Newbie

[Melissacoop]

My suggestion is both can work but with a canister they will require more frequent and thorough cleaning to help
Control nutrients .

I personally prefer not having heaters cords , heaters , hang on skimmers on the back that can and will eventually overflow or hoses hanging off the back going to a canister
I think some aio systems do have everything contained in a compartment in the back but I’ve personally never had one like that .

My personal preference is having a sump with only filter floss ( or socks ) for little mechanical filtration to remove particles as well as cheato to help with consuming nutrients .

After years of reefing I prefer using large capacity external skimmers .
No overflowing , little fussing with setting or constantly trying to dial in to work properly .

Live rock will become your main filtration as the system matures .
Ideally if you can have 1 lb to 1.5lb per gallon you will achieve stability

Thank you so much!

 

[Rmckoy]

Thank you so much!

You’re welcome …
We’re all here to help !

 

[Evil1]

Cleaning more often helps. The issue with canister only is its a mechanical filter and you want to have mechanical , biological and chemical to manage proper water quality. The canister will polish water and trap particles via the cartridge.
Chemical is what traps and breaks down chemical compounds such as feces and uneaten food often accomplished carbon and GFO
Biological is what utilizes the natural process of biological filtration such as use of ceramic nuggets, bio blocks, and microscopic bacteria surfaces. Best it to add or use a hang on refugium such as Reef octopus or AquaMaxx unit and even add a hang on skimmer such as ice cap K1- or K2 100

Beg to differ VG. A quality canister filter will in fact provide mechanical, chemical and biological filtering. Canisters such as the Fluval line or Oase are high end filters with large media baskets to hold any and all media one desires and will do an incredible job. As far as canister filters being more maintenance in my opinion it’s a tie between sumps and canisters. Although canisters take about a half hour once a month to clean/ swap out mechanical filter media and chemical media. sumps require filter sock cleaning every 2 to 3 days and the same chemical recharge/replacement as a canister. As far as protein skimmer I agree with your suggestion however I find the Aquamax HOB 1.5 protein skimmer an excellent product especially for the tank described above. I use all canisters on all 3 tanks. 125, 65 and 40 with no issues. That being said, it is one’s choice as to what type of filter system to use. Ultimately with proper husbandry both end results will be more than sufficient.

 

[Evil1]

 

[vetteguy53081]

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[Melissacoop]

Beg to differ VG. A quality canister filter will in fact provide mechanical, chemical and biological filtering. Canisters such as the Fluval line or Oase are high end filters with large media baskets to hold any and all media one desires and will do an incredible job. As far as canister filters being more maintenance in my opinion it’s a tie between sumps and canisters. Although canisters take about a half hour once a month to clean/ swap out mechanical filter media and chemical media. sumps require filter sock cleaning every 2 to 3 days and the same chemical recharge/replacement as a canister. As far as protein skimmer I agree with your suggestion however I find the Aquamax HOB 1.5 protein skimmer an excellent product especially for the tank described above. I use all canisters on all 3 tanks. 125, 65 and 40 with no issues. That being said, it is one’s choice as to what type of filter system to use. Ultimately with proper husbandry both end results will be more than sufficient.

Thanks for clarifying this because I did think the Fluval did all three types of filtration necessary. Have you used the FX line of Fluval canisters?? My tank is only a 36 gal so I was gonna go with the Fluval FX4 and I think that should be more than enough??

 

[Evil1]

Thanks for clarifying this because I did think the Fluval did all three types of filtration necessary. Have you used the FX line of Fluval canisters?? My tank is only a 36 gal so I was gonna go with the Fluval FX4 and I think that should be more than

Thanks for clarifying this because I did think the Fluval did all three types of filtration necessary. Have you used the FX line of Fluval canisters?? My tank is only a 36 gal so I was gonna go with the Fluval FX4 and I think that should be more than enough??

I use an FX6 and a FX4 on my 125 only for redundancy the FX6 is more than enough. In my opinion I’d go with a 407 for your tank. You could back it up with a 207 or 107 I think the FX4 will blow the water out of your tank at full power. You would have to turn it down so much it’s not worth it in my opinion. Go with the aquamarine job 1.5 skimmer you won’t be disappointed I promise. I have several. My other tanks all have 307s and 407s. Check out the OASE line of canister filters too. Great product and you can get one suitable for your needs and the heater is incorporated in the canister.

 

[Evil1]

aquamax 1.5 hob skimmer grrrrrr dam spell check

 

[Melissacoop]

Thank you! On the OASE filter...is the heater removable when its time to replace? I like the idea of not having a separate piece of equipment...

 

[tharbin]

Welcome to R2R! A good canister filter is fine for a reef tank but if you decide you want to add a protein skimmer or refugium or uv etc. later on you will end up adding other HOB equipment or going with a closed-loop system (rare today outside of commercial/public installations) for those accessories. In general HOB gear costs more than equivalent in-tank/sump equipment and tends to be fussier to maintain. I've maintained quite a few canister-based systems over the years and I usually ended up wishing I had just done an AIO or sump system. The other option you may like is to convert your tank into an AIO system. There are a number of manufacturers that make AIO inserts for standard tanks. That would put all of your equipment in the tank but hidden within the in-tank sump.