Filter or live rock? Or is both okay??

[jess.irene]

Hi everyone,
I've done my research on s/w tanks, just a bit confused about filtering.. Is it okay to have a canister filter with live rock as well? Or is the idea to have one or the other?
Help would be appreciated.. I'm working towards a fish only tank with many a peppermint shrimp, and have my eye on a second hand 4ft tank (don't know exactly how many litres that is)..
Thanks

 

[Sniperhank]

Both are fine. You want to aim for 1lbs per gallon for live rock. Canister filters have a bad wrap as nitrate sinks, but if you take care of them with your weekly maintenance you can use them without problems.

 

[jess.irene]

Okay, that's good, was just a bit confused.
What kind of filter is recommended? There are so many choices and to be honest I don't really know the difference between any of them :s I did look at internal filters as well but I thought external would be better/easier?

 

[Sniperhank]

It can be. There are many options out there and it ends up being the individual's choice on what works. I run a protein skimmer, refugium, and dual reactor on my 55 reef, as an example. It would be overkill for a FOWLR, but all 3 are other examples of filtration.

 

[Jonnypro]

I have a skimmer, reactor and filter socks along with 200+lbs of live rock. I also run a uv light in the sump. Macro algae.

 

[jess.irene]

Okay, go easy on me, but of all those things, I only know what a skimmer is, and I had planned on getting one of them.. Maybe I need to do some more research.. So many new terms.. :s
FOWLR = fish only with live rock, right??
Thanks

 

[Sniperhank]

Yes it does. For a fowlr system, you don't have to go heavy into filtration. In systems under 30 gallons, you can even get away with only doing weekly water changes. So, just things to keep in mind.

 

[jess.irene]

Okay, that's helpful, thanks

Also, I have read that a filter should filter the entire volume of the tank 3-5 x per hour or more, is this correct? Or not so important in a fowlr tank?

 

[Sniperhank]

If you are going to run a sock on your tank, it is important to run as much water through it as possible.

 

[Jonnypro]

I should have told you that my tank is a 135g with a 55g sump. Lol.

 

[Sniperhank]

Then yes, run a filter sock on the pipe going into your sump.