180 gallon drilled sump or canisters?

[Courtney Dudoussat]

I bought a used 180 and it came with two corner overflows and already drilled.
I have a stand... but no room for a sump whatsoever.I have no basement, so if I do a sump it would have to be next to the DT. I’d use a 55 or 40 breeder. So small sump vs 2 cascade 1500s? Or possibly one of each so I can still use the sump for heaters and other miscellaneous stuff?
Could really use some help here, out of depth for me

 

[JoshH]

Do you have pictures of the cabinet space? Typically there is always room under the stand for a sump so I'm curious to see why there isn't in this case

 

[Kalinina]

I would decide what your goal is. Is it a FOWLR tank? Or a reef/mixed reef tank?

If FOWLR, you could do canisters.

If reef, I would make a sump work.

That’s without knowing details. I have tried both and I would not use canisters on a large tank if my goal was a reef tank.

 

[DaddyFish]

You could run two Oase Biomaster Thermo 350 in very limited cabinet space. They are excellent, low-maintenance canisters. Or make one the larger 600 or new 850.

Whatever you do with a two canister setup, I recommend running one mechanical/chemical with high-rate flow and one loaded with biomedia and turned down to 50 gph or less for nitrate processing.

 

[Courtney Dudoussat]

Do you have pictures of the cabinet space? Typically there is always room under the stand for a sump so I'm curious to see why there isn't in this case

10inch wide here.... even a custom tank could get a max of only 30 gallons
My grandfather built the stand for me

 

[Courtney Dudoussat]

I would decide what your goal is. Is it a FOWLR tank? Or a reef/mixed reef tank?

If FOWLR, you could do canisters.

If reef, I would make a sump work.

That’s without knowing details. I have tried both and I would not use canisters on a large tank if my goal was a reef tank.

mainly Fowler, maybe some easy corals like Xenia or mushrooms of some sort, but not completely filled with them

 

[DaddyFish]

10inch wide here.... even a custom tank could get a max of only 30 gallons
My grandfather built the stand for me

How tall is that stand? Dimensions of the center and each end opening?
I'm thinking you MIGHT be able to fit an FX4 or FX6 in the center?

This opening is 18w x 24h (measured from floor to bottom of horizontal frame members) x 14 deep. By opening the bottom shelf on your stand you could possibly fit something large. This is a Fluval FX6.

 

[SMSREEF]

I would do a sump since the tank is already drilled. Even if it’s a small one. It’s a place to hide heaters, have filter socks, and set up an ATO. Heck, you could even set it up as a display refugium in that center section.

 

[Kershaw]

Have you considered re building stand to accommodate a sump?

 

[highest_tides]

I learned the hard way that a SUMP was the look I was going for. However, I have seen a lot of great post about daisy chaining two canister filters together for a system that size.

 

[DaddyFish]

Tossing out ideas here...
These folks should be able to help with all kinds of options for sectioning a sump setup.

 

[DaddyFish]

My last idea...
Relatively cheap way to get 26 gals underneath. Buy two, drill and use the covers if you want, plumb one as a fuge.
I think the dimensions will fit.

 

[Courtney Dudoussat]

How tall is that stand? Dimensions of the center and each end opening?
I'm thinking you MIGHT be able to fit an FX4 or FX6 in the center?

This opening is 18w x 24h (measured from floor to bottom of horizontal frame members) x 14 deep. By opening the bottom shelf on your stand you could possibly fit something large. This is a Fluval FX6.

i think I could get one in there, the tank and stand is currently at my old house and I don’t remember the exact measurements, I’m thinking it’s 30x20x20 or something close to it.

 

[R.Weller]

Consider adding a 3rd tank for a remote refugium. Allow water to fall to a sump, then either tee off the return or better yet, add a pump to the first chamber in the sump to push unfiltered water up to the refugium. The refugium would then drain into the return chamber of the sump. A mature refugium has its own remarkable beauty that compliments the display & is very effective at biological filtration. This will also provide a food source for the display (zooplankton) when the refugium reaches saturation.