Trigger Platinum Sumps: Long Term Reviews

[MantisShrimpMan]

Looking at getting the 20C platinum sump but I’ve seen that some people have complained regarding automatic filter roller sensor failure. Would like to get a better sense of long term satisfaction. If you have a trigger platinum sump and have been running it for an extended period of time, can you please share your experiences here?

 

[MantisShrimpMan]

@Reefer825 @Damion123 @elwallacejr @Dabcrusher @Empire @ChicagoReef @arking_mark @MikeTheNewbie @TonkaReefer @cborgonovo @R33f_Hacker @kboogie @Abomination @PhoenixOne @Betex all of you guys have posted about having the Platinum sumps and appear to still be active on this forum. Would appreciate your input here, thank you!

 

[MantisShrimpMan]

Bump, I’m really curious regarding the long term reliability of the fleece roller

 

[Adamc13o3]

I have one. The sump is great and built fairly well with a lot of features. The roller sucks. The sensors don’t work at all. I now use it on timer mode which also sucks because it goes through fleece too quickly or too slowly. On timer mode it dumps too much pent up water into the skimmer section and messes up that water level which doesn’t allow the skimmer to work as it should or I have to make it waste a lot of the roll to keep it stable. Changing the rolls is the worst part of all. Unless you catch it before it totally finishes and staple a new roll to the old one and manually make it feed, feeding a new one without the old in a serious issue. A few parts in the roller already broke which I had to make parts for on my own to keep it working. The rolls are extremely hard to find too. I have 4 rolls left after they are gone (if the roller lasts that long to actually use 4 more rolls) I am hoping the Clarisea roller will fit in my sump in place of the stock roller.

 

[MantisShrimpMan]

I have one. The sump is great, built fairly well with a lot of features. The roller sucks. The sensors don’t work at all. I now use it on timer mode which also sucks because it goes through fleece too quickly or too slowly which then dumps too much pent up water into the skimmer section and messes up that water level which doesn’t allow the skimmer to work as it should. A few parts in the roller already broke which I had to make parts for on my own to keep it working. The rolls are extremely hard to find too. I have 4 rolls left after they are gone (if the roller lasts that long to actually use 4 more rolls) I am hoping the Clarisea roller will fit in my sump in place of the stock roller.

Have you looked into replacing or repairing whatever is causing the filter roller to fail?

 

[Adamc13o3]

The sensors just don’t work. They keep it spinning continuously. It just randomly fails and it does that.

 

[MantisShrimpMan]

The sensors just don’t work. They keep it spinning continuously. It just randomly fails and it does that.

Wait so was it like that since day one?

 

[MantisShrimpMan]

The other thing I’m just trying to figure out is the pros and cons of getting a sump with a built in roller (like this) or figuring out how to install a separate roller like the reef factory smart roller into a preexisting sump

 

[Adamc13o3]

Yup…. I spent week messing with it thinking it was something I was doing wrong. Then I realized it just malfunctions. FYI everytime it fully spins a roll, I would have to sit there basically rewind it manually. Also the clean part of the roll would always fall out of place so I cut snall sections of 1” or 3/4” pvc and glued them to the ends to make it longer so it wouldn’t fall off the track. They really make a nice sump, especially for the price. The roller isn’t good though.

 

[tsharpe291]

The other thing I’m just trying to figure out is the pros and cons of getting a sump with a built in roller (like this) or figuring out how to install a separate roller like the reef factory smart roller into a preexisting sump

I personally wouldn't get a sump with a built in roller, I wouldn't want to be locked into one brand or have to try a modify something in the future. my 2 cents

 

[MantisShrimpMan]

Yup…. I spent week messing with it thinking it was something I was doing wrong. Then I realized it just malfunctions. FYI everytime it fully spins a roll, I would have to sit there basically rewind it manually. Also the clean part of the roll would always fall out of place so I cut snall sections of 1” or 3/4” pvc and glued them to the ends to make it longer so it wouldn’t fall off the track. They really make a nice sump, especially for the price. The roller isn’t good though.

You’ve been so helpful thank you so much. Still not sure how to proceed so I’d like your thoughts, if you wouldn’t mind, put yourself in my shoes for a moment:

Found a Red Sea Max S-400 at a great deal used locally, love the tank but the sump seems kinda limiting? It doesn’t have a wall to have a separate skimmer chamber and refugium, and also, according to the Red Sea website, it’s not compatible with the reefmats. I’m thinking I can MAYBE modify it to use a reef factory smart roller M, and then find some kinda way to DIY a refugium, but still, at first glance it would appear that just upgrading to a platinum 20C would solve both issues with no major tinkering on my end. But, sounds like the roller fails on the platinums. So would you find a way to mod in the roller and refugium instead?

 

[BrokenReefer]

I have a Platinum (both generations of the fleece roller) and I just upgraded (in the process) to the Titanium 39.

The v2 fleece roller sensors are ok but it seems like they are a constant weak point, these are the optical ones. I ended up mounting the v1 motor and float switches back on it to eliminate the issue.

The other fleece roller issue is that it will rack itself as it winds the “spent” fleece, causing the roll to dislodge. They have a brace piece for it, and it works to an extent. If there is anything that causes the roller to no longer pull the fleece in a nice tight line (read snail/shells/small debris) it will start to wind off axis. I had this happen more than a handful of times.

Aside from that, the sumps are great. Very well built, come with nice bells and whistles, added features you don’t find on other high-end sumps.

I looked at a bunch of high end sumps for this upgrade and none of them really wowed me like Trigger Systems.

 

[Adamc13o3]

You’ve been so helpful thank you so much. Still not sure how to proceed so I’d like your thoughts, if you wouldn’t mind, put yourself in my shoes for a moment:

Found a Red Sea Max S-400 at a great deal used locally, love the tank but the sump seems kinda limiting? It doesn’t have a wall to have a separate skimmer chamber and refugium, and also, according to the Red Sea website, it’s not compatible with the reefmats. I’m thinking I can MAYBE modify it to use a reef factory smart roller M, and then find some kinda way to DIY a refugium, but still, at first glance it would appear that just upgrading to a platinum 20C would solve both issues with no major tinkering on my end. But, sounds like the roller fails on the platinums. So would you find a way to mod in the roller and refugium instead?

Check out geosreef.com I wanted one so bad but I only have 34” edge to edge under my tank. This model would be perfect for you GEO SU36R-PRO-AFR. Had a fleece roller, skimmer section and fuge. You aren’t going to get better made in America quality than GEO either. Hope I helped.

 

[MantisShrimpMan]

Check out geosreef.com I wanted one so bad but I only have 34” edge to edge under my tank. This model would be perfect for you GEO SU36R-PRO-AFR. Had a fleece roller, skimmer section and fuge. You aren’t going to get better made in America quality than GEO either. Hope I helped.

The understand is divided into a sump area and an electronics area. Sump area measures to be 20”x22”. If the 36 in that model number is inches, I can’t fit it

 

[Adamc13o3]

Can the partition be moved? It seems like way too much space for controllers and too little for filtration.

 

[MantisShrimpMan]

Can the partition be moved? It seems like way too much space for controllers and too little for filtration.

Not to my knowledge. It’s aluminum extrusion, not just some thin sheet as a wall.

With that said though, when I saw the tank I had the same reaction, but over time my opinion has shifted. Since you can run your dosing reservoirs, external filtration gear (CO2 scrubber, or like a BRS media reactor or even external skimmer) in the bottom of the other compartment.

 

[Adamc13o3]

So just get a small sump that does a fleece roller and skimmer. Just run another small tank in the other section as a fuge. Larger fuge anyway than you would get with an all in one sump.

 

[jft]

IMO after reefing 35 years is that Rollers and other Gizmos are always bound to fail. Better off simple. I use Foam to capture debris and clean or toss, Easy peasy. LOL Good luck.

 

[mdh71]

I have a 20C platinum sump that I got in March of 21. I really like the sump and automatic filter roller.

If the roll runs out, it is difficult to install a new roll. It is easy if there is some remaining felt on the old roll that the new one can be attached to so it can be pulled through. When replacing an empty roll I give a few choice words doing it, but after a few tense minutes I am able to setup the new roll. I think it is more difficult with the cube because the roll is in the back and facing the direction to install the new roll.

A couple of times I have had a little too much water in the sump that is not enough to trip the high level sensor, but high enough to have it run through the remaining roll.

I have not had any issues with the sensors not working. There are people who say a filter roller is not worth the trouble. To me a few extra minutes to change the roll every four or five months is way better than constantly changing filter socks. I do not have to do anything with the filter roll for months at a time.

If I had to buy another sump I would not hesitate to buy another. I would not go back to filter socks.

 

[becon776]

My v1 roller sensors failed. There is a deal if that happens for the v2 upgrade. 165$ I think I paid. It is now working better than it ever has. I am very very happy. Can’t ever go back to filter socks.