external filter versus sump or sump/refugium

Hello,
Currently running 3 external filters on a 240L tank (loaded with discus).
2 of the filters are outside the cabinet because they wont fit (height and door opening too small
a 2.5 foot sump would fit under that cabinet

the questions are:

what will be more efficient in terms of filtration?
is a sump requiring a lot of maintenance?
this tank is not drilled, so i understand an overflow box would have to be mounted?

Curious to hear about the pros and the cons

thanks

Sumps are great for a number of reasons....
pros
you can segregate a fish into a sump to let it recover from an illness or an attack (cant do that with your external)
you can add / remove media alot more accessibly
you effectively up the litreage of your tank and can remove heaters etc from main tank thus creating a tidier tank

im not sure but i think a sump is actually a more efficient filter power wise (depending on your pump) than most externals never mind 3 externals on 1 aquarium

cons
possibility of malfunction / over flow is greater imo
imo you would be better off with the tank drilled than an overflow box


now if i sat and thought this thru there would be a list of pros and cons the length of my arms... but these are just the off the top of my head list......

hammie wrote:

Sumps are great for a number of reasons....
pros
you can segregate a fish into a sump to let it recover from an illness or an attack (cant do that with your external)
you can add / remove media alot more accessibly
you effectively up the litreage of your tank and can remove heaters etc from main tank thus creating a tidier tank

im not sure but i think a sump is actually a more efficient filter power wise (depending on your pump) than most externals never mind 3 externals on 1 aquarium

cons
possibility of malfunction / over flow is greater imo
imo you would be better off with the tank drilled than an overflow box


now if i sat and thought this thru there would be a list of pros and cons the length of my arms... but these are just the off the top of my head list......

fully agree with hammie, more pros, much easier to clean and maintain,

A sump filter is basically a reciprocal containing media, pumps heaters etc, and in a lot of cases extra water. Sump filters can be manufactured from any basic material such as glass, acrylic or plastic. In fact, many people who use sump filters make them themselves, they are available commercially but they often cost a lot of money. Sump filters are normally used on saltwater aquariums where water quality is really very important indeed. However, people have now started using sump filters on large freshwater aquariums.
Because water quality is so important in an aquatic environment, extremely efficient filtration is absolutely paramount. Even though a sump filter is quite basic and often very crudely put together, they are arguably the most efficient filtration system you can install on an aquarium. A large sump filter can contain enormous amounts of media, far more than you would ever be able to fit into a commercially available filter. So it makes sense to use a sump filter.

One of the first questions people ask when thinking about installing a sump filter is how big it should be. The advantages of a sump filter is not only do they take vast quantities of media, but you also get to add some extra water to your system. A lot of people recommend that the sump filter should be 25% the size of the main tank, I'm not sure where that came from, I've never been able to find anything official that backs this claim up.

You will need to choose a water pump which will circulate the water around your system, therefore you need to choose the correct pump for your sump filter. Very much like any other filter that you install and the aquarium, the pump will need to circulate the water enough times to keep the water nice and clean and free from toxins. My advice would be to decide how many times you want the water in your tank to circulate, and choose a pump flow rate to match this. I have a 540 liter tank I'm setting up and want the water to circulate at least 5 times per hour so I choose a 3800 l/h pump.( No I'm not useless at maths but I increased the figure required as it will have to pump the water up over a meter and there is a flow drop because of this.) People often say it's impossible to have too much filtration. However, it is on the other hand possible to have a pump that is too much for your aquarium/sump. If your water will be running so quickly between the sump and the aquarium, there will be an absolutely terrific amount of noise caused by all the water running through the system, and you want your water to spend time in contact with the media in your sump to be cleansed. So bear this in mind when choosing your pump.

Also the sump will not require anything like the same level of maintenance as canister filters would. For the most part changing the prefilter is all that is required on a regular basis and every couple of months you might take out the media and give it a rinse.

There are a couple of smart ways to get the water from your tank to the sump which if done correctly will not lead to flooding if there is a power outage or pump failure. Get back to me if you want more information on this. Think I have said enough for now.

Hope this helps!
Richard

A sump all the way imo for many reasons.
What I will say though is if ye have a 240L full of discus then consider buying a more suitably sized tank/sump combo instead of putting money into sumping the 240 only to have to upgrade anyways. You could get a large tank + fx6 for less than what it would cost to buy a sumped tank and get it up and running. If money is tight (not implying anything btw) then a decent size single external would suffice and not only would it work out cheaper but 1 filter on show wouldn't look half as bad as 2 on show... the best advice I can give ye though is consider upgrading if at all possible for the sake of your discus.

Redser wrote:

A sump filter is basically a reciprocal containing media, pumps heaters etc, and in a lot of cases extra water. Sump filters can be manufactured from any basic material such as glass, acrylic or plastic. In fact, many people who use sump filters make them themselves, they are available commercially but they often cost a lot of money. Sump filters are normally used on saltwater aquariums where water quality is really very important indeed. However, people have now started using sump filters on large freshwater aquariums.
Because water quality is so important in an aquatic environment, extremely efficient filtration is absolutely paramount. Even though a sump filter is quite basic and often very crudely put together, they are arguably the most efficient filtration system you can install on an aquarium. A large sump filter can contain enormous amounts of media, far more than you would ever be able to fit into a commercially available filter. So it makes sense to use a sump filter.

One of the first questions people ask when thinking about installing a sump filter is how big it should be. The advantages of a sump filter is not only do they take vast quantities of media, but you also get to add some extra water to your system. A lot of people recommend that the sump filter should be 25% the size of the main tank, I'm not sure where that came from, I've never been able to find anything official that backs this claim up.

You will need to choose a water pump which will circulate the water around your system, therefore you need to choose the correct pump for your sump filter. Very much like any other filter that you install and the aquarium, the pump will need to circulate the water enough times to keep the water nice and clean and free from toxins. My advice would be to decide how many times you want the water in your tank to circulate, and choose a pump flow rate to match this. I have a 540 liter tank I'm setting up and want the water to circulate at least 5 times per hour so I choose a 3800 l/h pump.( No I'm not useless at maths but I increased the figure required as it will have to pump the water up over a meter and there is a flow drop because of this.) People often say it's impossible to have too much filtration. However, it is on the other hand possible to have a pump that is too much for your aquarium/sump. If your water will be running so quickly between the sump and the aquarium, there will be an absolutely terrific amount of noise caused by all the water running through the system, and you want your water to spend time in contact with the media in your sump to be cleansed. So bear this in mind when choosing your pump.

Also the sump will not require anything like the same level of maintenance as canister filters would. For the most part changing the prefilter is all that is required on a regular basis and every couple of months you might take out the media and give it a rinse.

There are a couple of smart ways to get the water from your tank to the sump which if done correctly will not lead to flooding if there is a power outage or pump failure. Get back to me if you want more information on this. Think I have said enough for now.

Hope this helps!
Richard

Great post you have me sold. Will be looking to set that up sometime soon. Will contact you when I am ready.

davey_c wrote:

A sump all the way imo for many reasons.
What I will say though is if ye have a 240L full of discus then consider buying a more suitably sized tank/sump combo instead of putting money into sumping the 240 only to have to upgrade anyways. You could get a large tank + fx6 for less than what it would cost to buy a sumped tank and get it up and running. If money is tight (not implying anything btw) then a decent size single external would suffice and not only would it work out cheaper but 1 filter on show wouldn't look half as bad as 2 on show... the best advice I can give ye though is consider upgrading if at all possible for the sake of your discus.

Yes I am considering an upgrade to 450L - 500L to replace two 3 foot tanks with 240 and 260L, although no increase in capacity, the sump would add a good amount of water, and the shape of the tank would probably allow for better development of my discus.