Can you attach a canister filter to a sump

[ILikeFish!]

I was wondering if i can attach my fluval fx4 to a sump so i can have extra filtration?

 

[Uncle99]

Yup, if I can’t keep nutrients from rising, that’s an option.
Use only what it takes to keep nutrients levels on point with normal maintenance routines you may do.
You don’t want them to increase, but you don’t want to strip the water completely.

 

[Tamberav]

How big of a skimmer and sump do i need for that kind of bio load, im planning on getting a 30 gallon sump?

Something like this maybe, really depends on your overall maintenance, water change schedule, if you are diligent about cleaning the sand, how much you feed, if you have a high coral density, and so on.. there is no one right answer and tanks tend to evolve over time and things are added and removed to find balance.

Protein Skimmers

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[DanyL]

Yeah, scratch the idea of keeping a seahorse in there, they are not suitable for a regular reef tank, not to mention with this kind of fish.

Also I wouldn't put coral beauty nor a comet in a 55 gal tank, not only they aren't suitable for a tank this size but the coral Beaty isn't reef safe and both also prey on small fish, shrimp etc.

For the mandarin you'll need to seed the system with pods early on, to let them breed. otherwise it'll not have enough food.

As for filtration, as others here mentioned already - a canister comes with it's own drawbacks.
You can use it, and it'll most likely hold up but you'll have to clean very often.

I would suggest you to go with good mechanical filtration like filter socks or roller mat in combination with a slightly oversized skimmer. If these aren't enough to keep up (and I doubt it), you'll still have the option to use GFO and carbon dosing to control nutrients, for a tank this size they are priced reasonably enough for a daily use.

 

[ILikeFish!]

Something like this maybe, really depends on your overall maintenance, water change schedule, if you are diligent about cleaning the sand, how much you feed, if you have a high coral density, and so on.. there is no one right answer and tanks tend to evolve over time and things are added and removed to find balance.

Protein Skimmers

Shop Protein Skimmers and reactors on bulkreefsupply.com. Read reviews and compare protein skimmers and reactors.

www.bulkreefsupply.com

Do corals add to the bio load? And is it bad to have a really oversized skimmer i found one rated for 100 gallons thats the same price?

 

[ClownSchool]

I do agree that extra mechanical filtration will not compensate for heavy bioload. A skimmer or water changes would be much more beneficial than an extra canister filter.

But what does heavy bioload mean? You can't stock heavy like in a freshwater tank, you have to respect their need to personal territory or else you risk disease, aggression, and jumping.

Yes. Exactly Right^^^^^

 

[Tamberav]

Do corals add to the bio load? And is it bad to have a really oversized skimmer i found one rated for 100 gallons thats the same price?

What skimmer?

Growing corals use up nutrients

 

[DanyL]

Do corals add to the bio load?

Corals do add to the bioload, but at the same time they also consume a lot of the waste produced by fish.

And is it bad to have a really oversized skimmer i found one rated for 100 gallons thats the same price?

Depends. If there is enough organic matter in the water to pull out - yeah twice as much as your total volume is acceptable. However, if there isn't than the skimmer will struggle and have to build the gunk slowly until it can actually export it out of the system.

 

[ClownSchool]

Yeah, scratch the idea of keeping a seahorse in there, they are not suitable for a regular reef tank, not to mention with this kind of fish.

Also I wouldn't put coral beauty nor a comet in a 55 gal tank, not only they aren't suitable for a tank this size but the coral Beaty isn't reef safe and both also prey on small fish, shrimp etc.

For the mandarin you'll need to seed the system with pods early on, to let them breed. otherwise it'll not have enough food.

As for filtration, as others here mentioned already - a canister comes with it's own drawbacks.
You can use it, and it'll most likely hold up but you'll have to clean very often.

I would suggest you to go with good mechanical filtration like filter socks or roller mat in combination with a slightly oversized skimmer. If these aren't enough to keep up (and I doubt it), you'll still have the option to use GFO and carbon dosing to control nutrients, for a tank this size they are priced reasonably enough for a daily use.

Once you seed the tank with copepods for the mandarin, you’ll need to dose phytoplankton daily to keep the population up.

 

[DanyL]

Once you sees the tank with copepods for the mandarin, you’ll need to dose phytoplankton daily to keep the population up.

Phyto does help, but honestly I never dosed it and I have probably millions crawling around there.
They feed from detritus, and it should be enough for them to breed and establish a healthy population.

 

[ILikeFish!]

What skimmer?

Growing corals use up nutrients

 

[ILikeFish!]

Yeah, scratch the idea of keeping a seahorse in there, they are not suitable for a regular reef tank, not to mention with this kind of fish.

Also I wouldn't put coral beauty nor a comet in a 55 gal tank, not only they aren't suitable for a tank this size but the coral Beaty isn't reef safe and both also prey on small fish, shrimp etc.

For the mandarin you'll need to seed the system with pods early on, to let them breed. otherwise it'll not have enough food.

As for filtration, as others here mentioned already - a canister comes with it's own drawbacks.
You can use it, and it'll most likely hold up but you'll have to clean very often.

I would suggest you to go with good mechanical filtration like filter socks or roller mat in combination with a slightly oversized skimmer. If these aren't enough to keep up (and I doubt it), you'll still have the option to use GFO and carbon dosing to control nutrients, for a tank this size they are priced reasonably enough for a daily use.

I wasn’t planning to get a mandarin until i had everything up and running for 6 months and when i get one i was going one from biota so i can feed it anything, I already have the coral beauty and he doesn’t mess with anything. Ive seen people keep marine bettas in 30 gallons because the really don’t swim a lot.

 

[ClownSchool]

In the future I may go to a bigger tank w/sump/refug and was also considering utilizing my FX-4 for Carbon etc.
Fluval's FX-4 has been rather easy to maintain for the last several months. Every 1 to 2 months I clean the filter which consists of rinsing the sponge/filters and fluval bio media on each tray.

I’m speaking from experience when I say that your maintenance schedule will catch up with you. If you have corals, you will most likely have a crash.

 

[ClownSchool]

I wasn’t planning to get a mandarin until i had everything up and running for 6 months and when i get one i was going one from biota so i can feed it anything, I already have the coral beauty and he doesn’t mess with anything. Ive seen people keep marine bettas in 30 gallons because the really don’t swim a lot.

The gobies will compete and be aggressive.

 

[DanyL]

I wasn’t planning to get a mandarin until i had everything up and running for 6 months and when i get one i was going one from biota so i can feed it anything, I already have the coral beauty and he doesn’t mess with anything. Ive seen people keep marine bettas in 30 gallons because the really don’t swim a lot.

People also keep tangs in 30g, it doesn't make it any justice.
Generally speaking, while you may see people do this or that - you need to acknowledge that saltwater is vastly different than freshwater, fish do need space to swim, some even more than others but nonetheless all of them do. All the "semi reef safe - this one doesn't eat coral" will eventually eat coral, especially if kept in not so great conditions, same goes for predator fish that will start to basically treat every little fish and shrimp as food. Do your homework, and please don't be cruel.

 

[DanyL]

As for the mandarins - while aquacultured mandarins do eat everything off the bat, they often loose this appetite after awhile and become dependable on copepods like their wild caught friends. I had this happen with a pair and heard a lot of other folks that report the same thing.

 

[D3DPrintedThingz]

Nice name

 

[Tamberav]

I think this is a new company. We don't know how they perform.

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[ILikeFish!]

Nice name

I like yours too

 

[ClownSchool]

Phyto does help, but honestly I never dosed it and I have probably millions crawling around there.
They feed from detritus, and it should be enough for them to breed and establish a healthy population.

Agreed. But, based on how OP is expecting to overstock and aggressively filter, I’d still recommend it.

 

[Slocke]

I'm going to be controversial:

You must certainly can and I even use it as a return pump. Here's what makes a canister filter awesome:

1. They breed some incredible microfauna that will keep your tank clean and keep your fish well fed
2. Adds a ton of room for bacteria
3. It adds a significant amount of volume to your tank.
4. Its good at adding chemical filtration

What you want to do is replace almost all the mechanical filtration with bioloigicol filtration to allow for the best growth of natural fauna. Now here comes the controversial part: Don't clean it. I know that sounds crazy but I've never had algae with two exceptions which were both short bursts of diatoms and cyano. Yes it will get full of detritus but that detritus is food and it will feed the bacteria and other beasties that will help remove the detritus from the system.
Now admittedly on top of that I do grow massive amounts of macroalgae and run GFO but my nutrients are low and stable and I have 4 long time copepod eaters who are fat and healthy in a 5'. Also that copepod population is presumably why I've never seen algae such as GHA.
Currently NO3 10ppm PhO4 0.21 Nitrate has been stable while Phosphate has been trending down. I know people like less PhO4 but since I have no issues.