Should I get a sump?

[Mavsaltwater]

Hi everyone, I am running a 55 gallon saltwater tank for about 7 weeks now. I used Dr. Tims the first 6 weeks and when the ammonia and nitrite hit 0 continuously, I got 2 baby clowns last week. I currently have a cannister filter in it with 40 plbs of live rock and live sand along with hermit crabs and snails. I do want corals eventually probably in a year when tank is more stable. I’m extremely intimidated by sumps (I bought the tank used and it came with the filter and used to be a freshwater so nothing is drilled). Is there an easy way to set up a sump? Do i really need one? I feel like its better for the long run which I plan to be. Just really dont know where to start. Should it be DIY or should I get someone? Please please any advice is appreciated as well as what you guys think the cost will be (I already have a RODI, heater, and protein skimmer).

 

[mike550]

@Mavsaltwater welcome! As someone new to the hobby and this board quick suggestion for you. There are lots of opinions on this board, and sometimes they conflict. My suggestion is to figure out the facts and then find a solution that works for you.

So with that said, I have a sump because it seems like an easy way to go, and “everyone” seems to do it that way. I can pick out the components I want, it’s easy to maintain, and I understand how it works. I know some folks use canister filters but my sense is that you need to be more disciplined around maintaining it so that nothing bad happens to your tank. Good luck!

 

[Tidal Gardens]

We actually just did a video on sumps.

 

[dennis romano]

Welcome to R2R! Greetings from Passaic County.

 

[Jim Gomoll]

Do you need a sump? No, it can be done without, BUT a sump gives you a cleaner look without things hanging in/off tank and more/better options to customize filtration/water care. I got back into Saltwater after 20yr hiatus using old school (Fish Only) set up on my 75g, Now getting into corals and learning so much about reef setups I wish I went down the sump route.

Across the back of tank is 100% full with
Marineland 450 Emperor PRO Power Filter - 2 floss clams, one DIY polisher insert, UV light
MarineLand Penguin 200 Power Filter - Carbon, GFO, ChemiPure
HOB Instant Ocean Sea Clone 100 Protein Skimmer
Sicce Whale canister filter - recently added

Moving this fall, and when I set back up I'll either be drilling my tank for a sump setup or fingers crossed buy an all new reef ready system. Hoping for the latter.

 

[Sebastiancrab]

I started out as you have running with a canister filter and fish only. I am so glad today to have my sump. It's easier for maintenance and all of the equipment is out of sight. Don't be intimidated. I did DIY (see build thread) but purchasing one would be easier. Drilling your tank is not hard.

 

[slowwrx137]

I started out with a non-reef ready tank as well and it didn't take me long to decide I wanted to use a sump for better filtration/equipment. I started with a HOB overflow box and a 29 gallon tank that I made into a sump with plexiglass baffles.

Eventually when I moved the tank I swapped it out for a reef ready tank and swapped the sump out for a trigger systems acrylic sump.

I'd check the marketplace on this site as well as your local Facebook marketplace. You can usually get some pretty good deals on equipment from people getting out of the hobby.

 

[Tathamet]

As others have said, sumps aren’t needed but make life a bit easier and keep all your gadgets hidden away.

at the least though I would probably change from the canister filter to a hang on back filter like an aquaclear or seachem tidal (maybe two of them). It sounds like canister filters get gunked up way quicker in saltwater and the maintenance becomes a real pain compared to freshwater.

You could also build a partition in the tank and make it an AIO if you wanted.

 

[edd59]

i would go with a sump. it will house heaters, skimmer [depending on the type you have] uvs etc.
before investing money in drilling your 55, i would look into a used reef ready 75. same width just depth front to back is bigger, better for aqua scapping. in this hobby you need to be some what handy, so start diy projects.

 

[Tathamet]

i would go with a sump. it will house heaters, skimmer [depending on the type you have] uvs etc.
before investing money in drilling your 55, i would look into a used reef ready 75. same width just depth front to back is bigger, better for aqua scapping. in this hobby you need to be some what handy, so start diy projects.

agreed on the 75. I’ve grown to hate my 55 due to the front to back depth lol. It also feels too tall for how slim it is. I’d almost like to cut the top half off.

 

[Tlledsmar]

I'm going to offer my experience with a sump vs canister on my 75gallon, and I believe this would Apply even more to a smaller 55g.


I ran a year or 18 months on a canister and a HOB skinmer. I had great success, clear water, easy maintenance, happy fish, explosive coral growth.


I added a 20g sump during a move and reset up (I kept all my rock and stock alive) I went sump so that I could put the skimmer and heaters out of sight and I wanted to add a refugium later and hopefully reduce microbubbles. Also, an overflow would pull from the top so no more film. I have noticed that the corals aren't doing well, I'm having to feed them directly again as I did when they were small. There's no algae. I have to feed my algae eaters specifically. I have tons of crap floating around the tank that filter sock is not taking care of where the canister was much better at polishing. And microbubbles a plenty. Even with a bubble trap. I understand a lot of this is from the reset but things are not "bouncing back" as fast as they really should based on past experiences. Oh, and it's LOUD there's no way to have a truly quiet sump I don't care what people say. Now add in that most people are going to advise you to have 3 idiotic drains and have adjustable valves on them instead of calculating out overflow but I digress. So only pluses I have are no film and my equipment is out of sight.


125 gallon or bigger, sure I'd go sump AND a small canister. I'm contemplating removing my sock, putting a timer on my skimmer, and adding a small canister to polish the water.


There's benefits but I wouldn't say that they outweigh the problems on a smaller tank

 

[edd59]

I'm going to offer my experience with a sump vs canister on my 75gallon, and I believe this would Apply even more to a smaller 55g.


I ran a year or 18 months on a canister and a HOB skinmer. I had great success, clear water, easy maintenance, happy fish, explosive coral growth.


I added a 20g sump during a move and reset up (I kept all my rock and stock alive) I went sump so that I could put the skimmer and heaters out of sight and I wanted to add a refugium later and hopefully reduce microbubbles. Also, an overflow would pull from the top so no more film. I have noticed that the corals aren't doing well, I'm having to feed them directly again as I did when they were small. There's no algae. I have to feed my algae eaters specifically. I have tons of crap floating around the tank that filter sock is not taking care of where the canister was much better at polishing. And microbubbles a plenty. Even with a bubble trap. I understand a lot of this is from the reset but things are not "bouncing back" as fast as they really should based on past experiences. Oh, and it's LOUD there's no way to have a truly quiet sump I don't care what people say. Now add in that most people are going to advise you to have 3 idiotic drains and have adjustable valves on them instead of calculating out overflow but I digress. So only pluses I have are no film and my equipment is out of sight.


125 gallon or bigger, sure I'd go sump AND a small canister. I'm contemplating removing my sock, putting a timer on my skimmer, and adding a small canister to polish the water.


There's benefits but I wouldn't say that they outweigh the problems on a smaller tank

why dont you try 100 micron socks. you are correct you wont have a quiet sump, but it is quieter with 3 drains.

 

[Tlledsmar]

why dont you try 100 micron socks. you are correct you wont have a quiet sump, but it is quieter with 3 drains.

Thanks I've tried those things.

 

[His Coral Highness]

Central Jersey DOES exist!

 

[Mavsaltwater]

@Mavsaltwater welcome! As someone new to the hobby and this board quick suggestion for you. There are lots of opinions on this board, and sometimes they conflict. My suggestion is to figure out the facts and then find a solution that works for you.

So with that said, I have a sump because it seems like an easy way to go, and “everyone” seems to do it that way. I can pick out the components I want, it’s easy to maintain, and I understand how it works. I know some folks use canister filters but my sense is that you need to be more disciplined around maintaining it so that nothing bad happens to your tank. Good luck!

Thank you!! I lurked here quite a while to see what everyone else was doing and saw many people have had successes with cannister filter but the guy at my local lfs REALLY made it sound like sump will be needed. I’ll see how it goes and keep an eye out on things, thank you.

 

[Super Fly]

I'm going to offer my experience with a sump vs canister on my 75gallon, and I believe this would Apply even more to a smaller 55g.


I ran a year or 18 months on a canister and a HOB skinmer. I had great success, clear water, easy maintenance, happy fish, explosive coral growth.


I added a 20g sump during a move and reset up (I kept all my rock and stock alive) I went sump so that I could put the skimmer and heaters out of sight and I wanted to add a refugium later and hopefully reduce microbubbles. Also, an overflow would pull from the top so no more film. I have noticed that the corals aren't doing well, I'm having to feed them directly again as I did when they were small. There's no algae. I have to feed my algae eaters specifically. I have tons of crap floating around the tank that filter sock is not taking care of where the canister was much better at polishing. And microbubbles a plenty. Even with a bubble trap. I understand a lot of this is from the reset but things are not "bouncing back" as fast as they really should based on past experiences. Oh, and it's LOUD there's no way to have a truly quiet sump I don't care what people say. Now add in that most people are going to advise you to have 3 idiotic drains and have adjustable valves on them instead of calculating out overflow but I digress. So only pluses I have are no film and my equipment is out of sight.


125 gallon or bigger, sure I'd go sump AND a small canister. I'm contemplating removing my sock, putting a timer on my skimmer, and adding a small canister to polish the water.


There's benefits but I wouldn't say that they outweigh the problems on a smaller tank

after I swapped my sump, some of my corals didn't take kindly to the change and took them couple of weeks to adjust and return to normal. Fleece rollers do fantastic job of polishing the water, if your sump has the space.

 

[907_Reefer]

I'm on my second 55 with no sump, and don't have any issues with a few heaters and HOB skimmer (might be a good upgrade for you) out on display. Still plenty of room to enjoy the view and a simple setup!

 

[Fishtank0611!]

Hi everyone, I am running a 55 gallon saltwater tank for about 7 weeks now. I used Dr. Tims the first 6 weeks and when the ammonia and nitrite hit 0 continuously, I got 2 baby clowns last week. I currently have a cannister filter in it with 40 plbs of live rock and live sand along with hermit crabs and snails. I do want corals eventually probably in a year when tank is more stable. I’m extremely intimidated by sumps (I bought the tank used and it came with the filter and used to be a freshwater so nothing is drilled). Is there an easy way to set up a sump? Do i really need one? I feel like its better for the long run which I plan to be. Just really dont know where to start. Should it be DIY or should I get someone? Please please any advice is appreciated as well as what you guys think the cost will be (I already have a RODI, heater, and protein skimmer).

Mavsaltwater - I've been doing this for 4 years now and I too am intimidated with the sump its a lot to digest and I don't want to screw it up or kill my fish and corals. I have the same questions so I will be curious to read the answers.

 

[ryanjohn1]

Thank you!! I lurked here quite a while to see what everyone else was doing and saw many people have had successes with cannister filter but the guy at my local lfs REALLY made it sound like sump will be needed. I’ll see how it goes and keep an eye out on things, thank you.

If you do wanna go with sump. You don’t have to drill tank. CPR cs50 hob overflow into sump. 300-350 gps return pump. That’s how I roll

 

[Super Fly]

Thank you!! I lurked here quite a while to see what everyone else was doing and saw many people have had successes with cannister filter but the guy at my local lfs REALLY made it sound like sump will be needed. I’ll see how it goes and keep an eye out on things, thank you.

if u'r having success and happy w the canister, then I'd stick w it. The Live Rock (LR) will act as good biological filter. Canister just requires diligent maintenance as it's less forgiving when it comes to tank husbandry. Also canister would become more challenging should lots of corals and fish get added.

A sump is not a "must" for successful tank. Anytime there's uncertainty about lfs advice, please post a thread here to corroborate.

GL