New to this...

[DisneyMatt]

Hey everyone,

I am incredibly new to this whole Saltwater aquarium hobby... and I have a few (well actually a LOT) of questions.

Our tank is a 60 gallon tempered glass tank. I have been looking at filtration options and such, and I do not think we have the space to do a sump setup.

How necessary is a sump setup? What are the benefits??

We are looking at purchasing this:

Fluval FX6 Canister Filter | Petco Store

Does anyone have any experience with the Fluval canister filter? Would this work instead of a sump?

We will still be getting things like the protein skimmer, and circulation pumps. I'm just not sure about tackling a sump.

Any advice that you all can provide on how to go about setting up our aquarium will be greatly appreciated! Right now the tank is just sitting in our living room, waiting for me to figure out the next step.

 

[Sniperhank]

First off, welcome to the salty side!
I personally think that a sump is the best option when it comes to our hobby. It can be as large as you want it to be or have room for, but bigger is always better. It helps to add more water to your water column and also gives you a place to store additional equipment, such as your heater, protein skimmer, and so on.
When it comes to canisters, they can be an effective means of accomplishing what you aim for it to do...but require weekly maintenance to ensure that it doesn't become a nitrate trap and cause more issues than it can solve.

 

[DisneyMatt]

Filters, Pumps, and Sumps?! Oh My!!

As I have been researching the most practical filtration system for my tank I'm starting to get a little overwhelmed, and was hoping maybe some of you all on here could provide me with some advice.

We have a 60 gallon tank that we want to be a reef and fish tank. Not just a fish only tank. I want what's best for the aquarium, the fish, and the reef. However, I also want what is best for my bank account. With that being said, I'm becoming overwhelmed with all the options.

I know most will say "sump or nothing" but if we do go with a sump we are going to have to get an all new stand, as well as all of the items needed to run a successful sump which is going to get really expensive, really fast.

I have looked at canister filters, and I know they require a little more weekly maintenance, but they are much more practically priced for us right now. What kind of extra weekly maintenance is required for a canister filter?? If we do go with a canister filter, aside from the canister filter, the protein skimmer, lights, and the circulation pumps what else would be needed to successfully run the reef tank?

HOB? I have heard many people mention using HOB (Hangs on back) of the tank filters on their reef tanks but so me that just doesn't seem like enough for a reef tank. However, I could be wrong. If people are successfully using them then what are the downfalls to using HOB filters?

I know this is a lot of questions, but I don't know what the "right" next step for us is when approaching the filtration system for our tank. If at all possible I'd really rather avoid the sump system for now. It is something that we are willing to look at down the road, but it is a huge extra expense so I want to make sure it is 100% worth it before committing to the sump system. Ideally we would like to use a canister filter, protein skimmer, lights, and circulation pumps... But is that enough?? What else would we need??

Any advice you all could provide is greatly appreciated. Like I said, I'm really new to this, and not sure what the right next step is for the filtration system!

Thanks,

 

[Sniperhank]

That would be just fine actually. If you clean the canister filter weekly with your water changes, it won't become a nitrate trap.

 

[Mebbid]

First off, I would ditch the canister idea imho.

An adequate amount of live rock provides all of the biological filtration that a tank needs. The best part about this is that you can buy cheap dry rock for $2 - $3 / lb compared to the $10 / lb that cured live rock costs and it will end up doing the exact same thing. I would shoot for between 60lbs to 100lbs of dry rock.

Check here for dry rock:
Bulk Dry Live Rock & Live Sand - Bulk Reef Supply

For flow a few power heads will fit your needs perfectly and will be cheaper than a $350 canister. You will want to look for around 10x - 40x the tank volume in flow per hour. 600 - 2400 gph.

I recommend Hydor Koralia power heads. They are affordable and super reliable.

2 of these would work well: Aquarium Water Pumps : Amazon.com: Hydor Koralia Evolution 1050/1150 Aquarium Circulation Pump, 1050-1150 GPH


As for Skimmer; since you're not planning on using a sump I would highly recommend that you invest in one. I have a reef octopus HOB skimmer that works very well for me.

Reef Octopus Classic 1000 Hang-on-Back Protein Skimmer - Bulk Reef Supply

 

[DisneyMatt]

Hey everyone,

Thanks for the feedback!

As I have been doing more and more researching, I have come across this product:

Hawkeye Rapids Pro RP3 Wet Dry Aquarium Filter System | Petco Store

Does anyone have any experience with this product?? Would you suggest it?

If you don't have any experience with it, for those of you with more experience in this hobby than what I have, does it sound like a good product??