Canister filter for saltwater

[russells55]

Hi hi.

I know it has been talked a lot both ways. I have a read a bunch of post from years ago.

However What everyone though on this setup…

I’m about to buy a 75/90gal tank and stand but my money isn’t endless.
Also part of the whole deal with the wife is that I’m going to get rid of my smaller saltwater tanks.
I have a fluval evo 13.5 stock setup.
10 gallon with just a powerhead (3 inch of live sand and one big live rock full of “ Polkaroo Leptastrea ”

a 5 gallon that was my quarantine tank but now has a bunch of frags and other Mis matched stuff also seams to be doing very well (have fluval nano coral lights of these 2)

I also have a fluval sea 32gal.
Lots of live rock and some LPS coral (hammers) and a clown fish pair

I use to have a 70 gal cichlid tank with 2 fluval 207 on it.

I no longer have that tank but kept the canister filters.

Are these canister filters good for nothing? I wasn’t going to use a sump just power heads and live rock.

What if I run them with very little media in them. All the post make it seam like I have to clear them every week.

Cheers sorry for the rambling.

 

[blaxsun]

They're good for freshwater. For saltwater, unless you like lots (like semi-daily) maintenance - they're generally not recommended. Filter socks (washable) or filter floss (disposable) are much better options.

 

[Aiptaisia anemone]

canister filter gets really messy when used on saltwater tank, if you wanna deal with it, it should work just like a regular filter.

 

[russells55]

Any thing that gets more dirty then others.

Maybe should I remove all the sponges but just leave the ceramic bio balls

 

[Sleeping Giant]

I have a fluval fx4 on my 75 gallon, it works great, but yes clean once a month otherwise gha can get outta hand.
I like the quiet and easy to maintain canister filter, but I'm sure others here will die trying to prove it wrong lol

 

[Rennurdoar]

I run a canister filter on my 65g. I have no issues with it. I clean it maybe once a month. I run seachem matrix in the top, then the sponge filter it came with in the middle, and then the ceramic media it came with in the bottom. I usually open it up, and just take out the 3 trays once a month so far and rinse them off with RODI water. My tank stays very clear, and all my parameters have stayed where they should. My nitrates have never gotten above 10ppm either.

I run an aqueon 400gph canister. Also run a Reef octopus 2000 HOB. I run red sea reefspec carbon in the hang on filter from the canister also. So, for me, it hasn't been that much maintenance. I think it just comes down to your preference. I've also only had this tank running about 4 months so far. But it's doing well imo.

 

[mikerosi]

I run a canister filter on my 65g. I have no issues with it. I clean it maybe once a month. I run seachem matrix in the top, then the sponge filter it came with in the middle, and then the ceramic media it came with in the bottom. I usually open it up, and just take out the 3 trays once a month so far and rinse them off with RODI water. My tank stays very clear, and all my parameters have stayed where they should. My nitrates have never gotten above 10ppm either.

I run an aqueon 400gph canister. Also run a Reef octopus 2000 HOB. I run red sea reefspec carbon in the hang on filter from the canister also. So, for me, it hasn't been that much maintenance. I think it just comes down to your preference. I've also only had this tank running about 4 months so far. But it's doing well imo.

Run the sponges on the bottom then your bio media In the middle and then on top would be chemical media if you use it

 

[CoastalTownLayabout]

You can also use them temporarily as a water polishing tool. Good for periodic carbon, GFO use and detritus export. Running them full time as a filter is definitely possible but you may be punished if you become lax with maintenance and cleaning.

 

[Tamberav]

Hi hi.

I know it has been talked a lot both ways. I have a read a bunch of post from years ago.

However What everyone though on this setup…

I’m about to buy a 75/90gal tank and stand but my money isn’t endless.
Also part of the whole deal with the wife is that I’m going to get rid of my smaller saltwater tanks.
I have a fluval evo 13.5 stock setup.
10 gallon with just a powerhead (3 inch of live sand and one big live rock full of “ Polkaroo Leptastrea ”

a 5 gallon that was my quarantine tank but now has a bunch of frags and other Mis matched stuff also seams to be doing very well (have fluval nano coral lights of these 2)

I also have a fluval sea 32gal.
Lots of live rock and some LPS coral (hammers) and a clown fish pair

I use to have a 70 gal cichlid tank with 2 fluval 207 on it.

I no longer have that tank but kept the canister filters.

Are these canister filters good for nothing? I wasn’t going to use a sump just power heads and live rock.

What if I run them with very little media in them. All the post make it seam like I have to clear them every week.

Cheers sorry for the rambling.

There isn’t much point to using them. Saltwater tanks have live rock so they don’t need biological media. I wouldn’t use them. You don’t have to use a sump either. You could use a hob skimmer or no skimmer at all if you want. Just keep stocking of fish appropriate to filtration.

You could run them with pads when you blast the rocks free of debris and stir the sand for a couple hours, then remove.

 

[Slocke]

No problems here but then I also hooked mine up to another tank to make a giant refugium so...
I clean every few months but never have nuisance algae.

 

[Rennurdoar]

Run the sponges on the bottom then your bio media In the middle and then on top would be chemical media if you use it

Yeah, I don't run any type of chemicals in the tank though, at least I don't plan too. I was just going to run seachem matrix in all three trays but decided to use the sponge in one still.

 

[russells55]

I like the idea of seachem matrix in the trays. Maybe just no fine sponges or filter floss.

 

[Dicey1]

I run an auquatop CF500 on my 90 gal with no issues. I clean it about every 4-6 weeks.

 

[Homebrewer]

I’m on year 17 of running my reef on a canister filter. Will never argue about the advantages of a sump, but you can indeed be successful with a canister. Also, it is a very common misconception they require frequent maintenance. I change the floss pad once a month, takes 3 minutes.

 

[mikerosi]

I’m on year 17 of running my reef on a canister filter. Will never argue about the advantages of a sump, but you can indeed be successful with a canister. Also, it is a very common misconception they require frequent maintenance. I change the floss pad once a month, takes 3 minutes.

Yeah and I like all the knuckleheads Calling a canister filter a nitrate factory
I’m kind of glad of that because I’m constantly dosing nitrates and phosphates

 

[His Coral Highness]

I use canisters on my tanks (75 and 16). Clean them once a month. They do make a big difference in keeping the water polished and crystal clear. But yeah, some people seem to have a vendetta against them...

 

[exnisstech]

A newer member @Landon20 posted some images recently of their 55g running an fx4 canister filter. Tank looks pretty darn nice. Maybe reach out to them and see how they have the canister set up? Pics are Here . I don't run canisters. I like to be able to work standing up (old knees) so my sump is in my unfinished basement. Plus I like a fuge, and a frag section, and a skimmer section, you get it ;) But obviously they can be used successfully.

 

[DanyL]

I personally always had sumps in my systems, but canisters can definitely be used when no sump is available but extra filtration is required.

You might wanna see this: