# Considering upgrading



## albita (Oct 12, 2013)

Hi y'all! It's been a while! My 55 gallon mbuna tank has been doing great and we still love our fish...although we have enough holy rock we will be looking for homes for some soon.  We are MOVING in a couple months (just about a mile away). Conveniently, the home we are having built has a larger space that can accommodate a fish tank and we are considering upgrading to a 100 gallon tank when we move. Right now on our 55 we are running HOB filters that are doing just fine...but we'd like a sleeker look and are thinking canister filters for the new one. Trying to research it and getting a touch lost.

1. Do I still want 6-10x filtration on the tank with a canister filter? So...600-1000 gph?
2. If I do, am I better off going with a couple smaller filters or one great big (and really expensive EEK!) canister filter?
3. Sump pumps. Someone please tell me why I would or wouldn't want a sump pump system. Pros/Cons?

If we are going to make this happen, it's going to have to be relatively cost effective. We can pick up a basic 100 gallon tank/stand for around $300-500 used, so hoping we can manage the filtration and such for around $500-700. Thanks in advance!

Currently: 55 gallon with yellow labs, rusties & cynotilapia likoma red tops. 2 bristlenose plecos and 3 catfish. The rusties will likely be going to a new home when we move and just keeping the labs & cynos. The rusties are kinda taking over the tank and we don't really find them all that pretty. We are WAY overstocked at the moment in the 55. They all seem fine, but it's time to fix it up a bit.


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## RFan (Aug 4, 2014)

I have 2 eheim 2217s on my 125g. I like going with 2 smaller canisters rather than one large one so that I have a backup if one breaks. If you decide to go with one large canister, you might consider the eheim 2262. I have one of those on my 265g. It's probably overkill on a 100g tank, but if you want a high flow rate, it will give you that. I've found that canisters are about 20% cheaper on the internet than at any of my LFSs.

I'll defer to others about whether there are advantages to a really high flow rate. I'm not sure that it's necessary. Some people like to have a really powerful current to keep waste from settling on the bottom. If flow rate is what you want, you might be able to achieve that less expensively with a powerhead.


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## nodima (Oct 3, 2002)

I'm of the mindset of getting 2, but I'd also get two of the same model. This way you only need to stock parts and media etc. for a single filter, which helps reduce what you need. I have 3 Eheim 2128/2028 filters, and only need to keep a single impeller, o rings, etc. Previously I had all of those extras for various fluval, eheim etc. Much easier now.


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## Kanorin (Apr 8, 2008)

Answers to your numbered questions
1. Yes. Keep in mind you can also have a mix of canister filters and HOB filters (that's what I do)
2. Multiple filters gives me peace of mind whenever I leave town for a few days. If one goes down, the fish will likely still have enough oxygen and little to no ammonia spike.
3. Sumps have the potential to be cheaper and way more flexible as to how much and what types of media you put in it. But you need to know how to set up all the plumbing properly - if not, you risk leaks which could drain some/all of your tank.


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## clhinds78 (Jul 27, 2012)

If you do upgrade I'd recommend going with a 6" tank, you'll be glad you did. A 125G would be a nice upgrade from a 55 and not overly huge.

As far as GPH goes that depends on your tank, its stock and size. With a heavily stocked cichlid tank you'd probably want to aim for close to 10x per hour. At the same time, less can work as long as you keep up with your maintanance (water changes and media cleaning). For a 125G tank I'd probably go with two canisters of around 450-500GPH each.

However, if you are wanting to go with sleek a sump might be the way to go. It allows you to place all your equipment outside the tank resulting a minimalistic look. At the same time, sumps are very versatile giving you ample room for media and equipment. If you do decide to go with a sump do your research. There are ample sources online with very helpful information.

I was were to ever setup a 100G or bigger tank I would definitely go with a sump!


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## albita (Oct 12, 2013)

Thanks everyone! Definitely some things to think about. We are wanting a 6' tank for sure....going to read up more on some sumps to see if we think we can do that. We are pretty handy and can follow instructions...so that may be the way to go. Though, I have to admit...it does scare me a bit. I keep up on the water changes weekly with the 55, so keeping up on the changes isn't really an issue. But, even so, it's pretty tough to keep the nitrates down right now (again, too high a bioload). It would be nice to have it be a little easier. And, well...our fish are just getting plain grumpy lately. Definitely time for a re-scape too.


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## clhinds78 (Jul 27, 2012)

A canister can be just as unreliable as a sump. To illustrate this point let me tell you a little story of what happened to me this week.

Wednesday morning I woke up, stepped out of my room as I headed toward the bathroom in my apartment. As soon as I opened the door I was met with a horrific smell and a soggy foot! My canister filter had sprung a leak in the night and leaked 35G onto my living room carpet. What a mess!

My point is that canisters can leak too and cause issues just as sumps can. Actually, if done correctly a sump should be more reliable. It is best to setup your sump so that if there is a clog or the pump dies both the tank or sump can handle the excess water.

I think you should be able to get a used 125G setup for around $500. I would not pay too much more than $300 for a tank, stand, hood and maybe some misc equipment. Depending on what you go with, a sump could cost you around $150-200. THe most expensive component of a sump will be the pump. A good one can cost around $100.


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## atreis (Jan 15, 2013)

Sumps are usually (almost always) noisier than canisters, if that matters for you. (Not just the drain from the tank, but splashing in the sump, and the hum of the return pump.)
On the other hand, they can provide a very convenient place to hide equipment such as heaters, and can be sized to hold an arbitrarily large amount of filter media.

When looking for a tank, consider getting one with a built-in overflow. This will make it much easier to configure a sump. If you decide to go with a canister, just hook the intake side into the overflow drain and block off the return hole. (If you use 2 canisters, then hook the intake of one to the drain, and the intake of the other to the return hole. If you have a 3-hole sump (see below) then block off the remaining hole.)

If you use a sump, setup a drain ala the beananimal. It's a really good design - very safe, very quiet. Keep in mind that it requires 3 holes - many stock overflows only have 2. (You can do it with 2, but lose the safety pipe.) Also, TEST what happens during a power outage by cutting power to the tank. You want to make sure there's enough space in your sump to handle the water that will drain from the overflow when the pump isn't running.

Properly setup, a sump is less likely to cause a flood than a canister filter failure. I personally like the super-quiet of a good quality canister though.


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## albita (Oct 12, 2013)

So, I picked up one canister filter to get going on the upgrade. For now, I'm going to add it to the 55 just to get it seeded so that when I take it to the larger tank (that we don't have yet) it will be all ready and I can avoid having a long time to set it up and get it all cycled and set. Thoughts on length of time for this to occur? We still ahve about 2 months until we move. Will that be long enough? Or iffy?


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## Deeda (Oct 12, 2012)

I would install the canister filter now on the 55G tank, it allows you to become familiar with its operation and to populate it with good bacteria. The only disadvantage is that you will need to cut the hoses for the existing installation and your next new unknown tank may be much taller. It may or may not be a problem.


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