Newbie Marine set-up. Which Filtration option?

[Tazjunky]

Evening all, newbie here.

so to set the scene.......

 

Eheim Vivaline tank - 150 litre, 33 gallon (UK) 39 gallon (US) - cheeky little bargain and in such amazing condition. Glass aquarium is 60cmx50x50. 

 

I want  to have a predominantly coral set up with the obligatory clown fish duo and maybe a few other smaller species and shrimp 🦐 but that’s it. 

 

I am planning on either Red Sea 90 LED light or the AI HD for lighting.

Power heads etc

live sand, live rock 

 

my biggest confusion at the minute is filtration.

 

the tank came with a Eheim Biopower 200 which has foam and other filter media.

 

I don’t have a sump or the connections for it but I could drill the back for pipe work and get a nano sump which would fit perfectly in the cabinet underneath the tank. Although this space measures 40cmx40cm.

 

I've read canisters are good and my LFS has been using one on their main display tank for around 2 years with no problem. 

 

HOB seem to be popular with smaller tanks but I’m not sure I could manage to fit one due to the large plastic trim around the top of the aquarium. 

 

I’ve also seen some people not using a filter. 

 

 

So any any suggestions greatly appreciated - what should I use?

[Clown79]

Most will say canister filters are more work. They need frequent cleaning.

 

Sponges are definitely not recommended as they are nutrient and detritus traps.

 

A good hob will fit on a rimmed tank, most are designed for those types of tanks.

 

My personal favourite is the Seachem Tidal hob. Best one I've ever used and it has many positive features.

 

[bpipher]

Try to see if any aquarium stores does any custom acrylic work, you might be able to get a sump/overflow kit cheaper than the ones online.

Doing a sump would definitely be the best, but you'd have to drill and there's a good bit of cost associated with this compared to just buying a canister.  If you do a canister try to skip all sponges and even floss.  Maybe just fill it with some type of media or rubble.  Anything that would filter the water will require lots of regular changing in a canister as it'll give you nitrates.

Before drilling be sure none of the glass is tempered.  I'd imagine only the bottom would be, but who knows.

[Tazjunky]

Thank you, I’ll look into the HOB’s 😁

whats the best way to set the media up in them for marine set ups?

[Tazjunky]

How often would media/rubble need to be cleaned out if using the canister?

 

[Euphylin me]

1 hour ago, Clown79 said:

Most will say canister filters are more work. They need frequent cleaning.

 

Sponges are definitely not recommended as they are nutrient and detritus traps.

 

A good hob will fit on a rimmed tank, most are designed for those types of tanks.

 

My personal favourite is the Seachem Tidal hob. Best one I've ever used and it has many positive features.

 

definitely agree on the tidal filters if you are going HOB. I ran a tidal with a coralife filter that had a built in protein skimmer. great combo

[Euphylin me]

1 hour ago, bpipher said:

Try to see if any aquarium stores does any custom acrylic work, you might be able to get a sump/overflow kit cheaper than the ones online.

Doing a sump would definitely be the best, but you'd have to drill and there's a good bit of cost associated with this compared to just buying a canister.  If you do a canister try to skip all sponges and even floss.  Maybe just fill it with some type of media or rubble.  Anything that would filter the water will require lots of regular changing in a canister as it'll give you nitrates.

Before drilling be sure none of the glass is tempered.  I'd imagine only the bottom would be, but who knows.

If i remember correctly, they got rid of doing tempered glass on the bottom of tanks (if you cracked the bottom by accident all the glass would shatter and the contents would just dump out)

[bpipher]

1 minute ago, Euphylin me said:

If i remember correctly, they got rid of doing tempered glass on the bottom of tanks (if you cracked the bottom by accident all the glass would shatter and the contents would just dump out)

I don't know if you meant in general or for this style of tank, but tempering the bottom is still pretty common across brands:

 

 

Worse yet, Aqueon will use tempered glass on any side randomly entirely based on availability and cost of resources. This is one of the ways that let them manage those $1 per gallon sales.

[Euphylin me]

Just now, bpipher said:

I don't know if you meant in general or for this style of tank, but tempering the bottom is still pretty common across brands:

 

 

Worse yet, Aqueon will use tempered glass on any side randomly entirely based on availability and cost of resources. This is one of the ways that let them manage those $1 per gallon sales.

yeesh i always thought tempering the bottom is the worst idea lol thats a handy chart though! and yes i have heard that about the aqueon tnaks

[Clown79]

3 hours ago, Tazjunky said:

Thank you, I’ll look into the HOB’s 😁

whats the best way to set the media up in them for marine set ups?

Common is running carbon and filter floss.

 

Floss replaced 2 times a week carbon every 2-3 weeks

[Tazjunky]

So I’m still looking at filter options and was considering making a concealed filter section at the rear of the tank like in some AIO aquariums I’ve seen. I know I’d lose some available space in the tank but what are people’s thoughts on AIO rear filtration units? 

 

I am am tempted by the Seachem, and watching some you tube videos they seem to be a good filter but some reviewers complained of pumps that have failed. (Which I know could happen with any pump/filter)

[Clown79]

3 hours ago, Tazjunky said:

So I’m still looking at filter options and was considering making a concealed filter section at the rear of the tank like in some AIO aquariums I’ve seen. I know I’d lose some available space in the tank but what are people’s thoughts on AIO rear filtration units? 

 

I am am tempted by the Seachem, and watching some you tube videos they seem to be a good filter but some reviewers complained of pumps that have failed. (Which I know could happen with any pump/filter)

Sicce pumps are excellent pumps, that's what comes with the tidal.

There are failures with all brands of equipment, sometimes it can be user fault ex. Not cleaning a pump can cause it to break. 

 

Aio systems are great. It's nice being able to hide equipment in there, you can put chaeto back there, etc etc. Depending on how large you make it, you may not lose a lot of real estate.

 

 

[Tazjunky]

So I’ve repositioned the tank, was messing with the top plastic trim that sticks up either side of the cable cut outs and noticed it lifted slightly, long story short, the whole thing came off revealing a much better sexy looking top to the tank, question is, if I removed that layer of silicone and leave the plastic trim off do you think it will be safe to use once filled? 

[Euphylin me]

5 minutes ago, Tazjunky said:

So I’ve repositioned the tank, was messing with the top plastic trim that sticks up either side of the cable cut outs and noticed it lifted slightly, long story short, the whole thing came off revealing a much better sexy looking top to the tank, question is, if I removed that layer of silicone and leave the plastic trim off do you think it will be safe to use once filled? 

i have read on a forum, i wish i had the link, but a tank manufacturer told someone that unless there is a center brace, the top rim is for aesthetics. So in this case, you should be fine.

[Tazjunky]

17 hours ago, Euphylin me said:

i have read on a forum, i wish i had the link, but a tank manufacturer told someone that unless there is a center brace, the top rim is for aesthetics. So in this case, you should be fine.

Just had an email back from Eheim and they have confirmed the top trim is just for housing the lighting and lid other than that it is safe to remove and have  as an open pool aquarium 😁

[mcarroll]

The Tunze Reefpack 250 would be the simplest option IMO.

 

Magnetically mounted insiide the tank.  The filter unit also hides a heater and ATO sensor.

 

[Tazjunky]

Hi everyone,

 

so LFS has been telling me again I need to get a sump or canister. 

 

Can an everyone tell me if they aren’t using a sump what filtration they are using and how it’s set up?

 

ive been looking into the Seachem Tidal - but will it be enough on its own to keep the tank clean?

 

LFS say I should use a canister with Alfogrog and some course sponge like they use and clean the sponge every few weeks and rinse of the media. 

 

Head literally wants to explode 🤯

 

so so if I get a Seachem what media should I have assuming it’s enough to keep the tank clean?

 

and if I was to get a canister what media do I need to set one up?

 

TIA 😁

[Clown79]

5 hours ago, Tazjunky said:

Hi everyone,

 

so LFS has been telling me again I need to get a sump or canister. 

 

Can an everyone tell me if they aren’t using a sump what filtration they are using and how it’s set up?

 

ive been looking into the Seachem Tidal - but will it be enough on its own to keep the tank clean?

 

LFS say I should use a canister with Alfogrog and some course sponge like they use and clean the sponge every few weeks and rinse of the media. 

 

Head literally wants to explode 🤯

 

so so if I get a Seachem what media should I have assuming it’s enough to keep the tank clean?

 

and if I was to get a canister what media do I need to set one up?

 

TIA 😁

I've never used a sump. It's not necessary, it has benefits but not everyone uses one.

 

 

 

I've used simple hob filters(including the Tidal), no sump, no skimmer on standard tanks. I buy larger hob filters. Never an issue.

Many go this route.

 

Most will not recommend a canister. More work involved.

 

I now have all in one tanks, so simple media basket in back chamber.

 

There are many ways to run a reef. Go through totm's and journal's to see the various methods.

 

Lfs advice can be sketchy. Not all are honest and good. Insisting you buy a canister or sump is a money making sales tactic.

 

 

 

 

[Tazjunky]

So I decided to go with the Seachem Tidal 55. It's a beast that's for sure. I've since painted the back of my aquarium with acrylic paint. It's coming along now. Just waiting for my water containers to arrive on Friday so I can finally go get some salt water and live rock and start to cycle the tank. Going with an AI Prime HD for lighting but have been told not to bother with that until I'm ready to out fish in which I'm planning on doing in November once I'm back from my holiday 😎

[bilen]

On 8/29/2019 at 8:24 PM, Tazjunky said:

So I’ve repositioned the tank, was messing with the top plastic trim that sticks up either side of the cable cut outs and noticed it lifted slightly, long story short, the whole thing came off revealing a much better sexy looking top to the tank, question is, if I removed that layer of silicone and leave the plastic trim off do you think it will be safe to use once filled? 

Can I ask how did you manage to take the top of ? Because I also have Eheim Vivaline tank(150lt) and the top is really stoping me to have hang on lights. Would be nice if you have any pictures how you manged it.