Tank setup for discus/angels/panaques with settling tank

[quix]

Hi all! I've been pretty much a lurker, reading through all the great information available on this great site.
Am in the stage of planning for an overhaul of my existing setup for wild discus, angels and panaques as the panaque poo is totally overwhelming my sump filter. Basically I will need to wash/change the filter sponges every 2-3 days and if not, the sponges will get clogged and all the poo will bypass and get into the biomedia. It's a pain to clear and remove after that.

So I have been doing research and saw some online examples of reef guys using settling tank for mechanical filtration before their sumps. I've come up with an initial design below. With limited height to play with as the display tank is 8ft long and 29 inches tall, my settling tank is likely only going to be around 20 inches tall. Not sure if the baffles in my drawing will slow the water enough for the panaque poo to settle. Any thoughts and ideas are welcome!

 

[projectile]

Your idea is good and will work. If i were you however i would simplify your setup by combining ideas from following sites.
poret foam sump filter ( http://www.poret-aquarium-filter.co.nz)

And a drain similar to ERIC pond filter ( filter backwash drain not pond botton drain ). Forget rest of the filter only the standpipe drain required, the first chamber of your sump forms the settling chamber.

simply drain the sump filter Every few days or even daily to wash off all the poo.

Hope this helps
Cheers !

Sent from my GT-I9100G using MonsterAquariaNetwork App

 

[quix]

Thanks projectile for taking an interest and giving me some ideas. I would love to keep things simple and make the first chamber of my sump the settling chamber, but it would not allow me to drain the poo collected into a pail right below. I also do not want the poo to be drained into my water change drainage to prevent potential clogging up which would be a disaster to clear.
The Poret foam and ERIC filters are beautiful in their simplicity, but I worry about the foam's ability to keep up with long period of panaque poo coming through, especially since it seems like one is supposed to wash them infrequently. I am also toying with the idea of using a bio reactor with K1 media for bio filtration and keep the sump simple for only mechanical. Easy to clean without all the bio rings etc.