Bottom drilled tank advice

[calebgbart]

So I started my aquarium journey a month ago and I am looking at getting a 55 gallon used. Only thing is it is a drilled tank with some pipe attached. I know nothing about drilled tanks. What is the point? Can they be used with canister filters? What is the point of a sump setup? I know basically nothing about the pros and cons of this setup... I’ll take all the info I can get.

 

[coralbandit]

You may be able to hook up a canister ,but I would not with out good shut offs on the lines .
Does the tank have pipes in an overflow or exposed in the tank?
Can you post a picture?
Sumps are easy and most never go back to other forms of filters once they understand if they have the room.
You would need to place a sump or aquarium in the stand to use the pipes as a sump feed /return.Making a sump can be easy.

 

[calebgbart]

You may be able to hook up a canister ,but I would not with out good shut offs on the lines .
Does the tank have pipes in an overflow or exposed in the tank?
Can you post a picture?
Sumps are easy and most never go back to other forms of filters once they understand if they have the room.
You would need to place a sump or aquarium in the stand to use the pipes as a sump feed /return.Making a sump can be easy.

I do not have pictures... but what makes a sump/ second aquarium in the stand such a great setup?

 

[coralbandit]

You can keep equipment like heaters and pumps out of sight.
You will have constant surface extraction which is the best IMO.
You will have no hard water lines from evaporation in the tank as evap will happen in the sump.The tank must always be filled to the same level to overflow through drain pipe so it never changes.
You also have the opportunity for much more media be it mechanicals or bio..
In general my opinion is they are the best filter but take up a good amount of room in the stand[or wherever you place it]. The sump for my 180g in my living room is in my basement....I drilled a hole through my floor in the stand to achieve this !

 

[calebgbart]

You can keep equipment like heaters and pumps out of sight.
You will have constant surface extraction which is the best IMO.
You will have no hard water lines from evaporation in the tank as evap will happen in the sump.The tank must always be filled to the same level to overflow through drain pipe so it never changes.
You also have the opportunity for much more media be it mechanicals or bio..
In general my opinion is they are the best filter but take up a good amount of room in the stand[or wherever you place it]. The sump for my 180g in my living room is in my basement....I drilled a hole through my floor in the stand to achieve this !

In theory that sounds fantastic but I live in a 1 bedroom apartment... plus idk if I can convince my spouse that this is all necessary haha especially this soon

 

[rlederer]

I agree. A sump is a fantastic filter setup. If you have room under the 59 gal tank for a 20 gallon tank, you have room for a sump. That's apparently why the tank was drilled in the bottom in the first place.

 

[calebgbart]

I agree. A sump is a fantastic filter setup. If you have room under the 59 gal tank for a 20 gallon tank, you have room for a sump. That's apparently why the tank was drilled in the bottom in the first place.

I have some kindof crazy ideas on how to set it up but it might be abit of overkill