spend 2 minutes every day changing them lol so I stick with the 50's.
They get dirty and you throw them in the washing machine.
They get dirty and you throw them in the washing machine.
I thought the same thing at first, but I spent about a month researching sumps before I built one. Between the check valves on my pump out puts and the siphon breaks on the returns, my sump setup is 100% flood proof. I stand a better chance of a canister house popping off than my 300 flooding.
Read up on "Bean" or "Herbie" style drains. Both offer flood proof setups......
H]-[H;5527524 said:
You can buy them online that way but the easiest way to tell by looking is how thick the sock is. I can see through my 200, but a flashlight will barely penetrate a 25
Over the past 30 years of my fish keeping, this is always a debate in any forum and any pet store you go to really. The bottom line is personal preference to be honest because all of them will do the job that is required of them and that is to clean your water and keep it safe for your fish. There is benefits to both and you can go on all day about this debate, however it all comes down to which "YOU" prefer at the end of the day. My 220 runs a Sump, CFS700 Canister (monster by the way lol) and AC110 at the same time and I never have a problem. I do believe that we all use more bio than is needed in the tank unless you are going to really heavy heavy overstock your tank. Bottom line is go with what you can afford and you will be happy, the hardest decision should be made as far as what name brand you should go with and that is a whole nother can of worms lol. Good luck and please post some pics up when you do get it going.
+1 always keep your options available to change,starting with less expensive (but equally effective)filtration and be open to flexibility is 1 way of doing it if you simply want the BEST FILTRATION sumps and big cans DO work best (although more expensive). good luck!
I am a little more lacking in brain power than most aka (complete noob), it took me a long time to figure out how a sump works and what it all entails of putting one together. I now have all the pieces and would be confident putting one together (MFK rules). It's always easier once you know how everything works and the items you need. The rest is confidence in doing it. I recommend doing tons of research and don't attempt it until you are sure you can do it. As for fool proofing sumps, FYI, nothing is ever really fool proof. Anyone who uses a sump is taking a risk at flooding their floors and blowing up the earth. If I were to build a sump, I would do regular testing on power outage to see how the system is going to respond so that I know it inside out and also have lots of plan B's floating around in case of emergencies. Sump users you do have a plan B right ?
I suspect most are over-confident and do not.