Perfect Filter for 100 gallon

[Sarah99701]

What would be your perfect filter for a 100 gallon reef tank set up with hard/soft coral, sea anemones and just a few fish? (Try to keep it under $300)

I have a Magnum 300 canister and I guess it might be contributing to my Algae problem. It is not the easiest thing to clean/change out. Also have a protein skimmer and am thinking about a carbon/GFO reactor.

Thanks Sarah

 

[Bectan01]

Do you have a sump/fuge? If not then I would suggest doing that and not using canisters at all. Do you have a protein skimmer too?

 

[Sarah99701]

No sump/fuge but I do have a protein skimmer. Would you go with a wet/dry filter?

 

[Dimdim]

Wet dry is old technology. I currently run one. But modded for maximum filtration

 

[mr_X]

For a reef tank with sensitive inverts, I would want very low nitrate. This would be hard to achieve with a canister filter or wet/dry. I would simply use live rock and a massive protein skimmer. those 2 components coupled with weekly water changes should be enough to keep a thriving reef.

 

[Sarah99701]

I have a Dual Bak Pak 2 but only one side is working. I thought one side was good enough for my 55 gal. I guess I should get the other side working again. Would that be a big enough protein skimmer for a 55 gal.? How many gallons would you change weekly on a 55 gal.? I've been doing 5 gallons changes weekly (with the amount of rock I have it displaces a lot of water). I am having difficulty keeping the rock from touching the tank walls so I end up with dead zones with not a lot of water movement and algae is loving those spots. I need to drill into the rock and put them together like tinker toys like this video

 

[mr_X]

I'm not a fan of the bakpak skimmer. I would probably want something rated for 1.5 to 2 times your total system volume, that has very good air draw. 5-10 gallons water change sounds good, depending on how much displacement you are talking about. Don't forget to feed reasonably. Overfeeding is the number 1 cause of nuisance algae outbreaks.

 

[Sarah99701]

So if I have 100 gal (dreaming of the future) I am looking for a sump rated for a 150 to 200 gallon tank. How do they rate "air draw"? What would I look for? Thanks

 

[mr_X]

Usually they list it (if the amount is substantial...otherwise, they don't bother to list it). For instance, this one draws 960 liters-
Bubble Magus
..and this one pulls half that-
Bubble Magus

 

[Sarah99701]

So I want one rated for a 150 to 200 gallons tank and an air draw or LPH of 800 to 1000? Notice some are rated as internal and external. Are the internal ones that sit in a tank (sump) under the tank and the externals hang on the side?
Found this one but it is expensive ($803)
Vertex Alpha 170 Protein Skimmer

• Tank Size: up to 200 Gallons
• Footprint: 9¼" x 15" or 9¼" x 17"
• Height: 23"
• Base Diameter: 8¾" - Neck Diameter: 4¼"
• 1000 to 1200 LPH @ 18W

 

[mr_X]

There's no real gauge to go by, but the more air and water entering the skimmer, the more water volume it can handle. That skimmer you listed sounds good, except for the price. Yes, external skimmers sit near the tank and are supplied by a pump. Internal skimmers sit in sump, and use 1 pump for everything. HOB skimmers hang on the tank. You are going to be limited with HOB skimmers. There aren't too many of them useful for large tanks. They are mostly for smaller tanks with no sumps.

 

[Sarah99701]

Red Sea C-Skim 1800 Advanced Protein Skimmer

There is one on ebay for $195 but does not come with a pump

It says that it can be a "in-sump use or stand-alone installation". But not sure how it could be stand-alone without a tank of water? Since the output would need to go into a tank and be pumped back into the aquarium. Right? So I guess it just doesn't have to sit in water but can.

So would it need two pumps? One to bring water to it and one to pump water back into the aquarium?

Till I get a sump set up (but is a sump set up a wet/dry filter?) I could just put the whole thing in a 10 gallon aquarium. Right?
What type of power heads do you like? I guess this one needs one with at least 450gph. But wouldn't the return pump need to be of similar size so that the little tank underneath doesn't overflow?

Sorry for all the questions - I can see why a HOB models are so popular.



Aquarium Filter Red Sea Advanced Protein Skimmer C Skim 1800 | eBay

 

[Keithhjs]

Red Sea C-Skim 1800 Advanced Protein Skimmer

There is one on ebay for $195 but does not come with a pump

It says that it can be a "in-sump use or stand-alone installation". But not sure how it could be stand-alone without a tank of water? Since the output would need to go into a tank and be pumped back into the aquarium. Right? So I guess it just doesn't have to sit in water but can.

So would it need two pumps? One to bring water to it and one to pump water back into the aquarium?

Till I get a sump set up (but is a sump set up a wet/dry filter?) I could just put the whole thing in a 10 gallon aquarium. Right?
What type of power heads do you like? I guess this one needs one with at least 450gph. But wouldn't the return pump need to be of similar size so that the little tank underneath doesn't overflow?

Sorry for all the questions - I can see why a HOB models are so popular.

Aquarium Filter Red Sea Advanced Protein Skimmer C Skim 1800 | eBay

I have two of these skimmers. While it does skim well, it does have a design flaw where there is a part that tends to drip. Not too big a deal if its in sump but a nuisance. I run one on my DT externally (drip much more problematic as it sits on the wall above a chiller) and one on my frag tank in sump. The drip is easily solved (I wrapped it with self fusing silicone tape) by various means but still to be noted. They are also finicky at times to adjust. Knowing what I know now I would have purchased a different one. I've been seriously looking at the My Reef Creations skimmers but those are pricey to say the least. Also, IMHO recirculating skimmers are better skimmers.
Also the two pumps utilized are for one pump is the feed pump (supplying water from the tank, to the skimmer, and back to the tank), and the other pump is for the recirculation of water that mixes the water and air that creates the foam.

 

[mr_X]

A sump is not a wet/dry filter. That's something used primarily for fish only tanks, due to the filter not converting nitrate to nitrogen gas. For a reef tank you would want to have very low to no nitrate.
A sump is basically just another container of water. What you put in it varies, per hobbyist.

When we are talking powerheads, do you mean a pump that returns water to the sump, or pumps that sit in the display and are used to increase flow?
If it's return pumps, Danner mag drives, Quiet One's, and Eheims seem to be the most commonly used. Don't skimp on one of these, since your tank depends on it.
As for the gph of the pump, that would depend on what you are feeding in your sump.
In other words, if your sump has a protein skimmer in it that has a 500gph pump on it, you want to send it at least 500 gph (after head loss) for maximum efficiency.

If we are talking power heads inside the tank for flow, Many people like Hydor Koralias, Aqueon power heads, and the uber expensive "Ecotech Vortech".

The protein skimmers I like that aren't ridiculously overpriced are Reef Octopus, Bubble Magus, ASM (the new cones, not the old models), Sea Side Aquatics, Vertex, and lastly, JNS.