Built-In Filtration in tank???

[zany_h2o]

So I went down to my local fish store and I was looking at the display tanks. the guy there was showing me a display tank that had a builtin filtration system with-in the tank it self. So about 3/4 quarters of the tank was empty and the rest of it is the filtration part. is at the top it left of the tank it has the some finger looking thing where the water seeps in and it has some bio balls and then the pump to return the water.
I was wondering what do you guys think about this setup?? or should I just go with a regular empty tank and get a canister.
by the way it was a 50 gallon acrylic tank and ran about 371 plus tax i believe.
oh and i'm going to start out with fish only and then evently go to reef

 

[matt b]

Originally Posted by ZaNy_H2O
http:///forum/post/2535331
So I went down to my local fish store and I was looking at the display tanks. the guy there was showing me a display tank that had a builtin filtration system with-in the tank it self. So about 3/4 quarters of the tank was empty and the rest of it is the filtration part. is at the top it left of the tank it has the some finger looking thing where the water seeps in and it has some bio balls and then the pump to return the water.
I was wondering what do you guys think about this setup?? or should I just go with a regular empty tank and get a canister.
by the way it was a 50 gallon acrylic tank and ran about 371 plus tax i believe.
oh and i'm going to start out with fish only and then evently go to reef
IMO its not worth it. I would rather get a drilled tank and have a sump. The only way I would have the built in filter is to turn it into a refugium. I would not use a canister, They are a waste in a SW setup IMO. All they do is cause nitrates unless you change out the filters in it almost every week.

 

[spanko]

Couple of things. The tank sounds like it was made to be an all in one much like the Biocubes and Nanocubes only it is a 50 gallon. I would like to see this tank myself because I like the idea of an all in one. The only thing that turns me off about this tank is that it is acrylic. It scratches so easy that I think you would be disappointed in the not to distant future.
JMO FWIW

 

[zany_h2o]

so what would you suggest? a regular tank with a HOB filter.
i live in an apartment on the first floor. I think a 50g is my definite max considering the space i have. So even though it is not an ideal size tank anywhere from a 20-40g tank would be ideal in my apt.
can you make a suggestions.
does anyone have this type of tank, any other opinions.
thanks

 

[mike27t]

First post here folks.

Although ive been lurking for a few weeks. The tank I believe is a clear for life tank 50gal. I have this tank.
you guys want pics?

 

[matt b]

Originally Posted by ZaNy_H2O
http:///forum/post/2535366
so what would you suggest? a regular tank with a HOB filter.
i live in an apartment on the first floor. I think a 50g is my definite max considering the space i have. So even though it is not an ideal size tank anywhere from a 20-40g tank would be ideal in my apt.
can you make a suggestions.
does anyone have this type of tank, any other opinions.
thanks
Look inot biocubes. Or you could get a 55 reef ready and do a sump

 

[spanko]

Have you looked at the all in ones yet?
Oceanic Bio Cubes
JBJ Nano Cubes
Red Sea Max
Current Solana

 

[zany_h2o]

hey mike yeah i would like to see some pics. are there any cons to the tank?
yeah i have looked in the biocubes and aquapods, but just not sure if that would be a good route to go.
i have thought about doing a sump, but not really sure how i would go about building one.
i tried finding pictures online of the tank and the back but i couldn't find. the closest thing i could fine is this.
http://www.myfishtank.com/images/Uni-RectSM.jpg

 

[mike27t]

^^^ here you go. Tank is 2 months old so im kinda new at this. The main reason I went with this tank is it gives it a very clean look without any plumbing needed or additional sump in your stand. Also it is near impossible to overflow the tank as ive heard of some horror stories with sumps. It is extremely quiet, the only thing I can hear is the skimmers pump and even thats pretty quiet. Downsides are you are limiting your display space by having 20% of the tank used as a filter from your display are and second chambers in the back are pretty cramp.
Skimmer was sold separate ($80) and the lighting it came with was crap, so I had to upgrade. Feel free to ask my any questions about it

Chamber 1 & 2 the slots you saw in the top left corner of the previous pic has the overflow coming into these two chambers. One chamber has the skimmer in it (specific skimmer for this tank) and both chambers have foam filters at the bottom.

Chamber 3
Wet/dry drip onto bioballs

Chamber 4
return to tank

Diagram of water flow (sorry for my lack of paint skills)

 

[zany_h2o]

yeah thats exactly what i saw the fish store.
your setup looks really good. contrats.
i think i have been overthinking this too much. i want to get started, but its a lot of money and i just want to make sure it i won't be

when i see something else.
how much did you pay for it if you don't mind me asking? the fish store wants 371 plus tax.
do you think this built in is better than the canister?

 

[mike27t]

Thanks for the compliment. This hobby has cost a lot of money to get started, but well worth it for me. I hardly watch TV anymore

and marine creatures are very very interesting to watch. Ive read more positive feedback on wet/dry filteration vs canister filters, but then again these are other peoples opinions and ive never tried the cannister filters myself.
$400 for tank out the door (included bioballs, return pump, crappy light fixture/no bulb).
Skimmer = $80
45lbs live rock x $5lb = $225
Lighting = $120
Heater = $30
Stand = Already had (probably cost around $150
All in all its cost me around $1k. The initial start is the expensive part.
My only regret is not buying better lighting which I will be doing soon. No regret on the tank because it has such a clean look without a bunch of stuff sticking out of it.

 

[zany_h2o]

Hey Mike hows the tank holding up.
I went down to my fish store and took a look at it. I am still undecided on what to do.
I could get a regular tank and do the whole sump things, but not really sure if i want to do that. I know its the best option, but i don't know.
they also told me that if you want to improve your filtrations you can add a canister to the one you have. not really sure if thats kinda stupid.
any opinions anyone

 

[mike27t]

Originally Posted by ZaNy_H2O
http:///forum/post/2541427
Hey Mike hows the tank holding up.
I went down to my fish store and took a look at it. I am still undecided on what to do.
I could get a regular tank and do the whole sump things, but not really sure if i want to do that. I know its the best option, but i don't know.
they also told me that if you want to improve your filtrations you can add a canister to the one you have. not really sure if thats kinda stupid.
any opinions anyone
No need for a canister filter. Ive checked my foam filters and they catch all the debris and waste. The skimmer does its job, once a week it has a bunch of crap in the collector. The cleaners take care of all the stuff on the sand bed. My parameters have been perfect throughout the entire set up so far. Its really your own preference for the tank. Its the same concept as a sump set up without the additional tank or plumbing needed. And dont forget its 50 gal total, but only 40 gal for display.
If you were to get a traditional tank/sump set up, how many gallons did you want your display tank to be?
If you think you would want a bigger tank in the near future I would say go with a tank + sump set up, at least that gives you more options of going bigger if you ever wanted to. If I wanted to go bigger I would have to buy everything all over again.

 

[zany_h2o]

glad to hear things are going really good for you.

you bring up a good point about the tank size and to be honest i think this is about as big as i would go for quite some time. first of all starting off will set me back a bit and second i live in an apt.
if i have to move for whatever reason, i think a 50gal will be ok as far as taking up space. if i get anything bigger it would have to be for a house so pretty much i think my best bet right now is this tank
do you plan to do reef anytime soon or the near future??

 

[acrylic51]

I'd opt against the filtration setup built into it.....Eventually IMO will be a pitfall like the biocubes and such....the filtration is inadequate, and the skimmers regardless for the space allotted is inadequate......You'll see that these systems can't be taxed or stocked heavily as which most people do.....they might do find with 1-2 small fish and some corals.....JMHO