is a sump a must??

[splitadams]

just asking because i might eventually need to move ziggy to full marine (currently in brackish)
is a sump a must? is there other ways of filtration i can use?

ive never had a marine tank ive been reading up on it heaps but most info i find on
marine fishtank filtration mentions using a sump.

i'll be setting up a 70 gallon tommorow not straight into marine just brackish for now
but it'd be good to have the knowlege before its too late

cheers
Adam

[DRRT]

no, its not a must. i have a 50 g reef with no sump or skimmer. its been set up for maybe 3 or 4 years and its been a reef for 1 year. BUT i can tell you that i plan on installing a sump hopefully in the next month and i wish i had started out with a sump.

[Myaj]

No, its not necessary but it has a lot of benefits, so a lot of people choose to do it. It also has a lot of negatives, including the risk of it overflowing all over your floor if its not setup right, or the pump burning out if you forget to top off your water levels for evaporation...

If you don't want the "hassle" of trying to figure one out, just make sure you really avoid putting too many fish in the main tank, and marine tanks are very touchy when it comes to overstocking.

[DRRT]

i second the stocking part. my tank only has 4 fish and everyone keeps telling me to add more, but i tell them no

[splitadams]

so if its not a must, what type of filtration can i use instead?
i was told buy the guy at pet city, all i "NEED" is live rock, a protein skimmer and power heads
is this true? or should i have another filter running for extra filtration?

oh and i plan on only having my puffer in there

[MatthewLaw]

once the tank is established and assuming you have at least 1lb Live rock per 1 gallon of tank, then all you do need is LR and a very good protein skimmer.

you can purchase some very good HOB (hang on back) protein skimmers so you do not need a protein skimmer. i would suggest an Aqua C Remora or for heavier loads and Aqua C Remora Pro.

[Myaj]

Yep, live rock, a good protein skimmer (don't get a cheapy) and powerheads for water movement.

[LilGreenPuffer]

or should i have another filter running for extra filtration?

I think Pufferpunk once called a regular filter in a marine tank a "nitrate factory." I think that the reason would be that filters trap waste, while skimmers remove it. Regular filters are not only less effective than a protein skimmer, but they're more expensive in the long run, since you'd need to do more frequent water changes, and salt is expensive.

[Myaj]

I've been trying to get clarification on that. From what I'm understanding, a regular filter (such as a cannister or hang on back) works great if the only media you use in it is live rock rubble.

Its the mechanical media (sponges, floss, etc) that traps the waste and allows it to rot, producing high nitrates.

I'm actually considering adding my XP2 to Paris's tank with some rubble in the compartments and maybe something like Purigen.

[LilGreenPuffer]

Ahhh. That does make sense.

[thekarens]

You might check with your local reef club. We had salt tanks for years and I don't know one reefer (reef tanks) that doesn't have a filter of some sort along with live rock. Most of the people in our club had refugiums first, plain sump second and cannister filter third. Meaning as far as popularity goes, not that they had all 3 on the tank. Refugiums are very cool and if set up correctly will not overflow and you can also set up an auto top off system so you don't have to worry about that either. I would think with a sump you could probably also set up an auto top off system.

[Jase]

Or like in my sump you can divide it into chambers. one for heater and skimmer, one with a deep sand bed/refugium, and one for the return pump.

Honestly all you *need* is live rock and good circulation, but you would have to do large water changes weekly or more than weekly. not worth it in my opinion. So I recommend getting a good skimmer.
My combination of LR, DSB, fuge, and skimmer gives me near 0 nitrates.

There is also the option of a HOB refugium (I think CPR makes) that seem to work nicely.

[splitadams]

ive read several times on here that theyre a "nitrate factory" but
could i use a canister filter for extra filtration with live rock rubble in it?

[jlo]

Guys maybe a daft question but its been metioned on here that a external filter is a nitrate factory does that also go for a brackish water tank also and how do you stop that please

[LilGreenPuffer]

*Thinkthinkthink... type... delete...*

I tried to explain, and I failed. Nick explained it once, and it didn't make sense to me then, and it doesn't now. I do know, however, that this is not the case for brackish water, so you're good to go.