Internal Filter Vs Sump set up

[Red260z]

Hi,

I've had fish for the last 10+ years. Yabbies, Oscas, Tropical, Siamese Fighters ... etc etc BUT ... About to get a 5' x 2' x'2 freshwater tank and would LOVE your opinions of the Juwel internal filter system.
Hubby likes the look of the Juwel Vision 450 curved glass tank but I'm not confidnt the internal filter will be up to par.

I'm interested in a tank with a sump set up. I'm the one who will maintain the tank, which is why I'm interested in the Sump. I "think" it would be easier to maintain and cheaper and easier to have back up heaters and to add on any extras later.

What are your experiances and opinions on either?

We'll go either Aussie Natives or Tropical. Either way ... we both want BIG fish.



Looking forward to your input.

 

[CMOS]

I'm a big fan of (properly designed) sumps for the following reasons:

1. Keeping the BIO media in the sump keeps the tank sleek and natural looking (absent of all those icky hoses, etc.)

2. Heaters (I like 2 so one will always be there as a backup) can be placed inside for the same reason - they're ugly in the tank.

3. Lots of choices for BIO media like Poret foam, and even a live plant refugium, in the sump.

4. Convenient place to add a mesh bag with some occasional Carbon, or other water treatment product

5. Using a sump keeps the main tank water level full and even. It bugs me how many people's tanks have their water line down .5-1.5" from the top trim.

6. You can utilize a sump sock setup to catch the large pieces of floating matter as to not clog up your BIO medis

With a tank that size you can do quite a bit with a sump. Go for it.

CMOS